Hurricane center tracks 3 systems that could develop

Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel on Aug 22, 2026

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ORLANDO, Fla. — The National Hurricane Center on Saturday kept track of three systems that could develop into the season’s next tropical depression or storm.

As of the NHC’s 8 a.m. advisory, the one of most concern to Florida is a tropical wave expected to form in the eastern Atlantic when it moves off the African coast early next week.

“An area of low pressure could form in association with the wave soon after it moves off the coast, and subsequent development will be possible while the system moves westward at 15 to 20 mph across the eastern and central tropical Atlantic through the end of next week,” forecasters said.

The NHC gives the wave a 30% chance to develop within seven days.

The other two systems being tracked by the NHC are no threat to Florida and have low chances of development.

One located in the northeastern Atlantic is a strong nontropical area of low pressure several hundred miles west of the coast of Portugal.

“This system could acquire some subtropical or tropical characteristics later today or on Sunday while it moves east-southeastward at 10 to 15 mph toward Portugal and northwestern Spain,” forecasters said. “The opportunity for tropical or subtropical development should end Sunday night when the system encounters unfavorable environmental conditions.”

The NHC gave it a 20% chance to develop in the next two to seven days.

The final system is a trough of low pressure in the central subtropical Atlantic a few hundred miles east of Bermuda with disorganized shower activity.

“Development of this system, if any, is expected to be slow to occur while it drifts westward through Sunday and then accelerates northward early next week,” forecasters said.

The NHC gave it a 10% chance to develop in the next two days and 20% in the next seven.

So far the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, which began June 1 and runs through Nov. 30, has been slow with only three named systems: Tropical storms Arthur, Bertha and Cristobal.

The next names on the list are Dolly and Edouard.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration earlier this month updated its seasonal forecast and now expects between seven and 13 named storms this year. Of those, two to six would become hurricanes. It also predicted that there might not be any major hurricanes this year, or at most two.

Already, 2026 was forecast to have lower-than-average storm generation, and that has been reduced even further with the latest forecasts from the NOAA and other weather groups.

An average year would see 14 named storms and seven hurricanes, with three of those growing to Category 3 strength or higher.

The height of hurricane season has just begun and runs through mid-October.