Hurricane Season's Start: Where Atlantic Storms Form In June

June is the official beginning of the hurricane season in the Atlantic. While this month is historically quieter than later in the season, an approaching El Niño could change the game this year.

(MORE: 2026 Hurricane Outlook)

What We've Seen Before

• Quieter Month: On average, there is one June named storm in the Atlantic, Caribbean or Gulf every one to two years. Some years have more, like 2023, which was actually also an El Niño year.
• Recent Junes Say Otherwise: At least two named storms have formed in five of the last six Junes. The only exception was 2022, when only one storm developed.
• Storms Form Closer To U.S.: The areas that are more likely to see storms develop are the northwestern Caribbean, the Gulf and Atlantic Ocean near the mid-Atlantic. These areas are closer to land, so should a storm form, it is more likely to bring impacts to the states.

History of June Hurricanes

• C​ontinental U.S. Hurricane Landfalls Are Rare: Only four hurricanes have actually hit the continental U.S. in June since 1950. Audrey, in 1957, was the strongest, making landfall as a Category 3 in Louisiana. Bonnie (1986), Agnes (1972) and Alma (1966) are the other three June U.S. hurricane landfalls in the last 76 years.
• Don't Forget About Tropical Storms: Allison, in early June 2001, is probably the best example of major impacts from a tropical storm. It made landfall as a 50-mph tropical storm near Freeport, Texas, but its remnants lingered for days, which resulted in a multi-billion-dollar, deadly flood disaster across the Houston metro area. It was actually one of the few tropical storms to have its name retired.
• We mentioned Agnes's June landfall as a hurricane above, but its worst impacts were felt during its second chapter as a tropical storm that produced disastrous flooding in the Northeast.
• Recent Junes Have Brought Significant Impacts: Last year, after Tropical Storm Barry made landfall in Mexico, its remnants tracked north into Texas and brought substantial flooding, even though it was no longer being tracked by the NHC. In 2024, Tropical Storm Alberto tracked into eastern Mexico on June 20, but still produced 2 to 4 feet of storm surge on the Texas coast and brought 5 to 8 inches of rain to South Texas. Claudette in 2021 produced significant flooding and tornadoes from the Gulf Coast into the Southeast, resulting in four flood-related deaths in Alabama. Cristobal hit the northern Gulf Coast in early June 2020 and produced significant storm surge as well as heavy rain, gusty winds and tornadoes.

More Stats For Y'all

• Recent Odd Storms In The Atlantic: It's rare to see storms form farther away from the U.S. in the portion of the Atlantic that stretches from the Caribbean Islands to Africa in June. But the past three years have been exceptions for this part of the ocean basin. In 2025, we had Tropical Storm Andrea form well out in the central Atlantic and wasn't really a threat to land. Then in 2024, we had Hurricane Beryl forming in the final days of the month in 2024, and tropical storms Bret and Cindy both developing in the same region in 2023.
• Beryl was the easternmost Atlantic Basin June hurricane on record, breaking a record from the Trinidad and Tobago hurricane of 1933.
• Why June Is so Slow: It's all about the atmosphere and the ocean in the Atlantic. More unfavorable upper-level winds and dry, dusty air from Africa's Sahara Desert tend to inhibit tropical storm development early in the season when compared to August through early October. Sea-surface temperatures in the tropics are also still rising before peaking at their warmest levels in September.
• What Storms We will See in 2026: Arthur will be followed by Bertha and Cristobal to start the list of 21 names. To see the full list, including one newcomer, go to this link.

El Niño

We are approaching an El Niño, and that has a drastic impact on the Atlantic Hurricane Season.

Specifically, it increases shear across the Caribbean and eventually the Atlantic Basin. Hurricanes hate shear, so El Niño can hinder development.

(MORE: El Niño Guide)

But the hindering impacts of El Niño have not yet taken hold of the area, so you still have plenty of moisture and warmth. That means you can even see hurricane season start early during El Niño years.

(MORE: El Niño And Early Hurricane Season Impacts)

The last El Niño year, 2023, actually had three named storms in June. Interestingly, only one of those storms formed in the Gulf, with the other two forming out in the Atlantic.

The last Super El Niño, which occurred in 2015, only had one named storm, Tropical Storm Bill. But the storm actually made landfall in Texas. This storm brought major rainfall across the Southern Plains and enhanced rainfall in the Midwest and mid-Atlantic.

The last landfalling hurricane in June for the lower 48 states was back in 1986 with Hurricane Bonnie. Should we see a hurricane develop and actually make landfall in the U.S. this June, it would be the first time in 40 years.

(MORE: Hurricane Bonnie in 1986)

Rob Shackelford is a meteorologist and climate scientist at weather.com. He received his undergraduate and master’s degrees from the University of Georgia studying meteorology and experimenting with alternative hurricane forecasting tools.