4 to 7 Tropical Cyclones Expected in 2014 Hurricane Season

Hurricane ʻIniki 1992 microwave precipitation imagery. File image courtesy Central Pacific Hurricane Center.

By Wendy Osher

The 2014 Hurricane Season Outlook for the Central Pacific Basin calls for 4 to 7 tropical cyclones with El Niño conditions expected to develop during the summer.

Agency officials say El Niño conditions typically mean a more active hurricane season in the Central Pacific, as opposed to La Niña conditions which have typically meant a less active season for the region.

That figure is on par with the average 4 to 5 tropical cyclones recorded in the Central Pacific each year. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, there have been 147 tropical cyclones in the Central Pacific over a 33 year period between 1981 and 2013.

The agency also reports that there have been three direct hits since 1950 including: Dot in 1959; ʻIwa in 1982; and ʻIniki in 1992.  Total monetary damages from those three events combined is estimated at more than $3.5 billion, according to NOAA.

The Central North Pacific hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, 2014.

Tropical cyclones and tropical depression in the Central Pacific between 1940 and 2010. Tracking imagery courtesy National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.