"Captain Compassion" <daranc@NOSPAMcharter.net> wrote in message
news:28pda3ltf8ah78eq9hqh05m9t9ukl0d4ei@4ax.com...

Forecaster cuts 2007 hurricane outlook
Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:56PM EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) -The 2007 hurricane season may be less severe than
forecast due to cooler-than-expected water temperatures in the
tropical Atlantic, private forecaster WSI Corp said on Tuesday.

The season will bring 14 named storms, of which six will become
hurricanes and three will become major hurricanes, WSI said in its
revised outlook. WSI had previously expected 15 named storms of which
eight would become hurricanes and four would become major hurricanes.

"Because the ocean temperatures have not yet rebounded from the
significant drop in late spring, we have decided to reduce our
forecast numbers slightly," said Todd Crawford, a WSI seasonal

From http://blogs.phillynews.com/inquirer/weather/2007/05/

It should be a hot summer around here and in most of the country, according
to WSI Corp., the energy forecasting company based in Massachusetts.

In issuing the company's May update, the factors cited by forecaster Todd
Crawford cited warm Atlantic sea-surface temperatures and low soil-moisture
conditions. For more on soil moisture, see "The Dirt on Weather" below.

He says the heat should be concentrated in the south and east. Speaking of
points south,
South Florida, has experienced a nasty drought. Click here for an update.

forecaster.

The energy and insurance industries are keenly watching the 2007 storm
season after the record damage caused by hurricanes two years ago.

During the 2005 season, hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated parts
of the U.S. Gulf Coast and temporarily knocked out a quarter of U.S.
crude and fuel production, sending energy prices to then-record highs.

WSI's Crawford added that wind conditions due to the lack of an El
Nino event were less conducive to formation of tropical storms.

Despite the downgraded forecast, WSI still expects the 2007 season to
be more active than last year, and added that storm-weary parts of the
Gulf Coast could still be hit.

"We feel the general threat to the western Gulf is reduced slightly,
with a corresponding increase in the threat to the eastern Gulf and
Florida," Crawford said.


--
There may come a time when the CO2 police will wander the earth telling
the poor and the dispossed how many dung chips they can put on their
cook fires. -- Captain Compassion.

Wherever I go it will be well with me, for it was well with me here, not
on account of the place, but of my judgments which I shall carry away
with me, for no one can deprive me of these; on the contrary, they alone
are my property, and cannot be taken away, and to possess them suffices
me wherever I am or whatever I do. -- EPICTETUS

Joseph R. Darancette
daranc@NOSPAMcharter.net