Tracking the tropics: Hurricane center watching Sam, 3 other systems

Next named storms will be Victor and Wanda

ORLANDO, Fla. – Central Florida may be experiencing comfortable mornings with less humidity, but the tropics are still hot as hurricane season runs through November.

Here’s what’s happening in the tropics:

Hurricane Sam re-strengthened to a Category 4 storm Tuesday morning.

As of 11 p.m. Tuesday, Sam has sustained winds of 140 mph.

The hurricane was moving northwest at 9 mph about 490 miles east of the Leeward Islands.

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Sam is forecast to curve away from the Caribbean Islands into the open Atlantic before moving east of Bermuda. Florida will not see a direct impact from Sam.

Meanwhile, a broad area of low pressure several hundred miles southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands is producing a large area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms.

Environmental conditions are conducive for further development, and a tropical depression is likely to form during the next day or two while the system moves westward to west-northwest at 5 to 10 mph over the central tropical Atlantic.

The National Hurricane Center says the system has a 60% chance of developing tropical characteristics over the next five days.

Elsewhere, a tropical wave over the far eastern tropical Atlantic several hundred miles southeast of the Cabo Verde Islands continues to produce a large area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms.

Upper-level winds are conducive for gradual development, and a tropical depression is likely to form in a day or two while the disturbance moves west to west-northwest at 10 to 15 mph over the far eastern tropical Atlantic.

It also has a 90% chance to develop.

And a well-defined low pressure area associated with the remnants of Peter is a few hundred miles east of Bermuda.

The shower and thunderstorm activity associated with this system has become less organized since early Monday.

Although strong upper-level winds are likely to prevent significant development, this system could still become a short-lived tropical depression later Tuesday while it moves northeast at about 10 mph.

By Wednesday, however, conditions are expected to become unfavorable for further development.

The next named storms will be Victor and Wanda.

If all of the names of the 2021 season are exhausted, a supplemental list of names, rather than the Greek Alphabet, will be used to finish the season. This is new for the 2021 season.

Adria is the first name on the supplemental list.


About the Authors

Daniel started with WKMG-TV in 2000 and became the digital content manager in 2009. When he's not working on ClickOrlando.com, Daniel likes to head to the beach or find a sporting event nearby.

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