2023-11-01 15:10:42
Ciaran, Harvey, Irma, Carmen, Gabriel… Hurricanes and storms all have first names, male or female. Here’s how the two main organizations that name hurricanes globally choose them.
Who names storms and hurricanes?
For Europe, it is meteorological service of the Free University of Berlin which names all anticyclones, depressions and hurricanes. These are the names that the French media refer to to designate the storms. This is the case, for example, of storm Cioran which is due to hit the north-west quarter of France during the night of November 1st to 2nd.
For the rest of the world, theworld meteorological organization (WMO) is authoritative. On the other hand, it only baptizes a wind if it exceeds the speed of 119 km/h and is accompanied by torrential rain. This organization delegates the role of choosing names to five regional organizations.
See the infographic: 241 cyclones in sixteen years in the North Atlantic and the Antilles
Why give them first names?
The WMO explains on its website that if we give first names to hurricanes, it is first of all to “ help quickly identify storms in warning messages because names are much easier to remember than numbers or technical terms ”, as may have been the case in the past.
For the same purpose, the WMO explains giving preference to “ names familiar to the region where the event will take place “. Thus, for storms that will affect Japan, Usagi, Koguma or Tokage are preferred for example. While Australia will instead see Kate, Jack or Fletcher arrive.
How are first names chosen?
WMO takes the issue of choice of first names very seriously and follows a strict procedure. The five regional organizations delegated to this mission each establish five lists of first names, one per letter of the alphabet, which are reused in rotation.
For example, the first name Cindy which was used to designate a tropical cyclone in June 2017, was reused in 2023. The only reason a name can be removed from the list is when a storm is particularly destructive or deadly. “ Future use of this same name would be inappropriate », Explains the WMO on its site. So Katrina was removed from the list, as was Mitch, Sandy, and probably Irma, which is the most powerful hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic.
Note that the name “ Isis » was removed from the list in 2015. First given in reference to the Egyptian goddess, it also became the English acronym for Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria… or the Islamic State organization, in French.
The Free University of Berlin offers to buy a name thanks to the program Adopt a Vortexand this since 2002. An anticyclone costs 390 euros, where a depression, which lasts less long and therefore offers less exposure, costs 260 euros. A sum which is used to finance the meteorological institute of the Free University of Berlin.
The world
Special offer
Unlimited access to all our content from €10.99 €5.49/month for 1 year.
Benefit
The names of hurricanes were initially given arbitrarily, without precise rules. For example, Hurricane Antje of 1858 takes its name from a boat whose mast it destroyed.
Male or female name?
Since 1950, the WMO has only used female names to name hurricanes. Since 1979, feminine and masculine names have alternated, in alphabetical order (as for Harvey, Irma, Jose and Katia this year for example).
The University of Berlin, for its part, waited until 1998 to raise the problem. “ There was debate over whether it was discrimination to give depressions, and therefore bad weather, feminine names. Where anticyclones, which bring good weather, had masculine names », Explains the university website. The practice was deemed sexist and male or female names have since been given alternately, from one year to the next.
A change that does not prevent gender stereotypes. A study conducted by the University of Illinois showed that hurricanes that hit the United States with a feminine name would cause more deaths than those with a masculine name. The reason is not the phenomenon itself, but hurricanes with female first names… would be perceived as less dangerous than those with male first names. So Alexander would appear more threatening than Alexandra.
Read the zoom: Why female cyclones are the deadliest
#storm #names #chosen