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2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season
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Active Tropical Systems: Remnants of Dolly
Atlantic Hurricane Season is from June 1 - November 30


GOES Satellite - Zoomed in on the Caribbean (04:20 UTC, 20 minutes ago)
Scale bar (lower right) is 250 miles. [more satellite imagery].
See storm-centered satellite image and loop in the tools section below (if available)

Dolly tools:
image and loop | model spaghetti plots + intensity | dev chance: 2d low / 7d low
97L Invest:
image and loop | model spaghetti plots + intensity | dev chance: 2d high / 7d high

Thursday, August 27, 2026 21:49PM EDT - TS Dolly

Good evening,

While the Eastern Pacific is rife with action and Hawaii taking the
brunt of most of that action, the Atlantic, GOM/GOA and Caribbean Sea
have been experiencing a welcome dormant scenario so far this 2026
Atlantic hurricane season which we all in this region appreciate. This
is due to the strengthening El Nino producing prolific wind shear,
cooler than average Atlantic SST's, and our favorite protector, the
good old reliable, and omnipresent Saharan Dust Layer.

The downside to all these factors is a persistent drought from the mid
Windwards up to the Greater Antilles. Puerto Rico is especially bereft
of Agua aka water with rationing in effect for almost 1/2 million
residents.The DR, US and British Virgins along with Antigua and the
rest of the Leewards are experiencing drought in various phases. The
lower Windwards have been the beneficiaries of low riding waves, just
below the Saharan Dust reach and out of the claws of the wind shear.
However, this is about to "possibly" change but not end the drought in
the northeastern sector completely.

TS Dolly, materializing right after Dolly Partons passing, which,
while a major coincidence, is not a planned name event as names for
storms are recycled every 6 years. The timing is impeccable I must
say. I also hope TS Dolly is as gentle and generous with rain only as
Dolly Parton was with her love of humanity and philanthropy.

Currently Dolly has a chance to slightly strengthen but that window is
closing rapidly as wind shear and dry air are conspiring to instigate
her demise before she reaches the Lesser Antilles. However, there will
be residual effects as in possible flash flooding due to the hard
packed, drought ridden grounds and steep terrain, coastal flooding,
rip currents, intermittent power outages which happen anyway, and high
offshore seas.

Models are in good agreement as to the track although a slight
deviation to the north will lessen all the above effects while a
deviation to the south will enhance said effects. A stronger system
will recurve before the islands due to the steering currents and the
strength of the system but Dolly is expected to weaken upon approach,
possibly back into a strong tropical wave. Thank you dust and wind
shear. Dolly could still exceed expectations so please, prepare
regardless. Weather is an inexact science and we have seen previous
systems overcome the obvious obstacles, over achieve, and surprise.
Err on the side of caution.

After passing the islands, regenesis is a small possibility due to
less wind shear and dust plus warmer SST's. Just something for the
Turks and Caicos, Bahamas and Florida to be aware of. Depends on her
strength upon exiting the NE islands.

Behind Dolly, there are waves lined up, per usual at this time of
year. There are a couple who bode a vigilant eye, with the next one on
the list. Dolly has paved the way, albeit slightly by moistening up
the environment so time will tell.

Stay safe, prepared and vigilant. There's a lot of season left and the
meat of the season is at hand.

Dave

Tuesday, August 25, 2026 14:45PM PDT - Invest 96L
The wave that I mentioned earlier has come off the African coast and has become our first possible Cape Verde storm of the season. Right now it is called Invest 96L. It is still a long way from the islands with a possible arrival for the northeastern islands on Sunday/Monday.

Models don't really agree yet on what will happen (see multi-model grand ensemble below). Those that predict a stronger storm will have it veer more to the north, moving the system just north of the islands (but be on alert Bermuda). The ones that predict a weaker system have it track more to the south. Right now tracks are trending southwards, so I guess to less intense development.

