UArizona Experts Predict A Very Active Hurricane Season

TUCSON, AZ—The new coronavirus has forced people all over the country to weather a new and unusual kind of "storm," but as June 1 approaches, they may soon find themselves also battling more of the traditional ones, too—hurricanes.

A University of Arizona-led hurricane forecasting team predicts 19 named storms and 10 hurricanes – including five major hurricanes at Category 3, 4 or 5 – during this year's Atlantic hurricane season.

"Hurricanes occur every year. You cannot change that, but you can get better prepared for the season," Xubin Zeng, a forecast creator for the university, said. "Preparedness will be more challenging this year because all our resources have been devoted to fight the COVID-19 pandemic."

According to Zeng, the primary reason this season is expected to be very active is that sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean are the warmest they've been since 1993.

The university said the forecast model created by Zeng and his co-author and former graduate student, Kyle Davis, has proven to be accurate in the past, as documented in several scientific papers.

This is the first time the two have issued their predictions in April. The researchers said they usually issue their forecast in June but felt it was important to release their findings early to allow government agencies and the general public time to prepare.