ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Tropical Storm Danielle continues to strengthen in the Atlantic and is forecast to become the season's first hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Danielle has continued to steadily strengthen since it formed Thursday from Tropical Depression Five in the northern Atlantic. The storm is the first one named in 60 days. The last named storm was Colin all the way back on July 3.
As of 5 a.m. Friday, Danielle currently has maximum sustained winds of 70 mph and is moving east at 3 mph. Over the next few days, it's expected to meander over the open Atlantic.
The storm is forecast to continue to gain strength and will become a hurricane later Friday morning, the NHC said. So far, the Atlantic has not produced a hurricane.
As Danielle continues to strengthen through the weekend and into early next week, it will remain generally over the north-central Atlantic. Tropical Storm Danielle is not a threat to Florida or the United States.
The system held off developing in August, which gave us the first storm-free August in 25 years. It was also the second-longest period in recorded history we went without a named storm, with 60 days separating us from the last-named storm.
Elsewhere in the Atlantic, there is the potential for another system to develop. Invest 91-L currently has a 50-percent chance of developing into a tropical depression or storm in the next 48 hours. This area of disturbance is currently located east of the Leeward Islands. If it does develop, the next name on the list is Earl.
A third system, Invest 94-L, located in the eastern tropical Atlantic looks a lot less impressive, but the NHC says it could still have some potential for development. It currently has a 10-percent chance of development.