Squinting my eyes at the intensity guidance plots tells me that most models keep the system at just a tropical depression, but some see a Category 1 hurricane form... One of the better performing models, Google's Deepmind AI model, sees it become something when it is getting close to the Turks&Caicos and Bahamas. It is all still a little early to tell, if we get rain, rain+wind, or none... Stay tuned! -Gert

... Older discussions >>

Current Tropical Weather Outlook (NHC/TPC):
Accompanying satellite image (pop-up, source: NHC)
NWS National Hurricane Center Miami FL
800 PM EDT Sun Aug 30 2026

For the North Atlantic...Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of America:

Northern Gulf of America (AL97):
An area of low pressure located over the northern Gulf of America, 
about 125 miles south of the coast of southeastern Louisiana, 
continues to become better defined, and the associated shower and 
thunderstorm activity is gradually increasing. Continued gradual 
development is expected as the low moves slowly west-northwestward, 
and a short-lived tropical depression or tropical storm is likely to 
form before the system reaches the Upper Texas or southwestern 
Louisiana coasts on Tuesday or Tuesday night. 

Interests along the southwest Louisiana and Upper Texas coasts 
should monitor the progress of this system, as tropical storm 
watches or warnings could be required for portions of the area later 
tonight or Monday morning. Regardless of development, this system is 
expected to bring locally heavy rainfall to portions of the Upper 
Texas and southwestern Louisiana coasts during the next several 
days. An Air Force Reserve reconnaissance aircraft is scheduled to 
investigate the low-pressure area on Monday morning.
* Formation chance through 48 hours...high...70 percent.
* Formation chance through 7 days...high...70 percent.

Near Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands (Remnants of Dolly):
A strong tropical wave, the remnants of Tropical Storm Dolly, is 
producing an area of showers and thunderstorms from Puerto Rico 
eastward across the Virgin Islands and the northern Leeward Islands. 
Satellite data and surface observations indicate that there are no 
signs of a closed surface circulation, and redevelopment is unlikely 
during the next day or two while the wave moves westward to 
west-northwestward at about 25 mph. The system could bring locally 
heavy rains and gusty winds to portions of the Leeward Islands, the 
Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Hispaniola over the next couple of 
days. Conditions may become more conducive for redevelopment by the 
middle of the week as the system reaches the southeastern Gulf of 
America.
* Formation chance through 48 hours...low...near 0 percent.
* Formation chance through 7 days...low...20 percent.

$$
Forecaster Kelly
More detail in the Tropical Weather Discussion or view the Graphicast Image

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Latest local updates from the special
hurricane correspondents on the islands:

- St.Croix [Aug 30 22:07]
- St.Maarten/St.Martin [Aug 30 19:24]
- Tortola & Virgin Gorda [Aug 30 11:15]
- St.Thomas [Aug 30 9:08]
- Antigua [Aug 30 7:24]
- Dominica [Aug 27 11:30]
- Trinidad & Tobago [Aug 21 6:03]
- Dominican Republic [Aug 15 17:54]
- Turks & Caicos [Aug 15 8:00]
- Nevis [Aug 12 9:27]
- Saba [Aug 4 17:44]
- Bermuda [Jul 29 7:39]
- Jamaica [Jun 9 8:58]
- Puerto Rico [Jun 6 16:04]
- Haiti [Jun 2 15:13]

Only reports received for this season are listed. See the archive for previous years.

Links to excellent websites:
Satellite Imagery
- Navy/NRL Monterey
- NOAA/NESDIS (floater loops)
- RAMSDIS Imagery
- CIMSS/U.Wisc-Mad
Radar & Buoy Data
- Radar Composite - E-Carib.
- Radar Loops (McNoldy)
- Caribbean/Atl. buoy data
Model Guidance & Ensembles
- RT model guidance (RAL/NCAR)
- Tang/UAlbany (model tracks)
- tropicaltidbits.com
- PolarWX (Tomer Burg)
- weathernerds.org (ensembles)
- TC Realtime (RAMMB)
- ECMWF Model Forecast
Tracking & Analysis Tools
- Tracking Waves (McNoldy)
- zoom.earth hurricane tracker
Blogs
- Eye on the Storm (Jeff Masters)
- Brian McNoldy Blog
- Michael Lowry's Blog
Forums
- STORM2K forum
more...

