Oct 1, 2008 2:49 pm US/Eastern
Forecasters Predict Big Tropical Trouble In Oct.
Forecasters Expect 3 Named Storms In October
Two Expected To Be Hurricanes, One Of Them Major
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This is what Hurricane Ike looked like from 220 miles above the Earth.
Cameras on the International Space Station shot this picture of the category four storm.
NASA
It may be quiet in the tropics now but hurricane season is far from over. Top hurricane forecasters at Colorado State University are predicting well-above average activity for the month of October.
Forecasters say they expect three named storms during October, of which two will be hurricanes, one of them a major hurricane. Overall, they forecast the tropical formation rate for the month to be nearly twice the October average.
"We expect the month of October to be quite active," says Phil Klotzbach, lead author of the hurricane forecast. "We continue to observe low sea-level pressures and warm sea-surface temperatures across the tropical Atlantic," he says. "A combination of these two factors typically leads to an active October."
The CSU team, founded by pioneer forecaster Bill Gray, did not issue a new full-season forecast. In early August, they predicted a total of 17 named storms, including hurricanes, five intense hurricanes.
So far this season has proven to be an above average one. There have been 12 named storms, of which 6 became hurricanes, including three major hurricanes.
An average Atlantic hurricane season has about 10 tropical storms, of which six become hurricanes.
"We think we are now entering a new period of heightened activity that is likely to go for another two to three weeks," Gray said in a statement.
Hurricane season ends on November 30th. September and October are considered the peak of the season.
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