Storm Forecast at 14h on August 10, according to the local time of the National Hurricane Center (NHC), shows that a low-pressure system with a wide range of rain showers and thunderstorms has been active since August 7 and is currently located in the middle of the Tropical Atlantic, approximately between the Cape Verde Islands and the Lesser Antilles of the Caribbean region.
The environmental conditions appear to be favorable for the gradual development of this system over the next few days while it moves westward to west-northwest at a speed of 24-32 km/h through the central Tropical Atlantic.
The NHC predicts that a Tropical Depression or hurricane has a high chance of forming by the beginning to middle of next week as the system approaches and then moves near or through the Lesser Antilles.
The next move of the storm will be to move west-northwest through parts of the Greater Antilles, possibly including Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
The NHC gives a 40% chance of this system developing within the next 2 days and 80% within 7 days.
If the low-pressure system strengthens into a named system, it could become Tropical Storm Ernesto, the fifth Hurricane No. 5 in the Atlantic hurricane season.
Long-range forecast models show that this system will then shift northward into the Atlantic before reaching Florida (US), but all of that will occur more than a week from now.
"It's still too early to determine any potential impacts. Please follow the latest storm updates and continue to monitor Weather Forecast for reliable information" - the National Weather Service states in the long-term forecast.
The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season has seen 4 named storms so far, including two major hurricanes. The most recent one, Hurricane No. 4 Debby, made landfall in Big Bend, Florida on August 5 with a Category 1 hurricane strength.
It then weakened into a tropical storm, causing heavy rain as it moved eastward into the Atlantic, shifted northward and made landfall for the second time in South Carolina on August 7.
The number of storms is expected to increase as the hurricane season peaks from mid-August to October.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has just updated its latest storm forecast for the week, predicting an extremely harsh hurricane season with 17-24 named storms, of which 8-13 will be major hurricanes. Among them, 4-7 will be major hurricanes.
The Hurricane Season officially runs from June 1 to November 30.
