Today is the last day in the month of August, and so far there have been no named tropical systems in the Atlantic basin this month. That's incredibly unusual; statistically, late August is when tropical activity starts to ramp up. The most recent time we have gone without a named storm in August was 1997 and has only happened three other times in the last 100 years. 1961 and 1997 are the years in the modern database with no named Atlantic storms in August. 1997 wound up being a below average season, but 1961 saw an uptick in activity at the end of the season which runs through November.
There have only been three named storms in the Atlantic this season, and the last named storm weakened on July 3 so it's been almost two months without a named storm in this region. The National Hurricane Center is monitoring three areas of potential tropical development. If any of these strengthens tonight, it could earn a name and ruin the point of this blog...but that seems unlikely at this point.
A cyclone earns a name when sustained winds reach 39 mph; that's the point when it becomes a tropical storm. Remember tropical storms and hurricanes can develop out in the ocean. Those don't have to make landfall or do damage to earn a name. Forecasters still insist activity will ramp up in the next few weeks, and we will keep you informed here and on TV as tropical systems develop.
