There were 18 named storms this year and 11 hurricanes — both well above average.
The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season officially begins June 1 and will run for 183 days through Nov. 30.
Tropical activity can form outside these dates because warm water and favorable atmospheric factors allow for cyclone development nearly year-round, but less than 3% of systems have formed outside the six-month season.
Agencies and organizations such as NOAA, Colorado State University, North Carolina State University and dozens of others closely monitor these conditions to predict the level of cyclone activity.
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season was expected to be extremely active by most forecasters, but the final tally of named storms fell well below expectations.
A total of 18 named storms formed, including 11 hurricanes and five major cyclones, which was still an active year by hurricane standards, but lower than many outlooks.
An average season produces 14 named storms, seven hurricanes and three major hurricanes, with a combined Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) value of about 122. ACE is calculated using a complex formula that takes into account each tropical cyclone’s maximum sustained wind speed and duration.
The last season to produce an average number of cyclones was 2022 but was marked by powerful hurricanes such as Fiona and Ian. Those names were retired by the World Meteorological Organization because of the deaths and destruction the storms caused.
IS THERE A WEATHER PHENOMENON KNOWN AS THE ATLANTIC NINA?
This chart shows the amount of tropical cyclone activity, in terms of named storms and hurricanes, that occurs in the Atlantic Basin on each calendar day between May 1 and Dec. 31. Specifically, it shows the number of hurricanes (yellow area) and the combined named storms and hurricanes (red area) that occur on each calendar day over a 100-year period. The chart is based on data from the 77-year period from 1944 to 2020 (starting at the beginning of the aircraft reconnaissance era) but normalized to 100 years. The official hurricane season for the Atlantic Basin is from June 1 to Nov. 30, but tropical cyclone activity sometimes occurs before and after these dates, respectively. The peak of the Atlantic hurricane season is Sept. 10, with most activity occurring between mid-August and mid-October.
(National Hurricane Center / NOAA)
Factors to watch in 2025
Looking ahead to the 2025 season, early outlooks from various weather organizations suggest an average to slightly above-average season. However, experts caution that early predictions are prone to errors.
The status of the El Niño-Southern Oscillation, or what is commonly referred to as the ENSO, is in flux. This plays a significant role in shaping tropical activity in the Atlantic Basin.
In late 2024, the world entered a La Niña phase. This climate pattern is often linked to greater storm activity in the Atlantic basin, but the pattern is expected to wane in 2025. This will lead the world back to a neutral status of ENSO.
Historically, neutral ENSO years have produced a range of hurricane activity, from a below-average number of cyclones to well above-average seasons, depending on variables such as sea surface temperatures, wind patterns and other atmospheric factors.
According to research conducted by experts at Florida State University, impacts from hurricanes during neutral years are heightened for the Florida Peninsula and the Gulf Coast, similar to what’s produced by La Niña sequences.
The East Coast tends to experience reduced tropical cyclone activity during neutral events, while the Caribbean sees impacts that are considered to be about average.
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La Nina hurricane season impacts
(FOX Weather)
List of names for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season
The first named storm of the 2025 Atlantic season will be Andrea, followed by Barry, Chantal and newcomer Dexter. The name Dexter replaces Hurricane Dorian, which was retired after the 2019 season.
Here are the 2025 hurricane names with pronunciations:
- Andrea (AN-dree uh)
- Barry (BAIR-ree)
- Chantal (shahn-TAHL)
- Dexter (DEHK-ster)
- Erin (AIR-rin)
- Fernand (fair-NAHN)
- Gabrielle (ga-bree-ELL)
- Humberto (oom-BAIR-toh)
- Imelda (ee-MEHL-dah)
- Jerry (JEHR-ee)
- Karen (KAIR-ren)
- Lorenzo (loh-REN-zoh)
- Melissa (meh-LIH-suh)
- Nestor (NES-tor)
- Olga (OAL-guh)
- Pablo (PAHB-lo)
- Rebekah (reh-BEH-kuh)
- Sebastien (sus-BASH-chuhn)
- Tanya (TAHN-yuh)
- Van (van)
- Wendy (WEN-dee)
We’re in the final month of the Atlantic hurricane season, but preliminary economic loss data indicates that 2024 is likely to become one of the more costliest hurricane seasons of the modern era. Jeff Waters of Moody’s joined FOX Weather over the weekend to break down the numbers.