Hurricane Isaias shattered the peace of one of the quietest Atlantic hurricane seasons on record as it grew into 2026’s first Atlantic hurricane and made landfall on the northern Gulf Coast near Destin, Fla., late on Oct. 9.

The Category 2 hurricane’s storm surge reached 5.6 feet at nearby Panama City Beach as it crossed the coast. Forecasters warned of damaging wind gusts over a large portion of the southeastern U.S. and flooding rain as the storm moved inland toward the Appalachian Mountains.

Isaias tied a 1905 storm for the latest-forming first hurricane of a season on record. To understand why it was able to strengthen into a hurricane when no other storms in the first two-thirds of the 2026 season did, let’s take a look at what was going on in the atmosphere.

As an atmospheric scientist who has studied hurricanes for years, I can tell you that wind shear and the climate phenomenon known as El Niño both play important roles.

Why the 2026 season had such a quiet start

Usually, Atlantic hurricane activity hits its peak in September. In a typical season, the Atlantic region experiences five hurricanes and two........

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