April 25, 2026, at 2:15 AM EDT
The tropical weather discussion highlights various weather systems across the Atlantic, Gulf of America, Caribbean Sea, and adjacent areas. The monsoon trough and ITCZ are inducing moderate to strong convection south of the equator. In the Gulf of America, a surface trough north of the Yucatan Peninsula is creating locally fresh NE winds, while a ridge is ensuring gentle to moderate E to SE winds over the basin, with seas ranging from 2 to 4 ft. The weather pattern is expected to maintain moderate to fresh SE winds over the western Gulf and gentle to moderate conditions in the east through mid-week. Additionally, pulsing moderate to fresh winds are forecast off the Yucatan Peninsula during evenings.
In the Caribbean Sea, a surface trough from southeast to northwest Cuba triggers scattered showers and thunderstorms near Cuba and through the Windward Passage, with mainly gentle E to SE winds and seas of 2 to 3 ft prevailing elsewhere. The weakening pressure gradient will lead to moderate or weaker winds and slight to moderate seas across the Caribbean until Monday. In the east and central Caribbean, moderate to fresh winds are anticipated early next week due to changing pressure conditions.
Across the Atlantic Ocean, a surface trough from southeastern Cuba extends northward, influencing scattered moderate convection, especially off the northern Dominican Republic coast. Meanwhile, a weak ridge over the Bahamas induces mostly moderate or weaker winds. An evolving pressure gradient is causing fresh to strong W winds in the central Atlantic, affecting areas north of 30N. Sea heights are notably higher near NW Africa due to a cold front, with rough seas reaching up to 10 ft.
Future forecasts for areas west of 55W discuss a surface trough lifting NE over the weekend, possibly developing a low south of the Bahamas before dissipating by Monday. Meanwhile, a series of cold fronts will impact the region, notably influencing winds and sea conditions near the NE offshore waters and off NE Florida through early next week.
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.
