April 15, 2026, at 5:00 AM EDT
The monsoon trough and ITCZ bring scattered moderate to isolated strong convection in parts of the Atlantic, with notable activity from 02N to 06N between 10W and 18W.
In the Gulf of America, a ridge from high pressure over the west-central Atlantic is causing fresh to strong NE to E winds, with moderate to rough seas particularly in the SE Gulf, including the Straits of Florida, and off the Yucatan peninsula. The ridge will persist, with expected building seas following a cold front across the northern Gulf by Sunday night.
An upper-low in the Caribbean Sea is causing scattered moderate convection over the northern Leeward Islands. A ridge north of the Bahamas is bringing fresh to strong NE winds to the Windward Passage and lee of Cuba. Convective activity and cloudiness are affecting areas from Venezuela to the Windward Islands, with conditions expected to improve by late week.
In the Atlantic Ocean, a surface trough induced by an upper-low extends to Puerto Rico, affecting areas with scattered moderate convection and fresh to strong NE winds from Bermuda to the Cuban coast. A stationary front in the region is causing moderate to fresh trades and rough seas, particularly north of 27N near NW Africa. The surface trough will drift towards Hispaniola, gradually weakening, followed by high pressure and the approach of a cold front off NE Florida's coast Sunday night with fresh to strong N to NE winds expected.
The 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.
