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Colorado State forecasters Philip Klotzbach and Michael Bell
expect there will 10 named storms in the 2018 season that began
on June 1, below average for the period. Four of those storms
are projected to be hurricanes with wind speeds of 74 miles per
hour (119 kilometers per hour).
Only one major hurricane is expected, according to their updated
forecast issued on Monday. Major hurricanes pack wind speeds of
at least 111 mph (179 kph).
Previously, Klotzbach and Bell had forecast 14 named storms,
including seven hurricanes, three of which they had expected
would be major.
The average Atlantic hurricane season produces 12 named storms
of which six become hurricanes, three of them major. The
hurricane season lasts for six months, finishing on Nov. 30.
In 2017, there were 17 named tropical storms including 10
hurricanes, of which six were major hurricanes.
A weak El Niño pattern can limit storms. It forms when sea
temperatures in the tropical Pacific are warmer than average,
and cause higher speed, high-level winds across the southern
United States, reducing tropical storm formation.
The U.S. National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration said in
late May that its forecasters estimated between one and four
major hurricanes.
The NOAA forecast also said about half of the 10 to 16 named
storms will be hurricane strength.
The only storm in the Atlantic basin so far this year was
Subtropical Storm Alberto, which formed on May 25 and dissipated
on May 31 after making landfall in the Florida panhandle.
(Reporting by Erwin Seba; Editing by Phil Berlowitz)
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