Average hurricane season predicted

After the turbulent hurricane season that battered some of the Caribbean islands last year, 2009 promises to be much calmer. At least that's the prediction from hurricane forecasters at Colorado State University.

The team predicts that there will be six hurricanes in the Atlantic basin this year, with 12 named tropical storms. The hurricane season begins on June 1 and ends on November 30.

Meteorologists Phil Klotzbach and William Gray predict that of the six hurricanes, two will become major hurricanes with winds in excess of 100 miles an hour.

They base their prediction of a calmer season on the belief that La Niña, an atmospheric condition that fosters storm formation, will weaken substantially or fade. They said it is possible that El Niño, which hampers hurricane development, might emerge.

Last year was considered one of the most active hurricane seasons in history. There were 16 named storms including eight hurricanes, three of which were of Category 3 strength or above.

Cuba, Haiti, the Cayman Islands, Turks and Caicos and Jamaica were the hardest hit Caribbean islands in 2008.