The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has announced the names for the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, which spans from June 1 to November 30. This list contains 21 names, covering most letters of the alphabet except Q, U, X, Y, and Z, due to a lack of suitable names. The names rotate every six years, with the last cycle in 2020. A key update is the retirement of the name 'Laura' after the catastrophic impact of Hurricane Laura in 2020, which caused over $23.3 billion in damages and at least 81 deaths. The hurricane naming system, established in 1953, alternates between male and female names, requiring them to be easily pronounceable, short, unique to the Western Hemisphere, and culturally sensitive.