StormTRACK Weather: Hurricane season enters busy period
Hurricanes are perfectly organized storms of destruction. Part of a family of storms called tropical cyclones which typically develop during June and November– just north of the equator in the tropical to subtropical waters of the Pacific Ocean, The Gulf of Mexico, The Caribbean Sea, and the Atlantic Ocean. Hurricanes vary in intensity with winds from 74 to 95 mph up to a category 5 hurricane with winds greater than 155 mph.
National Weather Service El Paso Meteorologist Jason Laney explained that during hurricane development, certain characteristics become more prominent as the storm strengthens. Hurricane winds blow in a counterclockwise spiral around the calm, roughly circular center called the eye. In the eye, which is roughly 20 to 30 miles wide, it is relatively calm and there is little or no rain, Laney said. So far, the season has seen four named storms, including two hurricanes.
An average six-month hurricane season produces 12 named storms, of which six become hurricanes, including three major hurricanes. According to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center forecasters have increased the likelihood of a below-normal Atlantic hurricane season. There are several factors that are contributing to the lowered forecast including El Niño and sea surface temperatures and Saharan dust. “The tropics have not been very active during the first part of hurricane season”.
Whether the season is active or relatively quiet, it only takes one hurricane (or tropical storm) to cause a disaster. It doesn’t matter where you live, plan for the worst and hope for the best.
