Colorado State University (CSU) meteorologists Phil Klotzbach and William Gray predict a stormy summer with 100mph winds along the U.S. Gulf or Atlantic coast.
The professors arrived at this prediction of major hurricanes based on a mathematical formula using data of the total number of tropical storms, hurricanes and intense hurricanes that have hit the U.S. since 1900. Based on the results, Klotzbach and Gray believe that there is a 72 percent probability that a major storm will smack the U.S. coast between Texas and Maine.
The CSU meteorologists think that the potent storms that have struck the U.S. coasts in the past few years including Hurricane Irene and Hurricane Sandy will pale in comparison to what is in store.
"The United States has been especially fortunate in experiencing no major hurricane landfalls since 2005," said Gray. "Prior to the past seven years (from 2006 to 2012), there had not been a seven-year period on record since 1851 with no major hurricane landfalls in the United States. These conditions should not be expected to continue."
Gray and Klotzbach feel that if the predictions for the 2013 hurricane season come true, the country will now face frequent hurricane seasons for at least another 15 years. Meteorologists said that the active hurricane seasons are caused by the cyclical warming of the Atlantic Basin. Hurricanes are stronger than tornadoes because they gain their power and strength from sea water that has been heated to at least 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
This summer the U.S. will experience around18 tropical storms with minimum wind speed of 35 mph in the Atlantic Basin, which includes the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Atlantic Ocean, predicts the study.
Out of the 18 possible tropical storms, nine of them will become fiercer with minimum wind speed of 74 mph. And four of those hurricanes will be transformed into major hurricanes.
Overall, CSU forecasters think that there is a 48 percent chance of a major hurricane making a landfall on the U.S. East Coast, including the Florida Peninsula when compared to a 100-year average of 31 percent; a major hurricane being formed in the U.S. Gulf Coast is estimated to be at 47 percent and this year there is a 61 percent probability of experiencing a major hurricane in the Caribbean Sea in comparison to an average possibility of 42 percent.
