Recently, it seems like there’s been a new catastrophic hurricane every other day. And honestly, there has been! It’s hard to keep up with all of the news circling each of the storms, and it’s devastating to hear and watch entire places be annihilated in the matter of hours.
But why are all of these storms happening? Were all of these storms expected to hit?
The answer is yes. Many hurricane experts predicted that 2017 would be an abnormal and highly active hurricane season. A typical hurricane season is 12 storms in which 6 form into legitimate hurricanes. The season runs from June 1st to November 30th. September is typically the most active month for hurricane season. So far, we’ve had a total of 13 storms in which 7 turned into legitimate hurricanes. The most active season we’ve seen so far was in 2005 which had a total of 28 storms.
The reason why many experts expected to have a busier season than normal is because of warm water and wind shear, which is the change in direction of wind. The warm water is caused by the Atlantic Multi-Decadal Oscillation which results in warm surface level temperatures. The wind shear, on the other hand, normally breaks up and weakens hurricanes. The Atlantic Multi-Decadal Oscillation also causes very low wind shear which gives the storms much more power to grow without any resistance. There is also speculation that the La Niña effect has allowed this season to be so extreme. La Niña is the process of surface water temperatures cooling in the Pacific Ocean. Even though these storms are forming in the Atlantic Ocean, La Niña is still an important factor because it creates perfect atmospheric circumstances for a hurricane to be created. These factors have created an unforgettable and formidable hurricane season, leaving millions in unsustainable living conditions and many dead.