Hurricane Season Definition, Dates, and Forecasts

A  hurricane season is a distinct time of year when tropical cyclones (tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes) usually develop. Whenever we mention hurricane season here in the U.S. were usually referring to the  Atlantic Hurricane Season, whose storms most commonly affect us. But ours isnt the only season there is... Hurricane Seasons Around the World Besides the Atlantic hurricane season, 6 others exist: the Eastern Pacific hurricane seasonthe Northwest Pacific typhoon seasonthe North Indian cyclone seasonthe Southwest Indian cyclone seasonthe Australian/Southeast Indian cyclone seasonthe Australian/Southwest Pacific cyclone season  Ã‚   Season Name Starts Ends Atlantic Hurricane Season June 1 November 30 Eastern Pacific Hurricane Season May 15 November 30 Northwest Pacific Typhoon Season all year all year North Indian Cyclone Season April 1 December 31 Southwest Indian Cyclone Season October 15 May 31 Australian/Southeast Indian Cyclone Season October 15 May 31 Australian/Southwest Pacific Cyclone Season November 1 April 30 The World's 7 Tropical Cyclone Seasons While each of the above basins has its own particular seasonal patterns of tropical cyclone activity, activity tends to peak worldwide in late summer. May is typically the least active month, and September, the most active. Rogue Hurricanes I mentioned above that hurricane season is the period when tropical cyclones usually develop. Thats because hurricanes dont always form within their season months -- they occasionally also form before the season begins and after it closes.   Hurricane Season Predictions Several months before the season starts, several well-known groups of meteorologists make predictions (complete with guesstimates of the number of named storms, hurricanes, and major hurricanes) about how active the upcoming season will be. Hurricane forecasts are usually issued twice: initially in April or May in advance of the June season start, then an update in August, just before the historical September peak of hurricane season. The NOAA releases its initial outlook the week prior to the June 1 season start.  Heres what NOAA  scientists are predicting for the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season.Colorado State Universitys Department of Atmospheric Sciences has been  making and publicizing  their  tropical forecasts  since 1984. Heres what theyre  predicting for 2017.Tropical Storm Risk (TSR) (a consortium of insurance, risk management, and climate forecasting experts based out of University College London in the UK), first introduced its tropical cyclone forecasts in the late 90s and early 00s. Heres their 2017 seasonal forecast for the Atlantic.The Weather Channel is considered a relative newbie to the hurricane forecast arena. (It began issuing its own hurricane outlooks in 2012.)  Heres what TWC is betting on for this years Atlantic hurricane season. Edited by Tiffany Means