Why is the Weather Channel Naming Winter Storms like Winter Storm Gandolf?

The Grand Valley just got dumped on by winter storm Gandolf. Yes, a character from the Lord of the Rings. How does the Weather Channel come up with these names and why are they naming winter storms?

At the end of last year, the weather channel reported that no longer do hurricanes only get the satisfaction of having a name. Now, they will be naming winter storms as well. The Weather Channel says that naming a winter storm will help bring awareness, and help the public plan ahead for winter storms, especially with the rise in social media.

As for the U.S. National Weather Service, they do not name winter storms. They say the Weather Channel is a private entity and can name them whatever they like. They would rather just stick to the facts and leave the name calling up to the Weather Channel.

Here are some of the names we will be seeing this winter from the Weather Channel:

Athena: The Greek goddess of wisdom, courage, inspirations, justice, mathematics and all things wonderful.

Brutus: Roman Senator and best known assassin of Julius Caesar.

Caesar: Title used by Roman and Byzantine emperors.

Draco:The first legislator of Athens in Ancient Greece.

Euclid: A mathematician in Ancient Greece, the father of geometry.

Freyr: A Norse god associated with fair weather, among other things.

Gandolf: A character in a 1896 fantasy novel in a pseudo-medieval countryside.

Helen: In Greek mythology, Helen of Troy was the daughter of Zeus.

Iago: Enemy of Othello in Shakespeare’s play, Othello.

Jove: The English name for Jupiter, the Roman god of light and sky.

Khan: Mongolian conqueror and emperor of the Mongol empire.

Luna: The divine embodiment of the moon in Roman mythology.

Magnus: The Father of Europe, Charlemagne the Great, in Latin: Carolus Magnus.

Nemo: A Greek boy’s name meaning "from the valley," means "nobody" in Latin.

Orko: The thunder god in Basque mythology.

Plato: Greek philosopher and mathematician, who was named by his wrestling coach.

Q:The Broadway Express subway line in New York City.

Rocky: A single mountain in the Rockies.

Saturn: Roman god of time, also the namesake of the planet Saturn in our solar system.

Triton: In Greek mythology, the messenger of the deep sea, son of Poseidon.

Ukko: In Finnish mythology, the god of the sky and weather.

Virgil: One of ancient Rome’s greatest poets.

Walda: Name from Old German meaning “ruler.”

Xerxes: The fourth king of the Persian Achaemenid Empire, Xerxes the Great.

Yogi: People who do yoga.

Zeus: In Greek mythology, the supreme ruler of Mount Olympus and the gods who lived there