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Atlantic
Hurricane Season Sets Records
The 2008 Atlantic
Hurricane Season officially came to a close on
Sunday, Nov 30, marking the end of a season that
produced a record number of consecutive storms
to strike the United States and ranks as one of
the more active seasons in the 64 years since
comprehensive records began. A total of 16 named
storms formed this season, based on an
operational estimate by NOAA's National
Hurricane Center.
The storms included eight
hurricanes, five of which were major hurricanes
at Category 3 strength or higher. These numbers
fall within the ranges predicted in NOAAs
pre- and mid-season outlooks issued in May and
August. This years hurricane
season continues the current active hurricane
era and is the tenth season to produce
above-normal activity in the past 14
years, said Gerry Bell, Ph.D., lead
seasonal hurricane forecaster at NOAA's Climate
Prediction Center.
Overall, the season is
tied as the fourth most active
in terms of named storms (16) and major
hurricanes (5), and is tied as the fifth
most active since 1944 in terms of
hurricanes (8). 1944 was the first year aircraft
missions flew into tropical storms and
hurricanes. For the first time on record,
six consecutive tropical cyclones made landfall
on the U.S. mainland
(Dolly,
Edouard,
Fay,
Gustav,
Hanna
and Ike)
and a record three major hurricanes struck
Cuba (Gustav,
Ike
and Paloma).
This is also the first Atlantic season to
have a major hurricane (Category 3) form in five
consecutive months (July:
Bertha,
August: Gustav,
September: Ike,
October: Omar,
November: Paloma).
Bell attributes this
years above-normal season to conditions
that include:
An ongoing
multi-decadal signal. This combination of ocean
and atmospheric conditions has spawned increased
hurricane activity since 1995.
Lingering La
Niña effects. Although the La Niña
that began in the fall of 2007 ended in June,
its influence of light wind shear
lingered.
Warmer tropical
Atlantic Ocean temperatures. On average, the
tropical Atlantic was about 1.0 degree
Fahrenheit above normal during the peak of the
season.
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