Met Office reveals storm names including tribute to much loved children's character
Met Office research has shown naming storms has proven to be effective in raising awareness
With the nights drawing in and September marking the start of meteorological autumn, the Met Office has this week issued its storm names for the coming season, including a tribute to much loved animated children’s character, Shaun the Sheep.
More than 40,000 names were submitted to the Met Office over the last year by members of the public, with tributes to much loved pets, and people who’ve overcome adversity amongst the 21 names selected.
The first three names on this year’s list are Austen, Boelo and Chloe.
A Met Office spokesperson said: “Chloe was selected after being nominated more than 130 times, including once by the mother of a five-year-old weather enthusiast. Chloe's mum says her daughter is ‘fascinated by the weather’ and can also ‘create a storm by herself’ when she is tired.
“Finn was suggested for a two-year-old boy described by his family as ‘wild and a force to be reckoned with’, while Ivy was nominated in honour of a nine-month-old Labrador puppy affectionately known as ‘the absolute destructor’.
“Nicola was put forward as a tribute to a mother who has ‘weathered many a storm and only come out stronger’, while Theo was inspired by a cat who would hide before thunderstorms, leading his owner to joke that he could predict the weather.”
Why do we have storm names?
Now entering its twelfth year, the storm-naming scheme has been helping to communicate the risks of severe weather since 2015, by “providing a clear and consistent reference point for forecasts and warnings when significant impacts are expected”.
Storms are named to raise awareness of severe weather before it hits, so people can stay safe.
Full list of storm names
- Austen (Met Éireann)
- Boelo (Boo-loh) (KNMI)
- Chloe (Met Office)
- Dano (Dah-noh) (KNMI)
- Evelyn (Met Éireann)
- Finn (Met Office)
- Gwendolyn (Gwen-duh-lin) (KNMI)
- Heather (Met Éireann)
- Ivy (Met Office)
- Jade (KNMI)
- Kilian (Met Éireann)
- Laoise (Lee-sha) (Met Éireann)
- Miriam (Met Éireann)
- Nicola (Met Office)
- Olaf (KNMI)
- Phelim (Fay-lim) (Met Éireann)
- Ruban (Met Office)
- Shaun (Met Office)
- Theo (Met Office)
- Vesna (Vehs-nuh) (KNMI)
- Wende (Vhen-duh) (KNMI)
Who names the storms?
The storms are named in partnership between the Met Office, Met Éireann (Ireland) and The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute.
Not all the names may end up being used, with storm names allocated to weather systems when "they’re deemed to have the potential to cause medium or high impacts in the UK, Ireland or the Netherlands".