Atlantic Basin 2011 Hurricane Names

For systems formed in and traveling through the Atlantic Basin (which includes the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico) there are six lists of 21 names each. These lists are rotated year by year. So, the list that will be used for the 2011 Atlantic Basin Hurricane Season was last used in 2005 - with some exceptions, which I'll talk about later.

2011 ATLANTIC BASIN HURRICANE SEASON NAME LIST

Arlene 6/28-7/1 (TS)

Harvey 8/18-21 (TS)

Ophelia 9/20-10/3(3)

 

Bret 7/17-22(TS)

Irene 8/20-29 (C3)

Philippe9/24-10/9(1)

 

Cindy 07/20-22 (TS)

Jose 8/28-30(TS)

Rina10/23-28 (3)

 

Don 7/27- 7/30 (TS)

Katia 8/20-9/10 (4)

Sean (TS) 11/08-11

 

Emily 8/01-8/07(TS)

Lee 9/1-5 (TS)

Tammy

 

Franklin8/13-14 (TS)

Maria 9/6-16(4)

Vince

 

Gert 8/14-16 (TS)

Nate 9/7-11(TS)

Whitney

 

For the current year's list of names, see Atlantic Basin 2012 Hurricane Names

Looking for the list of names for the 2012 Atlantic Basin Hurricane Season?
Try this link:

Atlantic Basin 2012 Hurricane Names
When will the first named storm of the 2012 hurricane season appear? We don't know that, but we do know that it will be named Alberto. A tropical system rec...

It didn't get a name. But it had hurricane force winds, and dumped a foot of rain in some areas of east central Florida. We were in it - AT SEA.

The meteorlogical analysis here: Impressive Rain, Waves, Damage From Unnamed Storm sats waves at buoy 4110 were 23'.

Farther out to sea, it was worse. I know because we WERE at at sea during this storm. Our captain reported sailing in wind gusts of 118 mph.

Read about our encounter with this unnamed storm at Wild Ride in Freedom of the Seas.

Photo taken as we left port
- before it got bad

There are 21 Hurricane Names on the List.
What does the NCH do if there are more than 21 named storms in a single season?

In a "normal" season, this would not happen, since the average number over the last 50 years has been 9.6 storms per season.

In fact, this has only happened ONCE since 1953, when the National Hurricane Center began naming storms from the six rotating lists. Strangely, that was in 2005, which was the last time this same list was used.

The provision for this situation is that they would start on the names of the letters in the Greek Alphabet, as they did in 2005: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, and so on.

UPDATE - November 8
We're getting closer to the end of the season, but today, the NHC named another storm.
18 of the 21 names have now been used in 2011

There was a time when there was no standard way to 'name'tropical weather systems. You can see how this could have cause problems if more than one system was active at once. So, at various times, these systems were referred to as women's names, or even the names of saints. But, there was no standardized usage until the early 1950's.

According to The National Hurricane Center's website, "In 1953, the United States abandoned a confusing two-year old plan to name storms by a phonetic alphabet (Able, Baker, Charlie) when a new, international phonetic alphabet was introduced. That year, the United States began using female names for storms."

Then, in 1979, we apparently became incredibly "enlightened," and begain dividing the name lists up equally between men's names and women's names. It continues that way today, with the first, or "A" name name being a female name in odd numbered years, and a male name in even numbered years.

FIVE names on this year's list are brand new. They are:
DON - KATIA - RINA - SEAN - WHITNEY

They replace the following names, which were retired after the 2005 season:
DENNIS - KATRINA - RITA - STAN - WILMA

RETIRED NAMES
A tropical system's name is retired - deleted from the list - when the named storm in question was either very deadly or very costly, by vote of the World Meteorological Organization. It is usually the country most affected by the storm in question that makes the retirement vote request. And approval is made on the basis of sensitivity for the effect that future use of the name that caused such devistation might cause.

