Atlantic Hurricane season typically starts June 1, but we have yet to see a named storm…

by: Bill Snyder, WGN-TV Tom Skilling Weather Center, Tom Valle

Posted: Jun 5, 2024 / 11:59 PM CDT

Updated: Jun 5, 2024 / 11:53 AM CDT

It’s been a decade since we’ve made it to June 5th without a named storm.

The Atlantic Hurricane season typically starts June 1, but we have yet to see a named storm so far. In 2014, Arthur (the first storm) formed on July 1. Here’s when the first storm of the season has occurred over the past half-century:

Source: Brian McNoldy, Senior Research Associate at University of Miami-Fla. 

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 7 days for the North Atlantic, Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico

Tropical Weather Outlook from the NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL
issued 800 AM EDT Wednesday Jun 5 2024

List of names for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane seasoning alphabetical order:

Why do storms have names? 

Prior to the 1950s, tropical cyclones were tracked by the order in which they formed each year, according to NOAA. This led to confusion when multiple storms were churning in the Atlantic simultaneously.  According to NOAA, storms are given short, distinctive names to avoid confusion and streamline communications. From 1953 to 1979, only female names were used for storms.