With west-central Florida recovering from Hurricane Milton and the Southeast U.S. still addressing the impacts of Helene, the National Hurricane Center is closely monitoring the next potential storm, expected to be named Nadine.

Initially, forecasters tracked a system forming off the east coast of Florida; however, it dissipated before becoming Tropical Storm Nadine.

Currently under observation is a system in the eastern tropical Atlantic, situated a few hundred miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands off the African coast. This system is moving westward and has a chance to develop into a tropical depression. According to the National Hurricane Center, it has a 40% probability of formation in the next week, with further developments anticipated no sooner than the middle of next week.

Despite this, forecasters from AccuWeather suggest that the tropics near the U.S. may remain calm for most of the following week. They do predict a moderate chance of tropical development from Thursday, Oct. 17, to Saturday, Oct. 19, particularly in the western Caribbean, where Helene and Milton formed.

A gyre, or a rotating area of air currents, is expected to form over Central America next week. According to AccuWeather’s lead hurricane expert, Alex DaSilva, “From this large, slowly rotating low-pressure area, a more defined region of showers and thunderstorms could emerge, potentially evolving into either a tropical depression or tropical storm.”

Current Status of Tropical Storm Leslie

Tropical Storm Leslie, which first formed on October 2 and later intensified into a hurricane, has now weakened back into a tropical storm as of Thursday. As of Saturday, the National Hurricane Center reported that Leslie, located around 975 miles west-southwest of the Azores, has transformed into a trough and poses no threat to the United States.

The storm currently has maximum sustained winds near 50 mph, with stronger gusts anticipated, and is expected to gradually weaken over the next few days, according to the NHC.

When is the 2024 Hurricane Season Expected to End?

There are still over seven weeks remaining in the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, which typically runs from June 1 through November 30. So far, this season has seen 13 named storms, with the next ones anticipated to be Nadine and Oscar.

After a relatively calm period of about five weeks, the 2024 hurricane season has picked up due to the emergence of Helene and Milton, resulting in an above-average season, as noted by Colorado State University meteorologist Phil Klotzbach.

This season has generated 127 on the Accumulated Cyclone Energy (ACE) index, which encompasses aspects like storm frequency, intensity, and duration, officially marking it as an above-normal season according to NOAA’s criteria, Klotzbach communicated via X on Wednesday.