Why am I not surprised theyre running out of names for the hurricanes..

[Cyberwormsy]

MIAMI ? Hurricane Alpha? Tropical storm Epsilon? Before this year is out, TV forecasters and coastal residents may have to begin using the Greek alphabet if the Atlantic hurricane season keeps up its frantic pace.

There are only four names left for tropical storms and hurricanes this year: Stan, Tammy, Vince and Wilma. After that, names switch to the 24 letters of the Greek alphabet: Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and so on through Omega, if needed.

That has never happened before in roughly 60 years of regularly named Atlantic storms.

"If we get up into that league, we'll have issues larger than naming these storms,'' said Frank Lepore, spokesman for the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. "The new phrase will be hurricane fatigue. Let's coin that right now.''

So far this season, there have been 17 named storms. Forecasters expect a total of 18 to 21 when the six-month season ends Nov. 30. But with conditions in the atmosphere and Atlantic ripe for storm development, there could be more.

Currently, there are six separate 21-name lists and each of them is used every six years in a rotation. They don't include names that begin with q, u, x, y and z because there aren't enough names starting with those letters.

Only once, since record-keeping began in 1851, have there been 21 tropical storms and hurricanes in the Atlantic. That was in 1933 when forecasters didn't regularly name storms.

What's more, a storm name is retired if it causes widespread damage and deaths. So if there is a deadly hurricane Alpha, what is it replaced with when it's retired?

"It will go to the Swahili alphabet or something else,'' joked Jim Lushine, severe weather expert at the U.S. National Weather Service in Miami.

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew...22?hub=SciTech

[Ninja Scripts]

hurricane fatigue

Someone already registered that .com. lol

[butterflybucks]

Hurricane O'Reily because you're in the Spin Zone.

[tony286]

THere is no such thing as global warming. lol

[Alex]

Running out of names for hurricanes?

WTF, they actually have name lists for this shit. I thought it was made up as they go along.

[Ninja Scripts]

Originally Posted by Alex

Running out of names for hurricanes?

WTF, they actually have name lists for this shit. I thought it was made up as they go along.

Nope and those shitty valve people registered every .com for them.

[Ron Bennett]

They should use numbers ... ie. instead of Rita, call it Hurricane AB-2005-17

key:
AB = Atlantic Basin zone
2005 = four digit year
17 = tropical storm number

Numbers won't run out, and are more descriptive about the event than a person's name - while on that topic, names can be offensive - depressing for people with Katrina and/or Rita in their names. Numbers are a better alternative that never run out.

Ron