Storm definitions by wind speed:
- Tropical Depression <39mph
- Tropical Storm 39-73mph
- Cat.1 Hurricane 74-95mph
- Cat.2 Hurricane 96-110mph
- Cat.3 Hurricane 111-129mph
- Cat.4 Hurricane 130-156mph
- Cat.5 Hurricane >=157mph
More info in the Practical Guide

Wind force relative to Category 1:
- Tropical Storm 39mph: 0.28x
- Cat.1 Hurricane 74mph: 1x
- Cat.2 Hurricane 96mph: 1.7x
- Cat.3 Hurricane 111mph: 2.3x
- Cat.4 Hurricane 130mph: 3.1x
- Cat.5 Hurricane 157mph: 4.5x
- Irma 185mph: 6.3x

Damage potential relative to Cat 1:
- Tropical Storm 39mph: 0.005x
- Cat.1 Hurricane 74mph: 1x
- Cat.2 Hurricane 96mph: 7.2x
- Cat.3 Hurricane 111mph: 23x
- Cat.4 Hurricane 130mph: 82x
- Cat.5 Hurricane 157mph: 369x
- Irma 185mph: 1372x



- - - Local hurricane correspondents wanted! - - -

The local hurricane correspondents are the heart and soul of stormCARIB. They are the people who live on the island and write to us what is going on around them. First hand very local personal reports instead of very limited or sensationalized coverage by the general media. Do you live on one of the islands? We need your help! We are looking for more people who are interested in sending us a few paragraphs about the situation on your island before, during and after a storm hits. You don't need to be a weatherman or expert on the subject, just share with us what you know, feel and see on your island. Your help will be really appreciated by Caribbean people living abroad with family living on the islands, future visitors who have their Caribbean dream-vacation booked, etc.etc. Reliable, not-sensationalized information is just so hard to get in crisis situations. Help keep the rest of the world up-to-date with what is really happening! We really need you, Georges back in 1998, and many others since then are proof! If interested, contact gert@gobeach.com.


WHAT TO FIND ON StormCARIB.com:
This website is all about the Caribbean. Here you can find information, weather discussions and local reports regarding tropical systems threatening the Caribbean islands. A central part of this website is the volunteer network of special local hurricane correspondents, living on the islands, who will report, when need be, on how it looks and feels like around them. Above also hopefully easy to understand weather discussions by me and Dave. In addition, as an aid in locating family or friends on the islands in an emergency situation you can post your 'plea for help' on the bulletin board. Also featured on this website is the Quick Hurricane Web Resource Navigator, for easy locating to the least overloaded webserver for National Hurricane Center advisories and the latest satellite images. Another part of the Caribbean Hurricane Network is the 'practical guide' to hurricane tracking with unit conversions, definitions, tips, links, etc. You can also find out how close the storm is and how many hours you have left to prepare plus you can map the closest point of approach of a hurricane to your location. New is the climatology of Caribbean hurricanes section. Find out when the real peak of hurricane season is for individual islands, view hurricane tracks passing by the islands over the last 150+ years. An archive with detailed reports of how the Caribbean islands fared during the 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004 (incl. Frances and Ivan), 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999 (incl. Floyd and Lenny), 1998 (incl. Georges and Mitch), 1997 and 1996 seasons are still available as well. Plus there is more, like storm-centered satellite images, make your own local satellite loop, etc. Hope you find the information on this website (now counting over thousands pages with original content) helpful. Comments always welcome! RSS web feed available. As a side note I am now accepting donations as well. Thanks for visiting!

Maintained & moderated by: Gert van Dijken (gert@gobeach.com).
Weather discussions also by Dave McDermott, St.Thomas, USVI.


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Disclaimer
The information on these pages is derived from weather statements provided by the National Weather Service, the National Hurricane Center, and others, and from hurricane correspondents in the Caribbean. I tried to translate the official weather statements in more layman's terms. Also, I tried to fill the gap in reporting on what is happening in the Caribbean, instead of the US (there are already many other good website which focus on the US). Keep in mind that my statements are my own interpretations from the information available to me. Therefore, use the information at your own risk, and above all, don't use these webpages for making life-or-death decisions, always rely on the official and qualified authorities! Accuracy of eye-witness reports by the special hurricane correspondents have not been checked. They may be highly subjective. The author can not be held responsible for lost property, ruined vacations and the like. Despite all this I hope you found the webpage informative and useful. These pages do not have a commercial intent. GoBeach Vacations provided the means and opportunity to start all this. 'Unfortunately' this website has become too popular, placing too much load on the gobeach.com webservers. Luckily, starting in 2000, my excellent webhost provider, pairNetworks, liked my website so much that they support services whenever they can. Comments are always welcome. Just send a note to gert@gobeach.com. Gert