Is the 2024 hurricane season over? Here's what to know about this year's storms

It’s almost the end of November, and countries around the world have spent the past six months at the mercy of mother nature and her elements, specifically hurricanes.

The Atlantic basin was hit with quite a few storms that left communities devastated and forced to rebuild, but it’s nearly over and there aren’t any further predictions, weather experts say.

Hurricane season typically lasts from June 1 to Nov. 30, said Matthew Rosencrans, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s lead for the seasonal hurricane outlook.

He noted that June 1 to Nov. 30 covers 95% of all activity during hurricane season, while May 10 to Nov. 30 covers 99% of all activity.

There have been times where tropical weather activities occurred into December, but that happens once a decade or so, he told USA TODAY Wednesday afternoon.

The vast majority of hurricane activity is done by November 30, he said.

Here’s what else you need to know about the hurricane season as it wraps up Saturday.

How many named storms and hurricanes were there in 2024?

For 2024, NOAA predicted 17 to 25 named storms and 8 to 13 hurricanes.

“We ended up with 18 named storms and 11 hurricanes, so right in the middle,” he said.

One learning opportunity he noted is the lull weather experts saw in September, a contrast with the peak that has normally taken place in September over the past 100 years or so. Researchers will be trying to get to the bottom of it so they can incorporate that into future predictions.

According to NOAA, this year’s storms included:

• 18 named storms (winds of 39 miles per hour or greater)

• 11 hurricanes (winds of 74 miles per hour or greater)

• 5 major hurricanes (winds of 111 miles per hour or greater)

One of the most intense hurricanes was Hurricane Beryl, which set records for being the earliest Category 5 storm in the Atlantic on record.

“Those records go back to the 1850s,” said Rosencrans, who is based in College Park, Maryland.

Beryl made landfall on the island of Carriacou in Grenada as a Category 4 hurricane on July 1, then later strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane in the eastern Caribbean Sea, reported the National Weather Service. Beryl passed south of Jamaica as a Category 4 hurricane on July 3. It made second landfall on the Yucatán Peninsula as a Category 2 hurricane on July 5.

Rosencrans also noted that Hurricane Milton set records for the most rapidly intensifying storm in the Atlantic. Milton “just pulled every bit of energy out of the ocean it could and turned it all into storm and winds,” he said.

And then there was Hurricane Helene, which brought devastation to Florida and its residents. The storms left citizens without power and killed more than 300 people in the country.

Weather experts don’t have much forecast minus a cold front

Rosencrans said there aren’t any additional tropical storms forecast anytime soon. In fact, any active weather expected across the U.S. and into the Caribbean would likely be a cold front from a system that's not tropical, he said.

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is forecasting below normal temperatures into the Southeast for the first week of December, he said.

A big low pressure system could move through and then push a cold front down, resulting in intense rainfall, or possibly strong temperature drops behind the cold front, he said.

Another possibility is lake effect snow, which occurs when cold air moves across the open waters of the Great Lakes. As cold air passes over the warm waters of the Great Lakes, warmth and moisture are transferred into the lowest portion of the atmosphere.

The air then rises, clouds form and then they grow into a band that produces 2 to 3 inches of snow per hour or more, according to the National Weather Service.

What to keep in mind for next hurricane season

NOAA’s predictions help raise awareness about hurricane season, Rosencrans said. NOAA can help localities, FEMA, the American Red Cross and similar organizations by giving them information to make preparations, he said.

He also said it wouldn’t hurt for people to take a look at their current preparation kits. They may even find items they can use in case of winter storms, he said.

“Maybe take 10 minutes and go through your preparation kit that you did for hurricane season, see what's expiring and kind of refresh that,” he said. If you do it now, it's less work you’ve got to do … before the season starts again.”

Contributing: Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY

Saleen Martin is a reporter on USA TODAY's NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia – the 757. Follow her on Twitter at @SaleenMartin or email her at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Hurricane season 2024: Is it finally over? Here's what to know