Hurricane season officially begins on June 1 and runs through Nov. 30, but the names of the storms that reach hurricane strength have already been set.

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The World Meteorological Organization has lists of names that are used on a six-year cycle.

The only time the list changes, according to the National Hurricane Center, is when a storm has done so much damage that it would not be appropriate to reuse it, then the name will be retired.

The list of names for the 2024 hurricane season are:

• Alberto
• Beryl
• Chris
• Debby
• Ernesto
• Francine
• Gordon
• Helene
• Isaac
• Joyce
• Kirk
• Leslie
• Milton
• Nadine
• Oscar
• Patty
• Rafael
• Sara
• Tony
• Valerie
• William

If there are more than 21 named hurricanes in the Atlantic, then the WMO will use names from an alternate list of names the group maintains.

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2024 hurricane names (YinYang/iStock)

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