Why were Dennis, Katrina, Rita, Stan, and Wilma retired? Read on to see.

Damage caused by Hurricane Dennis to a Navarre Beach home. (pubic domain photo from FEMA)

DON will replace DENNIS on this year's list.

Tropical Depression 4 formed in the southeastern Caribbean. and strengthened into Tropical Storm Dennis within 24 hours, and became Hurrican Dennis within 48 hours.

DENNIS briefly held the record for the most intense hurricane on record before August with a central pressure of 930 mb.

Before all was salid and done, Hurricane Dennis had become a catetory 4 storm, affected Haiti and Jamaica, made two landfalls in Cuba, once as a Cat 4, and once as a Cat 3, and made landfall in the US as a Category 3 near Florida's Navarro Beach. After his U.S, Landfall, he weakened, but persisted, and as a Tropical Depression, actually made it as far north as Ontario, Canada, before dissipation.

DENNIS was responsible, either directly or indirectly for 89 deaths, and over 2 billion dollars in damage.

Photo by FEMA, PD

KATIA replaces KATRINA on this year's list.

If any name ever deserved to be retired, it was this one.

Everyone knows what Katrina did to the greater New Orleans area, as well as the surrounding Guld Coast. She also affected affected The Bahamas, South Florida, Cuba, Mississippi, Alabama, the Florida Panhandle, a large swath of eastern North America. At her peak, she had sustained winds of 175 mph, and a central pressure of 902 mb. Thankfully, she weakened to a Cat 3 before landall in Lousisana, but her storm surge did damage of epic proportions.

Katrina will be long remembered as one of the worst natural disasters to ever hit the United States of America.

Photo: Category 5 Hurricane katrina, on August 28, 2005, over the Gulf of Mexico (public domain photo from NASA)

RINA replaces RITA on this year's list.

The approach of Major Hurricane Rita triggered massive evacuations along the upper Gulf Coast. It had been less than a month after Katrina had monumental destruction in her wake. People were taking the work 'hurricane' seriously. Houston's evacuation alone was one of historic proportions, as shown in Shinoda28107's public domain photo.

In addition, many Katrina refugees were still sheltering in Houston and surrounding areas. Texas found it necessary to recall large numbers of emergency and relief workers from Louisiana, in anticipation of a similar strike on their own state. Rita reached Category 5 in the Gulf of Mexico, and appeared to be on a course for millions in the Lone Star State.

However, the storm jogged east, weakened, and made landfall near the Texas-Louisiana border with sustained winds of "only" 120 mph.

Many ives were no doubt saved by the huge evacuation efforts, but still, the loss of 7 lives was directly attributed to the storm, with another 100+ indirectly attributed. there was an Property loss / damage was estimated 10 billion dollars.

PD photo by Shinoda

Oh, let's hope not! Just because it's time to use the same name list, let's not wish for a repeat of the record-setting type of season we had in 2005. Here's just a sampling:

- We RAN OUT of names on the list, and had to start on the Greek alphabet. There were 28 named storms, which was 7 more than the previous record.

- 2005 had the most hurricanes ever in a single season (15), AND the most Category 5 storms in a single season (5).

- It was the costliest season ever, in terms of damage.

- It was one of the longest ever, with the last storm - Zeta - finally dissapating on January 6. (Hurricane season officialy ends on Nov 30, but several storms seemed to be unable to read a calendar!)

No, we do NOT want a repeat of 2005. Not now. Not ever.

See the Extended Range Forecast of Atlantic Seasonal Hurricane Activity and Landfall Strike Probability for 2011 by Philip J. Klotzbach and William M. Gray
Ths is the December forecast (8 December 2010) by the widely recoginzed (and followed) experts at CSU. They usually publish revised forecasts in April and June.

For a more current forecast, and a comparison of 2010's early season foreasts with what actually happened, see 2010 Hurricane Season Forecast Accuracy & Predictions for 2011

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