Fast Facts

Here is a look at the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season:

FACTS

The 2017 Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30. The areas covered include the North Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.

The National Weather Service defines a hurricane as “an intense tropical weather system with well-defined circulation and sustained winds of 74 mph (64 knots) or higher.”

Hurricanes are rated according to intensity on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

The 1-5 scale estimates potential property damage.

A Category 3 or higher is considered a major hurricane.

PREDICTIONS

April 6 — The Tropical Meteorology Project from Colorado State University predicts that the “2017 Atlantic basin hurricane season will have slightly below-average activity.” They predict a total of 11 named storms and four hurricanes.

May 25 — The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) forecasts a 45 percent chance for an above-normal season, predicting that there is a 70 percent chance of having 11-17 named storms, of which 5-9 could develop into hurricanes, including 2-4 major hurricanes (categories 3-5).

Aug. 9 — NOAA raises its forecast prediction to 14-19 named tropical systems. Though NOAA’s outlook still calls for 5-9 hurricanes, the latest update increases the predicted range of likely major hurricanes to 2-5. NOAA forecasters predict the “season has the potential to be extremely active, and could be the most active since 2010.”

2017 ATLANTIC STORM NAMES

Tropical Storm Arlene

April 20 — Tropical Storm Arlene forms in the central Atlantic Ocean. According to the National Hurricane Center, April tropical storms are rare, and this is only the second one (the first was 2003’s Tropical Storm Ana) since the use of satellite.

April 21 — Arlene moves southwest and south until it dissipates.

Tropical Storm Bret

June 19 — Tropical Storm Bret forms about 125 miles southeast of Trinidad.

June 20 — Weakens into a tropical wave.

Tropical Storm Cindy

June 20 — Tropical Storm Cindy forms in the Gulf of Mexico, about 265 miles south of Morgan City, La.

June 22 — Makes landfall just south of Lake Charles, La. Later weakens to a tropical depression.

Tropical Storm Don

July 17 — Tropical Storm Don forms about 485 miles east-southeast of Barbados. Weakens to an open wave the next day.

Tropical Storm Emily

July 31 — Tropical Storm Emily forms near the west coast of Florida and makes landfall on Anna Maria Island. Weakens to a tropical depression after making landfall.

Hurricane Franklin

Aug. 6 — Tropical Storm Franklin forms over the northwestern Caribbean.

Aug. 7 — Makes landfall on the eastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula.

Aug. 9 — Franklin becomes a Category 1 hurricane about 105 miles northeast of Veracruz, Mexico.

Aug. 10 — Makes landfall in Veracruz. Later, Franklin weakens to a tropical storm and then dissipates.

Hurricane Gert

Aug. 13 — Tropical Storm Gert forms in the Atlantic Ocean.

Aug. 14 — Gert becomes a hurricane, the second of the season.

Aug. 17 — Weakens to a post-tropical cyclone.

Hurricane Harvey

Aug. 17 — Tropical Storm Harvey forms about 250 miles east of Barbados.

Aug. 24 — Harvey strengthens into a hurricane.

Aug. 25 — Harvey makes landfall between Port Aransas and Port O’Connor, Texas, as a Category 4 storm with winds of 130 mph, the first Category 4 hurricane to make U.S. landfall since Charley in 2004.

Aug. 26-29 — Harvey is downgraded to a tropical storm, but stalls over land, causing extreme flooding in Texas.

Aug. 30 — After retreating from the Houston area back to the Gulf of Mexico, Harvey slowly moves northeast and makes a second landfall near Cameron, La.

The death toll from Harvey is at least 82 people. Harvey dumped an estimated 27 trillion gallons of rain over Texas and Louisiana during a six-day period, according to WeatherBell, and also set a record for the most rainfall ever from a tropical cyclone in the continental U.S., at 51 inches of rain. Estimates put eventual total losses at as much as $75 billion.

Hurricane Irma

Aug. 30 — Tropical Storm Irma forms 420 miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands.

Aug. 31 — Irma becomes a hurricane and intensifies into a Category 3 hurricane.

Sept. 4 — Irma strengthens to a Category 4 hurricane about 490 miles east of the Leeward Islands.

Sept. 5 — Irma intensifies into a “potentially catastrophic” Category 5 hurricane as it roars toward the northeastern Caribbean islands.

Sept. 6 — Hits Antigua, Barbuda, St. Martin, Anguilla, St. Kitts and Nevis, U.S. Virgin Islands, British Virgin Islands, causing major damage and devastation to many of the islands.

