Next year's storm names unveiled: Ashley, Bert, Conall - Following a turbulent year
The Great Storm Forecast: 2024/25 Edition 🌪️ 🇬🇧 🇮🇪 🇳🇱
The tempestuous season is upon us once more, and we've got the names ready to roll. This year is extra special as we pay tribute to three meteorological trailblazers from the UK's 170-year history.
On the 29th of August, the Met Office, Met Éireann, and Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) dropped the list of names for the upcoming 2024/25 storm season. Let's dive into who made the cut and why.
First off the bat, we've got Ashley, Bert, and Conall. The big leagues? Not quite yet. But stay tuned, because our next few storms are a real whirlwind.
James Stagg, group captain during World War II, is immortalized as we pursue storm J. Stagg, a chief meteorologist, provided crucial forecasts for the D-Day landings, managing to persuade General Eisenhower to postpone the invasion due to unfavorable weather conditions. On June 6th, 1944, Stagg's team identified a narrow weather window that allowed for the successful invasion.
Next up, preparing us for a storm named L, we have Lewis Fry Richardson. Richardson, a mathematical genius, was the first person to figure out how to use computers for predicting the weather. About three decades before computers even came into play, Lewis developed the theory of Numerical Weather Prediction, predicting the need for thousands of people to work together like a modern-day supercomputer.
Last but not least, we've got Mavis Hinds, recognized for her work on the earliest computers used by the Met Office to develop Numerical Weather Prediction. Hinds helped prove that computers could produce accurate weather forecasts quickly. Her work paved the way for the Met Office to acquire its first computer.
After Kayleigh, we hit L, but the rest of the season isn't slowing down. Naoise, Otje, Poppy, Rafi, Sayuri, Tilly, Vivienne, and Wren make up the remainder of the list.
Storm Names - Conventional Yet Innovative
Storms are named alphabetically and avoid letters like Q, U, X, Y, and Z to adhere to international standards. The Met Office, Met Éireann, and KNMI publish a list at the start of each season, contributing seven names apiece.
A storm gets named when it poses the potential for 'medium' or 'high' impacts in the UK, Ireland, or the Netherlands. Wind is the primary factor for naming a storm, but the impact from rain or snow is also considered.
The list for the 2024/25 storm season runs from early September 2022 to late August 2025 to align with the start of autumn and the end of summer, when low-pressure systems and named storms are more likely.
As for the Dutch, environmental enthusiasts had a chance to suggest names at an environment fair. Met Éireann chose names for the season during a STEM event.
The Stormy Year that Was 2023/24
The 2023/24 season saw 12 named storms, with Lilian being the furthest through the list. This is the furthest the Western European naming group has gone since the introduction of storm naming in 2015.
Storm seasons in the UK can be inconsistent, ranging from few to many named storms. One reason for the high number of storms last year was the jet stream's position throughout autumn and winter, which brought several low-pressure systems to the UK and resulted in named storms.
Naming storms boosts public awareness, allowing people to protect themselves effectively. For example, 97% of people within the amber and red warning areas for Storm Babet in October 2023 were aware of the warnings, and 89% took action as a result.
- Vivienne, being a trailblazer in environmental science, is likely to be honored with a storm name in the 2024/25 storm season, aligning with the season's focus on meteorological history.
- In line with international standards, the upcoming 2024/25 storm season will avoid letters like Q, U, X, Y, and Z when naming storms, following the same conventions as the Met Office, Met Éireann, and the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute.
- As people prepare for the impending storm season, they might want to exchange weather updates via platforms such as Whatsapp, given the importance of staying informed about climate-change-related weather events like storms.
- Considering the impacts of climate change on the environment and weather patterns, it is crucial for meteorologists and environmental scientists like Vivienne to continue their work to better predict and understand storm events in the future.
