The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is upping the ante, forecasting that we’ll see a better chance for an “above normal” season in the Atlantic.

The new report released Thursday indicates that we will see 10 to 17 named storms in the Atlantic. That’s up from the original report which had 9 to 15 named storms. According to the new report, 5 to 9 hurricanes are expected, with 2 to 4 of those storms being major hurricanes. A major hurricane is Category 3 or stronger.

This report comes as the influence of El Nino is coming to an end. Forecasters anticipate things to ramp up in the tropics, after a (knock on wood) somewhat quiet start.

So far this year we’ve had two named storms in the Atlantic. Subtropical Storm Andrea and Hurricane Barry. Barry made landfall in Louisiana in mid-July and skimmed East Texas. We only saw a little bit of rain from that storm, but the worst of it was to our east. There was also tropical depression three, however, that storm was never strong enough to be named by the National Hurricane Center.

The report comes as we are entering the peak time of the season in the Atlantic. The busiest months for hurricane season, which is August through October. The peak of the season is in September.

The next named storm will be Chantal.

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