Keith (Southend) wrote:
http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/...006/index.html

Tropical Storm Debby picked up speed far out in the Atlantic today, and
forecasters said that by Sunday or Monday it would probably become a
hurricane, the first of the 2006 season, which is now nearly half over.

Computer models predict it will turn out to sea just as the three
previous named storms so far this year have done. Alberto, Beryl and
Chris dissipated without qualify as hurricanes.

James L. Franklin, at the National Hurricane Center said "the odds
are that it won't'' endanger the coasts of the United States.
"..Not saying it won't.''

Officials in Washington have been pulling back slightly from their
initial forecasts of an especially intense 2006 hurricane season,
Instead of 8 to 10 hurricanes, as they predicted in May, they now
thought 7 to 9 was more likely.

An average season is six.

The hurricane center began tracking the storm on Monday as a tropical
depression, with winds of about 35 miles an hour just off the coast of
West Africa. It intensified to a tropical storm on Tuesday when winds
exceeded 40 miles and hour.

By this time last year, there had already been nine named storms and
four hurricanes.

By JOSEPH B. TREASTER Published: August 23, 2006 [Edited.]

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/23/sc...rtner=homepage

In my ignorance I am presuming that the rest of the world has suffered
or enjoyed a normal tropical storm/cyclone season. In which case it
appears that not only are the North Atlantic hurricanes dependent on
the run of lunar phases but the degree of intensity of the other Lows
and Highs in the Atlantic.

In which case the NAO is probably independent of oscillations in other
oceans.

Which in turn leads me out to a place of my own one again:

The North Atlantic Oscillation is more likely a function of the state
of the Arctic than a direct function of the phase or phases of the
moon. (but of course the phases of the moon is the instigator of the
sate of the Arctic and of all the other oceans.) Thus explaining why
the Hurricane season is usually confined to a half of the year not
quite the full summer but reaching its highest intensity with the times
of least ice cover in the Arctic (August/September.)

IIRC the other ocean's have hurricanes all the year through.

There ladies and gentlemen is another example of Weatherlawyer at his
wackiest best. What a thoroughly rewarding occupation my little hobby
is.