Thanks to a rapidly growing “super” El Niño, Atlantic hurricane activity has been exceptionally quiet this season. Only two tropical storms, Arthur and Bertha, have formed so far, and we have yet to see a single hurricane take shape. The National Hurricane Center is currently monitoring not one, not two, but three areas of potential cyclone formation in the Atlantic Basin. El Niño is rapidly strengthening in the Pacific, and forecasts suggest it could become the strongest such event ever recorded. El Niño suppresses Atlantic hurricane activity by increasing vertical wind shear across the basin, making it harder for thunderstorms to develop into cyclones, according to NOAA.