The term for a tropical cyclone in the Atlantic Ocean is hurricane. Regional naming differs around the world: “hurricane” is used in the North Atlantic and eastern North Pacific, while “typhoon” is used in the western North Pacific and “cyclone” is common in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific.
A hurricane begins as an organized low-pressure weather system over warm tropical or subtropical water. It must develop closed, low-level circulation and sustained winds of at least 74 miles per hour, or 64 knots. Systems with weaker winds are classified as tropical depressions or tropical storms, even though they belong to the same broader family.
The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1 through November 30, although storms can form outside those dates. Most North Atlantic activity occurs between August and October, with September typically the climatological peak.
“Hurricane” is often confused with “tornado.” Both rotate, but a hurricane is a huge ocean-spanning tropical cyclone that can last for days, whereas a tornado is a much smaller, short-lived column of violently rotating air usually associated with severe thunderstorms.