Tropical Weather Discussion covers North America, Central America, Gulf of America, Caribbean Sea, northern sections of South America, and Atlantic Ocean to the African coast from the Equator to 31N based on satellite imagery and weather observations.
In the East Atlantic, large, long-period north swells generated by gale to storm-force winds will continue southward of 31N through the weekend. Seas will range from 12 to 21 ft near the Cape Verde Islands and east of 43W, gradually subsiding below 12 ft near the Canary Islands by Monday. Refer to the National Hurricane Center’s High Seas Forecast for details.
The surface ridge over the Gulf of America anchored by a 1028 mb high over NE Alabama extends basin-wide, resulting in gentle to moderate NE winds with seas of 3 to 6 ft. However, a tighter pressure gradient over the SE Gulf generates fresh to locally strong NE winds, resulting in seas reaching 10 to 12 ft in the Yucatan Channel. Moderate to fresh N to NE winds with rough seas in the SE Gulf are forecast to persist until Friday, with conditions improving by Sunday.
In the Caribbean Sea, a stationary cold front extends from western Cuba to central Belize, with a surface trough just east of the front. This convergence causes scattered showers over the NW basin with fresh to strong northerly winds and 6 to 10 ft seas north of the front. Winds will moderate as the frontal boundary dissipates by Thursday.
For the Atlantic Ocean, a nearly stationary cold front extends from 31N69W to western Cuba with heavy showers impacting the Bahamas and SE Florida. Fresh NE winds prevail north of the front with seas of 5 to 9 ft. A broad ridge between 25W and 1036 mb high near 37N45W dominates the region.weak low pressure to develop along the front, supporting fresh to strong winds and rough seas through the weekend.
March 18, 2026, at 5:00 PM EDTThe 2026 Hurricane season starts on June 1, 2026 in
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has forecasted an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season for 2025.
Named Storms: 13 to 19
Hurricanes: 6 to 10
Major Hurricanes (Category 3 or higher): 3 to 5
Accumulate Cyclone Energy (ACE): 95% to 180% of the median
This forecast indicates a 60% chance of an above-normal season, a 30% chance of a near-normal season, and a 10% chance of a below-normal season.
Hurricane season runs from June 1 through November 30Key: Active Past Future
*Press/click the storm name to view additional details2020 - 30 named storms, 14 hurricanes
Hurricane Katrina (2005) - $125 billion
Harvey (2017) - $125 billion
Hurricane Patricia (2015) - 215 mph (345 km/h)
Hurricane Allen (1980) - 190 mph (305 km/h)
The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale is a 1 to 5 rating system that classifies hurricanes based on their sustained wind speeds and the potential damage they can cause. It helps communicate the intensity of hurricanes and the likely impacts on structures and environments. The scale does not account for factors like storm surge or rainfall, focusing only on wind speeds.
Watching the Tropics was originally built as a personal storm tracker with only the most important charts for the Atlantic hurricane basin. Numerous sites are available for tracking hurricanes, but Watching the Tropics minimizes extra "noise" and shows only what you need.
Designed in Florida by
"Watching the tropics" refers to monitoring tropical weather systems, such as tropical depressions, tropical storms, and hurricanes, in regions close to the equator. Meteorologists and weather enthusiasts often use this phrase during hurricane season to indicate that they're keeping an eye on developing weather systems that could potentially strengthen and impact areas like the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and Atlantic Ocean.
Websites, news outlets, or weather services also use "Tropics Watch" to keep the public informed about the latest developments in the tropics, especially during peak hurricane season.
An "invest" refers to an area of disturbed weather that meteorologists are investigating for potential tropical development. The term "invest" is short for "investigation area."
When an area is designated as an invest, it is given a number (between 90 and 99) followed by the letter "L" for systems in the North Atlantic or "E" for systems in the Eastern Pacific. For example, "Invest 91L" would refer to the 91st area of interest in the Atlantic basin for that season.
The designation of an invest allows meteorologists to focus their resources on a specific area, utilize specialized forecasting models, and issue updates as needed.
A tropical depression is a type of tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of less than 39 mph (34 knots or 63 km/h).
Key characteristics:
It's the first stage of development in the tropical cyclone classification used by the National Hurricane Center, followed by tropical storm and then hurricane.
