103 Days Into Atlantic Hurricane Season, No Hurricanes Have Formed — A Record

A powerful El Niño has produced the longest hurricane-free stretch in Atlantic season history, surpassing records set in 2002 and 2013.

As of 103 days into the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season, not a single hurricane has formed — the longest such wait on record, breaking a milestone that had stood since September 11 was the previous latest date for a first hurricane. That date had been reached twice before: when Gustav formed in 2002 and when Humberto emerged in 2013. The culprit is an unusually strong El Niño, the periodic warming of central Pacific Ocean waters that alters atmospheric circulation patterns across the globe. In the Atlantic, El Niño produces strong upper-level wind shear — essentially high-altitude winds that tear apart developing tropical systems before they can organize into full hurricanes. The current season is the least active in the Atlantic since 1950, based on available records. Only five tropical storms have formed, all of them short-lived. The closest any system came to hurricane strength was Tropical Storm Edouard, which fell just short of the 74-mph sustained winds required for hurricane classification. For context, the Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1 through November 30, meaning the 103-day mark places this record well into what is normally considered peak season. Historically, mid-August through mid-October produces the majority of Atlantic hurricanes, driven by warm sea surface temperatures and favorable atmospheric conditions. El Niño events are cyclical and vary in intensity. The current one has been described by meteorologists as particularly powerful in its suppressing effect on Atlantic storm activity, with its wind shear disrupting system after system before they could intensify. Despite the record-low activity so far, experts caution that the season is not over. El Niño's grip on the Atlantic can weaken in the later months of the season, potentially opening a window for storm development before November 30. The historically quiet season also raises the prospect of a second consecutive year without a hurricane making landfall in the United States — a notable streak, though forecasters warn that even a single late-season storm could change that outcome quickly.

Why it matters

Millions of Americans along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, as well as Caribbean island nations, plan evacuations, insurance, and emergency resources around hurricane season forecasts — an unusually suppressed season reshapes those preparations. The record also offers a real-world benchmark for understanding how strong El Niño events interact with Atlantic storm formation.

What's next

Forecasters are watching for any weakening of El Niño's wind shear later in the season, which could allow storms to develop before the season closes on November 30.

Key facts

Bias & framing notes

Sources 2 through 8 are all syndicated reposts of the same CNN article by Meteorologist Chris Dolce, making them a single source repeated rather than independent corroboration. Source 1 (headtopics) adds the historical 1966 comparison and the mention of Tropical Storm Edouard, which the CNN-derived sources do not include in their truncated excerpts. The framing across all sources is consistent and factual, though the dramatic language ('beast of an El Niño,' 'broken Atlantic hurricanes') in the CNN headline leans more vivid than neutral.

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