The Met Service is predicting that for the seventh consecutive year, the Atlantic Hurricane Season will be above-normal.

This follows a similar forecast from the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration‘s Climate Prediction Centre.

The Atlantic Hurricane season begins on June 1 and ends on November 30.

According to the Met Service, this year, there is a 65 per cent chance that the activity of the season will be higher than normal, while near-normal activity is about 25 per cent likely.

It predicts that there will be 14 to 21 named storms, 6 to 10 hurricanes, and 3 to 6 major hurricanes of category 3 to 5.

An ongoing La Niña is one main factor expected to contribute to the increased activity.