2026 Sets Record For Longest Start Of Season Without A Hurricane

ATLANTIC BASIN – No Atlantic hurricanes have formed yet this year and none are likely to form for at least another week, even though this would normally be the peak of the season.

On Saturday, 2026 set a record for the longest a season has begun without a storm that qualifies as a hurricane, at least in the satellite era, that’s 1960s onward.

In an average season, there would have been eight named tropical storms and three hurricanes by this point. This year, there have only been five tropical storms.

In May, the National Hurricane Centre forecast a total of eight to 14 named storms, three to six of which would become hurricanes, including one to three major hurricanes.

The reason for this below-average forecast is El Niño.