AUSTIN (KXAN) – Today, September 10, is the peak of Atlantic hurricane season. You wouldn’t think that’d be the case with a quiet basin at the moment, but climatology tells a different story.
Looking back at records, the most active period of tropical activity falls between mid-August and mid-October. This is because environmental conditions become most favorable during this time.
Wind shear, defined as winds of varying direction and speed at different levels in the atmosphere, is normally low during the late summer and early fall. This promotes further development of present tropical waves or storms. In contrast, high wind shear works to tear apart a developing system.
It’s not only favorable winds this time of year, but it’s also conducive ocean temperatures. There is a delay in the warmest time of year with respect to air temperatures (August) and ocean temperatures (September). Air heats up faster than water, so it makes sense that the warmest sea surface temperatures would come after most of us feel the peak heating of summer over land.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the agency in charge of record-keeping, states that between 1851 and 2022, more than 700 tropical storms, 400+ hurricanes, and 150+ major hurricanes have formed in September, the most of any month.
On average, the month of September produces 4 to 5 named storms, 2 to 3 of which would go on to become hurricanes.
As of now, there is no tropical activity in the Atlantic basin we are monitoring, but we know hurricane season is far from over. The Atlantic season runs from June 1st to November 30th.
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