With the increasing occurance of huricanes over the last few years I was wondering who is responsible for naming them?

Why Ivan or Katerina? Why a male or female name?

Indecently, fingers crossed for Rita over the coming days I hope New Orleans escapes yet more devastation.

PREDOMINANT said:

OMG I was just discussing this with my sister the other day!

Wow!!! No, I dont know who names them..

i named my cat

I think there is a list, but Im not sure, but I know they do them alphabetically from the start of the season

Oh, just found this...

Hurricanes names are chosen from a list selected by the World Meteorological Organization. The Atlantic is assigned six lists of names, with one list used each year. Every sixth year, the first list begins again. Each name on the list starts with a different letter, for example, the name of the very first hurricane of the season starts with the letter A, the next starts with the letter B, and so on. The letters "Q", "U", "X", "Y" and "Z", however, are not used.
Often when an unusually destructive hurricane hits, that hurricane's name is retired and never used again. Since 1954, forty names have been retired. In 1996 Hurricane Luis was retired. Is your name among the currently used or retired hurricane names?

REDFEATHERS said:

Amazing coincidence Not very helpful though

ChunkyLaFunga said:

AdamB said:

Cool, but someone must still decide on the list, what name will represent a, b, c, etc. Also surely they must have trouble with the first few letters, getting used all the time and never getting to T.

Interesting fact about the retiring of names though.

Arent hurricanes female and tornados male?

Experience shows that the use of short, distinctive given names in written as well as spoken communications is quicker and less subject to error than the older more cumbersome latitude-longitude identification methods. These advantages are especially important in exchanging detailed storm information between hundreds of widely scattered stations, coastal bases, and ships at sea.

Since 1953, Atlantic tropical storms have been named from lists originated by the National Hurricane Center and now maintained and updated by an international committee of the World Meteorological Organization.

The lists featured only women's names until 1979, when men's and women's names were alternated. Six lists are used in rotation. Thus, the 2004 list will be used again in 2010.

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.
[Edited 9/21/05 5:14am]

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/a...ames.shtml here you go PREDOM..

REDFEATHERS said:

Oooo, good one.

So between Katrina and the latest (Rita) there have been 5 others!!

Lee
Maria
Nate
Ophelia
Philippe

PREDOMINANT said:

Why isnt there a REDFEATHERS one? Thats what I am wondering..

REDFEATHERS said:

There was a hurricane in the UK that was called Hugo - I think it was 1988.

REDFEATHERS said:

Well, you can say YOUR name is Katrina if you like, I have had soooo many 'funny' comments about having the same name as a hurricane 'Don't upset Katrina, you will feel her wrath' etc etc

ladymisskat said:

Exactly, I took Meteorology in college, and since then I've wanted a large hurricane named after me. It would have been Katrina, since my name begins with a K.

gemini13 said:

HA. You suck.

gemini13 said:

Check out the list RED posted, You might feature over the next few years

POSTDOMINANT said:

I will be one in 2010!!!!
[Edited 9/21/05 7:19am]

REDFEATHERS said:

That was a fast edit!!

You were too hasty I do not have any chance though !!

POSTDOMINANT said:

I know

Damn, I think you should change your name to Barry by Depol..

the ORG hurricane list....


Anxiety
BreddieMercury
CarrieMpls
Dewrede
EskomoKisses
funkpill
GottaLetitgo
IstenSzek
JonSnow
Krystal666
luv4u
Muse2NOPharaoh
Nero
organgrinder
POSTDOMINANT
QstnOfU
redfeathers
Serious
Thirdeye
ufoclub
virginie74
[Edited 9/21/05 7:25am]

REDFEATHERS said:

JUst so I can have a hurricane named after me I might just do that

newpower99 said:

I'd be a Category 5.

Nero said:

I'd probably increase my power to cat 2 then blow myself out the second I hit land. Nobody would remember hurricane Predom

POSTDOMINANT said:

I'd cause serious destruction, changing my course at the last possible moment, and head straight for unevacuated areas.

Nero said:

NOw thats just nasty.....Unless it happened to be Washington DC

POSTDOMINANT said:

What can I say? I have a whole lot of pent up frustrations and someone has to face my wrath.

I'd hit Pensacola, probably. And move up. I wish Kentucky had a coastline on the Atlantic. I'd fuck up all my kinsmen.

Nero said:

But then there would be no more fried chicken

newpower99 said:

Thank God they used Katrina and not Karen!!