Colorado State University hurricane researchers anticipate an above-average 2021 Atlantic hurricane season. Graduate Researcher at CSU Jhordanne Jones said they are predicting 17 named storms. Not as active as last year but still above average.
“And we’re also forecasting for eight hurricanes and four major hurricanes. It is eerily similar to our forecast starting out in 2020,” said Jones.
2020 was a record-breaking hurricane season with 30 names storms. Jones said this time last year sea surface temperatures along the east coast and Gulf of Mexico were higher than normal.
“The sea surface temperatures are not as high as 2020, but they are still fairly warm which is one of the reasons why we are predicting a really active season,” said Jones.
CSU is not anticipating El Nino conditions at the peak of the 2021 season. El Nino tends to decrease tropical activity.
Jones said Louisiana has a 50-percent probability of landfall hurricanes in 2021, which she said is hauntingly like predictions we had last year.
“Yes, there is a pretty large chance I think of Louisiana being hit by a hurricane or a storm. We’ll have to see as the year progresses what happens,” said Jones.
Jones said they will be observing if we transition into an Enso or neutral state which means we could experience above-normal activity.
AccuWeather is predicting 16 to 20 named storms for 2021 and seven to ten to become hurricanes.
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