Low Pressure Sparks Tropical Storm Chance

As of Friday, August 22, 2026, the National Hurricane Center is tracking a weak low-pressure system in the central subtropical Atlantic, a few hundred miles east-southeast of Bermuda. This system is producing disorganized showers and thunderstorms and has a slight chance of developing into the next tropical depression or storm.

Development of this system is expected to be slow as it drifts west-southwestward through Sunday before turning northward early next week. The National Hurricane Center assigns it a 10% chance of formation within two days and a 20% chance within seven days.

Forecasters are also watching a non-tropical low-pressure area over the northeastern Atlantic, north-northeast of the Azores. This system is moving toward Portugal and northwestern Spain and could acquire subtropical or tropical characteristics on Saturday or early Sunday. However, the opportunity for development is expected to end by Sunday night as it moves into unfavorable conditions.

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, which began on June 1, has been relatively quiet with only three named systems: Tropical storms Arthur, Bertha, and Cristobal. The next names on the list are Dolly and Edouard. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently updated its seasonal forecast, now predicting between seven and 13 named storms, with two to six becoming hurricanes.