Why do hurricanes have names like Milton and Helene?

The practice of naming hurricanes after men and women has an interesting and practical history. Originally, they did not have specific names and were identified by their latitude and longitude, which could be confusing and prone to errors. But that has changed since World War II.

For several centuries, Hurricanes in the Caribbean were named after the saint of the day on which they occurred. For example, a hurricane hitting on July 26 could be called “Santa Ana.” However, this method was not very efficient for modern communication.

Why are hurricanes named after people?

In the 1940s, during World War II, United States Air Force and Navy meteorologists began naming tropical cyclones after women, partly as a tribute to their wives and girlfriends.

This practice became popular, and in 1953, the United States Weather Service officially adopted the use of female names for Atlantic hurricanes.

The exclusive use of female names for hurricanes continued until 1979, when it was decided to include male names as well. This decision was made to reflect gender equality and to diversify the names used.

Since then, hurricane names alternate between male and female names in pre-established lists that repeat every six years.

Hurricane names are selected by an international committee of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). There are six lists for Atlantic cyclones, and each is used in rotation every six years.

If a hurricane is particularly devastating, its name is removed from the list and replaced with another one to avoid future sensitivities. For example, names like Katrina and Harvey have been retired due to the severity of the damage they caused.

Hurricane Milton was named through the system established by the WMO.

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Why Milton?

“Milton” was selected from one of these predefined lists. This name was scheduled to be used in the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. The choice is not based on any particular person, but rather names are selected that are familiar and easy to pronounce in the affected region.

The use of names for hurricanes not only facilitates communication, but also influences public perception of these events. These help personalize and humanize cyclones, which can increase awareness and preparedness for natural phenomena of this type.

However, it is also important that names do not create a false sense of security or alarm. The severity of a hurricane is not determined by its name, but by its meteorological characteristics and potential impact.