The Weather Channel is doing what? Naming winter storms - KMSP-TV

The Weather Channel has announced that they are going to start "Naming" winter storms. At first you may ask, "they name hurricanes, why not all storms?"

The answer is simple: Hurricanes are systems that start as storms in Africa, blow across the Atlantic and track into or toward the Americas. They last days, if not weeks, and cover large portions of the globe. They remain largely intact and identifiable. They also need to be identified and tracked by ships and ''landlubbers'' alike.

On the other hand, winter storms tend to be shorter in duration. The winter impact of the storm can often come together at the last minute, as storms hook in from the Texas panhandle or blast out of Canada.

The Weather Channel said that naming a storm will make them easier to track, easier to reference and easier to refer to in the future. The reality is, is that it will do little to make the process clearer.

It's really about "marketing" the weather. Hyping the weather. And trying to increase ratings. The Weather Channel's ratings "spike" during big storms as you might expect. They are looking to get more mileage and "branding" out of those events.

All well and good. But they are doing a scientific disservice to the consumer. Quite frankly just look silly.

If ever a system of naming storms needs to be in place, it should be done by a panel of scientists - maybe the National Weather Service. In the mean time, this just seems like a DUMB IDEA.