First Atlantic Disturbance of 2025 Monitored: Insights from Experts

The National Hurricane Center began tracking its first Atlantic disturbance for the 2025 season, occurring ahead of the official June start. Named storms are rare in spring; however, some tropical activity can arise. Historical data shows few tropical storms have formed before June, with March systems being especially uncommon.

On Monday, forecasters from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) began monitoring the first Atlantic disturbance of the 2025 season, despite the official start of hurricane season not occurring until June 1. While named storms are typically rare this early in the year, some tropical activity can arise in the Atlantic during spring, according to NHC meteorologist Robbie Berg.

In 2024, the NHC identified its first disturbance on April 24. This initial low-pressure area was located approximately 900 miles northwest of Cabo Verde but dissipated swiftly due to strong winds. Following this, a tropical wave formed near Hispaniola in May. The previous year, a subtropical storm emerged from an area of low pressure off the northeastern coast of the United States in January, marking the first cyclone of that year.

The current disturbance consisted of a non-tropical cluster of disorganized showers and thunderstorms positioned about 700 miles northeast of the northern Leeward Islands. However, it was deemed unlikely to develop into a tropical storm, prompting the NHC to cease tracking it by Tuesday morning. “NHC tracks non-tropical systems that have any potential to take on tropical characteristics, both inside and outside of hurricane season,” stated Berg. “Yesterday’s system just happened to have a very low chance — only 10%.”

Berg explained that weather systems typically occupy a spectrum between fully tropical systems, like hurricanes, and non-tropical systems, such as winter storms. Non-tropical weather patterns frequently form over the Atlantic, and in some cases, there is a potential for them to adopt tropical characteristics.

Since the inception of record-keeping in 1851, there have been 41 documented tropical storms or hurricanes in the Atlantic from January to May, before the official hurricane season starts. However, tropical cyclones forming in March remain significantly rare. Phil Klotzbach, a hurricane researcher at Colorado State University, noted that the only recorded tropical cyclone in March was a Category 2 hurricane that impacted the Leeward Islands and Caribbean in 1908.

In summary, while the emergence of tropical disturbances in the Atlantic before the official June hurricane season is relatively uncommon, it is not entirely unprecedented. Historical records indicate a few instances, but March disturbances are exceptionally rare. As observed, the current disturbance did not pose a development threat and reflects the typical behavior of early season atmospheric systems.

Original Source: www.nola.com