Winter may still be weeks away for much of the country, but The Weather Channel is already preparing for the biggest snow and ice events of the 2026-27 season.
The Weather Channel revealed its list of winter storm names for the upcoming season on Monday, Oct. 5, with “Arabella” set to become the first name used.
The names will be assigned alphabetically as qualifying winter storms develop throughout the season, similar to the naming system used for tropical storms and hurricanes.
Eagle-eyed “Harry Potter” fans may recognize a curious pattern in this year’s list. Three of the 21 names also belong to characters from the famed wizarding world: Arabella Figg (Kathryn Hunter), Cedric Diggory (Robert Pattinson) and Professor Minerva McGonagall (Maggie Smith).
The Weather Channel’s 2026-27 winter storm names list, beginning with ‘Arabella’ and including ‘Cedric’ and ‘Minerva.’The Weather Channel
The Weather Channel’s 2026-27 winter storm names start with ‘Arabella’
Not every snowfall gets a name. The Weather Channel reserves names for winter storms expected to produce widespread, high-impact snow and/or ice.
According to The Weather Channel, those storms are typically associated with National Weather Service winter storm, blizzard and/or ice storm warnings covering significant portions of the country.
The 2026-27 season marks the 15th year The Weather Channel has named winter storms, an effort intended to make it easier to communicate the potential dangers and impacts of major winter weather events.
Those impacts can extend far beyond having to shovel the driveway. Major winter storms can cause dangerous or impassable roads, widespread flight delays and cancellations, power outages, downed trees, frozen pipes and other potentially life-threatening conditions.
Research cited by The Weather Channel has estimated that between 30 and 70 deaths in the United States can be directly attributed to winter storms each year. A 2022 study also found that winter-weather traffic accidents and other incidents account for roughly 1,000 deaths on U.S. roads annually.
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Last winter provided a dramatic example of why some storms warrant extra attention.
Winter Storm Fern swept across a huge portion of the country in January 2026, bringing more than 6 inches of snow to parts of 26 states from New Mexico to New England. More than 700 reports of freezing rain accumulation or ice storm damage were recorded across the South and East, according to The Weather Channel.
At the storm’s peak, more than 1 million customers were without power, with some outages lasting more than a week.
Fern was one of 11 winter storms named during the 2025-26 season. Other major storms included Winter Storm Hernando, a late-February East Coast blizzard that dumped more than 30 inches of snow in some areas from New Jersey to Massachusetts, and Winter Storm Iona, which broke all-time snowstorm records in portions of Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The previous winter produced 15 named storms.
Americans may not have to wait particularly long to hear the name Arabella.
The first named winter storm typically develops in November, although the first storm has arrived as early as October and as late as early December.
The busiest portion of the season usually comes later. Of the more than 250 winter storms named by The Weather Channel, the greatest concentration has occurred from late January through February, when widespread cold air can combine with active branches of the jet stream to fuel large and long-lasting storms.
Named storms become less common beginning in March as warmer air pushes farther north, although major spring snowstorms can still occur. The final named storm of the season typically arrives in April, while significant snow can continue into May in portions of the High Plains and Rockies.
There are also winter weather events that won’t get names. The Weather Channel does not name lake-effect snowstorms or outbreaks consisting solely of Arctic cold.
For now, Arabella is waiting in the wings. When the name finally appears on weather maps this season, it will mean forecasters are watching more than an ordinary round of winter weather.
Related: New NOAA Map Shows the US States Facing the Coldest Halloween This Year
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