In a remarkable twist of coincidence, the next storm set to brew in the Atlantic this hurricane season will take on the name Dolly. However, this occurrence is purely accidental and unrelated to the passing of the beloved music icon Dolly Parton on Tuesday.
Storm naming follows a systematic process orchestrated by the World Meteorological Organization. Every six years, a new roster of names is released for each region, adhering to an alphabetical order that alternates between male and female designations. For the Atlantic, this creates a predictable cycle of storm names.
As this year’s hurricane season unfolds, it first made its presence felt when Tropical Storm Arthur hit the Gulf Coast of the U.S. in June. That was followed by Tropical Storm Bertha, which drenched Louisiana and Texas with heavy rains in July. More recently, Tropical Storm Cristobal emerged briefly in the Atlantic, only to dissipate as swiftly as it formed earlier this month.
Currently, the National Hurricane Center’s vigilant eyes are fixed on a developing weather system off the coast of Africa, which holds potential to evolve into a named storm.
Forecasters from the Miami-based center noted on Wednesday morning that storm-friendly conditions could allow this cluster of thunderstorms, located just south of the Cabo Verde Islands, to escalate into a tropical depression in the coming week.
If it further develops, with maximum sustained winds of at least 39 mph (63 kph), the system would be named Tropical Storm Dolly.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration