2017 Hurricane Forecast Released For New Jersey, Atlantic Coast

A hurricane forecast released this week says that New Jersey and other coastal states will largely escape the threat of another damaging storm season.

The 2017 Atlantic forecast released Thursday from Colorado State University says the number of named storms and hurricanes will likely be below historical averages.

The study, released online and by The Weather Channel, says four hurricanes - two of them major - and 11 named storms are expected this season along the Atlantic Coast, according to the CSU Tropical Meteorology Project.

This study says the number is below the 30-year average of six hurricanes - two of them major - and 12 named storms. The official Atlantic hurricane season runs from June through November.

"We anticipate that the 2017 Atlantic basin hurricane season will have slightly below average activity," according to the report, adding that the tropical Atlantic has cooled over the past month and the far North Atlantic is relatively cold.

Hurricanes typical form over warmer water - and usually over tropical oceans, where warm water and air interact to create these storms.

New Jersey largely escaped the hurricanes that damaged much of the Southeast in 2016, and since Superstorm Sandy in 2012. But the report doesn't really indicate the specific locations of these storms.

The report does note that it only takes one hurricane making landfall to make it an active season. "They should prepare the same for every season, regardless of how much activity is predicted," the report says.

Last year, there were 15 named storms, seven hurricanes and three hurricanes that were category 3 or stronger.

Photo: NASA