More weather experts are projecting a hurricane season with above-average activity in 2025.
Forecasters with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a report Friday detailing expected action in the Atlantic basin this year. Officials put the likelihood of an “above-normal” season at 60% for the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which stretches from June 1 to November 30.
“As we witnessed last year with significant inland flooding from hurricanes Helene and Debby, the impacts of hurricanes can reach far beyond coastal communities,” Acting NOAA Administrator Laura Grimm said. “NOAA is critical for the delivery of early and accurate forecasts and warnings, and provides the scientific expertise needed to save lives and property.”
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The agency predicts a range of 13 to 19 total named storms in 2025, defined as cells with winds of 39 mph or higher. Of that sum, as many as 10 are forecast to become hurricanes – storms that reach winds of 74 mph or higher.
One contributing factor in the potentially hurricane-packed stretch is the high chance for a northward shift of the West African monsoon, providing elements that can favor the formation of tropical storms. High-heat levels in the ocean are also expected, which can result in weaker winds that fuel the undisrupted strengthening of the destructive storms.
In 2024, 18 named storms spun out of the Atlantic, including 11 hurricanes. Five of those storms developed into major hurricanes, with one, Francine, impacting Mississippi after making landfall in Louisiana.
