Active hurricane season predicted for this year

The 2010 Atlantic hurricane season officially begins on June 1 and runs through Nov. 30. The 2009 season was quieter than normal thanks to El Niño, producing only nine tropical storms of which three became hurricanes. There are numerous forecasts for the 2010 season from various weather experts, but the consensus is that it will be an active year – possibly the most active on record–with as many as 18 named storms (the average is 11) and eight hurricanes. Reasons for an above-average season include a weakening El Niño and warmer waters in the tropical Atlantic.

While we usually think of hurricanes as affecting just the coastal states across the southern and southeastern U.S., these massive storms can have an impact far removed from the tropical waters from which they were born. While a hurricane is over warm water and at its peak strength, storm surges, damaging winds, tornadoes, and heavy rains all batter the coastal areas. But even after a hurricane weakens to a tropical storm or tropical depression and moves inland, it can still be quite destructive.

Devastating inland flooding can occur hundreds of miles away from the areas with hurricane wind damage, and the severity of the flooding is not directly related to the strength of the hurricane winds. Some of the greatest rainfall amounts can occur with weaker storms that drift slowly or even stall over an area. States all across New England, throughout the Midwest, and even north into the Great Lakes region can experience flooding rains from the remnants of Atlantic storms.

One of the most notable events in recent years, was the devastation brought by remnants of Hurricane Ike in September 2008. More than 5 inches of rain fell as far north as Michigan. Strong winds far inland were actually a factor too, resulting in power outages that affected 3.7 million people in the Midwest – most occurring in Ohio. There were 26 deaths across interior states directly related to the storm.

Our weather is even affected here, across the Inland Northwest, by hurricanes which form in the eastern Pacific. Tropical moisture can be carried thousands of miles away by upper level winds and is seen as a plume of clouds on the satellite image extending southwest to northeast right in to the Pacific Northwest.

Closer to home, it looks like we’ll finally get a break from the cooler-than-normal May temperatures, just in time for Memorial Day. Much warmer air should be in place by the end of the first week of June, which should give a boost to area gardens whose seedlings and unsprouted seeds have been shivering in the cold soil.