Who picks the names of the Hurricanes that we get down South (U.S.) ?

Question

Who picks the names of the Hurricanes that we get down South (U.S.) ?

Answer 1

Prior to 1979 hurricanes were named after women. Since then, the WMO (World Meteorological Organization) uses alternating lists with both male and female names.

If a storm is large enough and does extensive damage, the name is retired and not used again.

Hope that helps! :)

Answer 2

These names were picked by the National Hurricane Center.

Hurricane and Tropical Storm names are used from a list that is rotated every six years. The list contains male and female names from A-Z. In the event of a record-breaking hurricane, such as Katrina, the name is retired, and a new name replces the previous one. If all of the regular names are used up, as they were in 2005, the greek alphabet is used.

Answer 3

Since 1953, Atlantic tropical storms have been named from lists originated by the National Hurricane Center. They are now maintained and updated by an international committee of the World Meteorological Organization. The original name lists featured only women's names. In 1979, men's names were introduced and they alternate with the women's names. Six lists are used in rotation. Thus, the 2008 list will be used again in 2014.

The only time that there is a change in the list is if a storm is so deadly or costly that the future use of its name on a different storm would be inappropriate for reasons of sensitivity. If that occurs, then at an annual meeting by the WMO committee (called primarily to discuss many other issues) the offending name is stricken from the list and another name is selected to replace it.