- The hyperactive 2020 Atlantic hurricane season has already used nine storm names.
- Forecasters formally begin naming Atlantic Basin hurricanes in 1950.
- The next few names on the 2020 list are Josephine, Kyle, Laura, Marco, Nana and Omar.
If we get to Hurricane Wilfred, then it’s time to worry.Â
From Arthur to Isaias, the hyperactive 2020 Atlantic hurricane season has already used nine storm names, with most setting a record for being early. And with the heart of the season still to come, what happens if we run out of names?Â
The concern is that there are only 21 names on each year’s list (there are no Q, U, X, Y, or Z storms because of the lack of usable names that begin with those letters), and federal forecasters Thursday predicted that as many as 25 storms could form.
So what do we call those extra storms?
Like we did during the unforgettable 2005 season when 28 storms formed, forecasters will start using the letters of the Greek alphabet to name storms – Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, and so on.Â
“Everything looks ready to be a pretty huge year,†said University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy, who said it’s likely that there will be more storms than names.
One forecasting company, AccuWeather, expects that those Greek letters will be used this year for only the second time on record.
2020 may not quite match 2005, however, for the number of storms: “It looks like this season could be one of the more active in the historical record,†but it’s unlikely to beat the 28 named storms of 2005 because the oceans were warmer and other conditions were more conducive to storm formation 15 years ago, said National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration lead forecaster Gerry Bell on Thursday.Â
How do forecasters choose names?
Forecasters formally begin naming Atlantic Basin hurricanes in 1950, using names from the international phonetic alphabet of the time: Able, Baker, Charlie, and so on. They started using female names in 1953 and switched to alternating male and female names in 1979.Â
The World Meteorological Organization chooses hurricane names several years in advance, based on a strict criteria. If a hurricane is particularly deadly or costly, then its name is “retired” by the WMO and replaced by another one. For example, Florence and Michael were retired in 2018, and Harvey, Irma, Maria and Nate were retired in 2017.
For the Atlantic Basin and the eastern Pacific, six lists of names are used, with each list used again – minus any retired names – six years after it was last used.Â
The WMO also selects the names to replace those that are retired. Each year the names start with the “A” storm on that year’s list, no matter how many names were used the previous year.
The next few names on the 2020 list are Josephine, Kyle, Laura, Marco, Nana and Omar. See the full list here.Â
Contributing: The Associated Press
More:On the heels of Isaias, forecasters say 10 more hurricanes are likely this season
