Hurricane season in the Atlantic is virtually silent. Historically speaking, the season’s busiest time should be now. Peak season is mid-September, and yet … crickets.
Why is the Pacific full of storm activity when the Atlantic has been calm?
The Atlantic just ended September without a hurricane forming. Accumulated cyclone energy in the eastern Pacific Ocean is second-highest on record so far this year. Based on storm strength and duration using wind speeds.
It’s the first time since 1994 that September has ended without a hurricane in the Atlantic.
Blame a record-hot El Niño pattern.
It begins with a warming of water temperatures in the eastern tropical Pacific. Sea surface temperatures are running 3-11 degrees above average. All that hot water heats the air above. The air over the Pacific rises, generating more hurricanes.
But what goes up must come down. Air sinks over the Atlantic, squashing tropical disturbances before they can organize. And harsh upper-level winds tear any fledgling systems apart.
Meanwhile, for the Atlantic, this season to date also yielded a record low amount of accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) — a measure of how much heat energy a season’s named storms extract from the ocean and expend on strong winds.
There have been two years that didn’t feature any recorded hurricanes — 1907 and 1914. But that’s before weather satellites existed. It’s possible there were hurricanes that simply weren’t logged.
Accumulated cyclone energy in the Atlantic Ocean is lowest on record so far this year
Based on storm strength and duration using wind speeds.
source www.washingtonpost.com