Houston Chronicle by Andrea Leinfelder 8/4/2021
Don’t be lulled by the quiet start to this year’s hurricane season in Texas. NOAA is maintaining its forecast for an above-average year and has upped the number of storms it’s expecting.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Wednesday there could be 15 to 21 named storms. Between seven and 10 of those could become hurricanes and three to five could be major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher, according to the agency’s Climate Prediction Center.
“After a record-setting start, the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season does not show any signs of relenting as it enters the peak months ahead,” NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad said in a news release.
NOAA said Atlantic sea surface temperatures are not expected to be as warm as they were last year. However, other conditions are indicating that there could be increased activity. For starters, there is an enhanced west African monsoon. Disturbances that become tropical storms often come from Africa, and a stronger monsoon (more moisture being pulled into Western Africa) means these disturbances are better positioned to become tropical storms or hurricanes.
More:
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/This-season-s-hurricane-forecast-from-NOAA-just-16363626.php
