Record-breaking 2005 Atlantic Hurricane Season officially ends

January 6, 2006

The tonight have announced that the  has ended with the dissipation of Tropical Storm Zeta which became the 27th recorded storm in the  of the 2005 Atlantic Hurricane Season.

In their final public advisory for the storm, which had weakened to a tropical depression, the National Hurricane Center posted,

"ZETA AND THE RECORD-BREAKING 2005 ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON FINALLY COME TO AN END"

The 2005 Atlantic Hurricane Season has proved to be the most active hurricane season ever recorded with 27 storms. A number of records were broken during the season. For example:


 * Hurricane Dennis became the strongest recorded storm to form in the Atlantic before August.
 * Hurricane Emily surpasses Hurricane Dennis as the strongest recorded storm in the Atlantic before August.
 * Hurricane Katrina became one of the most costly hurricanes in United States history; however, this is unconfirmed.
 * Hurricane Vince became the first tropical cyclone to make landfall in Spain.
 * Hurricane Wilma became the most intense hurricane ever recorded.
 * Tropical Storm Alpha broke the record for the most recorded storms in once hurricane season. It beat the 1933 hurricane season, which had held the record for 72 years. The National Hurricane Center had used all names available for tropical storms and as a result used the Greek alphabet.
 * Hurricane Beta broke the record for the most hurricanes recorded in a season beating the 1969 record of 12 hurricanes.
 * Hurricane Epsilon became the first storm since Hurricane Lili in 1984 to reach hurricane strength after the official end of a season.
 * Tropical Storm Zeta became the second ever storm to exist in two calendar years.

Forecasters are predicting that other hurricane seasons in the future will be just as active or possibly even more active.