RICHMOND, Va. -- The first named storm of the Atlantic tropical season developed around 5 a.m. EDT just northeast of Bermuda.
Subtropical Storm Ana will move to the northeast, away from Bermuda, and dissipate. A subtropical storm has some of, but not all, the characteristics of a tropical storm. Subtropical storms still cause strong winds, heavy rainfall, and increased surf. More information can be found in the Interactive Tropical Tracker.
A disturbance in the western Gulf Of Mexico was being watched for development into a tropical depression, but it has now moved ashore in southeastern Texas. It will continue to produce some heavy rainfall there, in a region where some locations in Texas and Louisiana picked up over 15 inches of rain this past week.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30. This the statistical period when most tropical activity occurs. However, there have been many years when named storms developed prior to June 1. However, in these two development regions (western Gulf and near Bermuda), there has never been a named storm in May.
The Atlantic storm names get repeated every six years, unless there is a catastrophic storm like Katrina, Michael, Andrew, etc., in which case those names are retired. In 2015, there was a Tropical Storm Ana in early May. This developed near the Bahamas, then tracked up into the Carolinas and through southeastern Virginia.
For the Atlantic season, the National Weather Service, as well as the tropical weather and climate research department at Colorado State University, are both forecasting the season to have above normal activity. However, a repeat of 2020's record season is not expected. Keep in mind these forecasts are for storms that develop, not make landfall.
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