Chances are you didn’t think a whole lot about hurricanes the first two months of the season.
But now’s the time to take it seriously.
With the start of August comes the height of the season. Now is the time when storms are more likely to form off in the central and eastern Atlantic Ocean, giving them plenty of time to feast on what’s now bathtub-warm water as they move thousands of miles towards the North American coast.
Traditionally, about two-thirds of hurricanes form in August and September, according to the National Hurricane Center.
The average date of the first named storm is July 9, the first hurricane Aug. 10, and the first “major” storm, of Category 3 or higher on the Saffir-Simpson scale, on Sept. 4.
Arthur became a tropical storm, and earned a name, on July 1, and it became a hurricane July 3. Bertha was named on August 1. But so far this year, those have been the only named storms.
The forecasters at Colorado State University will mark the move into prime hurricane season on Thursday when they issue an update on their prediction of a below-average season.
Source: Palm Beach Post
