The WMO will consider the need for moving the beginning of the season to May 15 after 2021.

By Joe Mario Pedersen

Experts are meeting this week to discuss the whether hurricane season should start earlier.

The official start of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season will be June 1, as is tradition.

The World Meteorological Organization’s Region IV issued a reminder that if change occurs it’s not happening this season, it said ahead of its annual Hurricane Committee meeting in Geneva. The three-day meeting covers a variety of hurricane topics, including the record-breaking 2020 season.

The WMO will also consider the need for, and ramifications of, potentially moving the beginning of the hurricane season to May 15 for future seasons after 2021.

The idea to change the start of hurricane season was raised at a conference in December, National Hurricane Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen said in a statement to the Tampa Bay Times. The NHC will also discuss the idea further after reviewing the “quantitative threshold” for changing the date.

Pushing the start date earlier is reflective of the last six hurricane seasons all producing tropical storms before June 1.

Four out of six storms began circulating in May. The other two occurred in April 19, 2017, with Tropical Storm Alberto and January 12, 2016, with Tropical Storm Alex.

Feltgen, told the Tampa Bay Times that meteorological instruments have advanced and the NHC has updated its policies to identify more of storms, which are often brief, hybrid subtropical systems.

Among the many topics, the WMO hurricane committee will also be discussing the 2020 Atlantic Hurricane Season — known also as the most hyperactive Atlantic season ever recorded.

“The 2020 hurricane season was one of the most challenging in the 40-year history of WMO’s Tropical Cyclone Programme,” says WMO Secretary-General Prof. Petteri Taalas.”The record number of hurricanes combined with COVID-19 to create, literally, the perfect storm.”

The 2020 season averaged 30 named storms with letters used from the Greek alphabet. There was also 13 hurricanes and six major hurricanes; a typical season has six hurricanes and three major hurricanes. The record-breaking season also saw two early forming tropical storms: Arthur and Bertha. Prior to June 1, NHC issued 36 “special” Tropical Weather Outlooks ahead of the season’s start.

Among the lessons learned and statistics gathered from the 2020 season, the committee will also determine which 2020 names it should retire from use in future hurricane seasons. The WMO’s naming list repeats in cycles of six years. However, names from that cycle could be retired and frequently are out of respect to an area that may have faced catastrophic damage or deaths, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The committee will consider names from 2019 as this was not discussed in last year’s meeting due to the impact of COVID-19.

One name that may face scrutiny is 2020’s category 4 Hurricane Laura, which made landfall in Louisiana and was responsible for $19 billion in damage and 77 deaths. Hurricanes’ Sally, Eta and Iota may also face the chopping block.