Curious About Winter Storm Athena?

For locals who remember last year's Halloween freeze, or the Boxing Day "snowmaggedon" of 2010, the Weather Channel has news. The Weather Channel will name "noteworthy" winter storms starting this year, the agency announced. Athena is expected this afternoon.

The list of names has been released; locals can expect snowstorm "Athena" to head the list. Each letter of the alphabet has a name designated, including "Gandalf," "Nemo," "Q," and ending with "Zeus."

According to the agency, hurricanes and tropical storms have been given names since the 1940s. In the late 1800s, tropical systems near Australia were named as well. Weather systems, including winter storms, have been named in Europe since the 1950s.  Important dividends have resulted from attaching names to these storms:

• Naming a storm raises awareness.
• Attaching a name makes it much easier to follow a weather system’s progress.
• A storm with a name takes on a personality all its own, which adds to awareness.
• In today’s social media world, a name makes it much easier to reference in communication.
• A named storm is easier to remember and refer to in the future.

Do you agree or disagree that naming a storm makes it easier to follow? Tell us in the comments.