Forecasters monitor tropical wave development in Central Atlantic

National Hurricane Center gives storm low chances for formation

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – As of Friday morning, forecasters at the National Hurricane Center are closely watching an area of low pressure located half-way between the Africa and the Lesser Antilles. 

Environmental conditions are expected to become conducive for some gradual development while the system moves slowly west over the next few days, according to the National Hurricane Center.

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By the middle of next week, stronger upper-level winds could limit the chance for further development.

However, as we enter peak season - a period from mid-August to late October - development along the tropics should be expected, but meteorologists believe most of those waves will weaken before they impact the United States or the Caribbean Islands. 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration along with a number of other hurricane forecasting agencies and programs are currently predicting a below-average Atlantic hurricane season as a result of the development of an El Nino in the Pacific Ocean, cooler sea surface temperatures and an increased amount of Saharan dust spreading over the Atlantic Ocean along with higher levels of wind shear over the Caribbean.

So far this season, two hurricanes and two tropical storms have formed in the Atlantic Basin.