Atlantic storm names follow six-year rotating alphabetical lists
The next named tropical storm in the Atlantic this hurricane season will be called Dolly, the National Hurricane Center said Tuesday evening, confirming the timing is coincidental with Dolly Parton’s death on Tuesday.
The center was monitoring a weather system off Africa that could strengthen into a named storm, according to its Tuesday evening update. Conditions were favorable for an area of thunderstorms south of the Cabo Verde Islands to develop into a tropical depression sometime in the next week, the center said.
Atlantic storm names are assigned by procedures set by the World Meteorological Organization. The names are drawn from lists that are reused every six years; the Atlantic lists are alphabetical and alternate between male and female names, according to the center.
The 2026 Atlantic season started in June with Tropical Storm Arthur, which came ashore on the U.S. Gulf Coast. Tropical Storm Bertha followed in July, dropping rain on Louisiana and Texas. Earlier in August, Tropical Storm Cristobal formed in the Atlantic and quickly dissipated.
If the system near Africa strengthens enough to be named, it will be Dolly — the next scheduled name on the seasonal list, the center confirmed.