Sept. 7-8 — Causes major damage to the Dominican Republic as it passes along the northern coast of Hispaniola. Blasts through Turks and Caicos overnight.

Sept. 8-9 — Makes landfall in Cuba overnight as a Category 5 storm, with winds of 125 mph. The Bahamas are hit by hurricane-force winds. At least 24 people have died in the Caribbean.

Sept. 10 — The Florida Keys take a direct hit from Irma as a Category 4 storm. Initial estimates are that 25 percent of houses on the island chain are destroyed, and 65 percent have major damage. Irma moves on to hit Marco Island as a Category 3 storm, then travels up the Gulf of Mexico to pummel Naples, Florida.

Sept. 11 — Irma is downgraded to a tropical storm in north Florida, and to a tropical depression soon after its wind gusts hit Atlanta, causing power outages and downed trees.

The death toll from Irma is at least 61 people

Hurricane Jose

Sept. 5 — Tropical Storm Jose forms about 1,500 miles east of the Lesser Antilles.

Sept. 6 — Jose strengthens into a hurricane.

Sept. 8 — Becomes a Category 4 hurricane, east and southeast of the northern Leeward Islands.

Sept. 14 — Weakens to a tropical storm.

Sept. 15 — Becomes a hurricane again as it makes its way up the Atlantic, east of the U.S. coast.

Sept. 19 — Weakens to a tropical storm.

Hurricane Katia

Sept. 6 — Tropical Storm Katia forms in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico and strengthens into a hurricane the same day.

Sept. 8 — Makes landfall in eastern Mexico, in the state of Veracruz, as a Category 1 hurricane.

Sept. 9 — Weakens to a tropical storm as it moves inland in Mexico.

Hurricane Lee

Sept. 16 — Tropical Storm Lee forms in the eastern Atlantic Ocean, west and southwest of Cabo Verde islands.

Sept. 17 — Weakens to a tropical depression.

Sept. 22 — Lee reorganizes and strengthens into a tropical storm, swirling over open water 940 miles east of Bermuda.

Sept. 24 — Lee becomes a hurricane.

Sept. 27 — Intensifies into a Category 3 hurricane.

Sept. 30 — Weakens to a tropical storm.

Hurricane Maria

Sept. 16 — Tropical Storm Maria forms about 620 miles east-southeast of Lesser Antilles.

Sept. 17-18 — Maria rapidly intensifies from a tropical storm into a Category 5 hurricane.

Sept. 18 — The storm hits the Caribbean island of Dominica as a Category 5 hurricane and devastates the area.

Sept. 20 — Makes landfall near Yabucoa in Puerto Rico as a Category 4 hurricane. It is the strongest storm to hit Puerto Rico in 85 years. The energy grid is heavily damaged, with an island-wide power outage. Restoring electricity may take months, the governor of Puerto Rico says. The storm also hits the U.S. Virgin Islands, where at least one person dies, likely from drowning.

Sept. 22 — The National Weather Service orders the evacuation of about 70,000 people living near the Guajataca River in northwest Puerto Rico because a dam is in danger of failing. The storm continues to churn northward, making landfall in the Caribbean islands of Turks and Caicos as a Category 3 hurricane.

Sept. 25 — Only a few medical centers on the island have working generators and at least three hospitals lack running water. Shortages of medical supplies are reported.

Sept. 26 — Maria weakens to a tropical storm as it heads northeast out to sea.

The death toll from Maria is at least 45 people in Puerto Rico and at least 15 in Dominica.

Hurricane Nate

Oct. 5 — Tropical Storm Nate forms near the coast of Nicaragua. At least 28 people are killed after Nate passes over Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras. Hundreds are rescued from floodwaters and mudslides. Many lose power and running water.

Oct. 6 — Nate strengthens into a hurricane about 95 miles west-northwest from the western tip of Cuba.

Oct. 7 — Hurricane Nate makes U.S. landfall as a Category 1 storm near the mouth of the Mississippi River in southeast Louisiana.

Oct. 8 — Nate makes its second and final U.S. landfall early in the morning as a Category 1 hurricane near Biloxi, Miss., and is later downgraded to a tropical depression.

Tropical Storm Ophelia

Oct. 9 — Tropical Storm Ophelia forms in the Atlantic Ocean.

Oct. 11 — Strengthens to a hurricane.

Remaining names

Philippe; Rina; Sean; Tammy; Vince; Whitney

— CNN Library