20% CHANCE OF TROPICAL DEVELOPMENT IN NORTHERN GULF LATER THIS WEEK… The National Hurricane Center has introduced a low-end chance of tropical storm formation for the northern Gulf of Mexico valid for later this week. We note this is a totally separate, distinct chance of tropical development that is NOT associated with the former Tropical Depression 3 east of Florida. From NHC: “A non-tropical low pressure area could form over the northern Gulf of Mexico by late Wednesday or Thursday. Thereafter, conditions could become marginally conducive for some subtropical or tropical development as it moves slowly northeastward through the end of the week.”
COLD FRONT PUSHES THROUGH OUR AREA TONIGHT… One of the reasons NHC has flagged this area for a low-end chance of tropical storm formation in the northern Gulf is because of a cold front sliding through our area tonight. This cold front will stall over the northern Gulf (about 200 miles to the south of our area). There is a chance that a surface area of low pressure may develop along the front and slowly move northeast. If this happens, atmospheric conditions are at least somewhat favorable for the development of a tropical storm.
TOO EARLY TO KNOW POTENTIAL IMPACTS… It’s far too early in this process to be able to give any specifics about what our area may (or may not) experience due to this potential tropical development. If formal development happens (and that’s a BIG “if” at this point!), we will probably need to adjust rain chances higher for the weekend, but even that will largely depend on the future track of the system.
APP ALERTS… This is something to monitor and be aware of, but beyond that, there’s no need in panic or worrying at this point. There is still quite a high chance that this system never materializes. We’ll keep you posted about it all in the RedZone Weather app. redzoneweather.com/app is the link for the free download. Once you have the RZW app downloaded to your iOS or Android device, be sure to visit the Alerts tab (lower right corner) and turn ON the alerts you would like to receive straight from me.
Let me know if you have any specific questions. I’ll have more updates throughout the day in the RedZone Weather app.