Hurricane Season 2013- What Happened?

The Hurricane season in the US Atlantic goes from June 1 to November 30. The 2013 season was the first since 1994 with no major hurricanes. Also the 2013 season was first since 1968 that did not have at least a category 2 intensity hurricane.

Another measure of hurricanes is what is called the Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE). This is a measure used by NOAA that expresses combined strength and longevity of the subtropical and tropical cyclones. The 2013 season was 67% below the 1981-2010 average.

The big question is why this season hurricane activity was so low? One reason is for drier than normal air. This study shows that relative humidity was 24% below normal. This lower humidity was in place in part due to the strong sinking motion in the atmosphere that contributed to this. All these factors would tend to lead to less hurricane activity.

There will certainly be more research on this as time goes on. This reduced intensity and number of hurricanes is certainly good news for weather consultants like West Coast Weather and the residents of areas impacted in the Atlantic.