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Joe Edwards

By Joe Edwards

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A tropical disturbance moving across the Atlantic could become this season's next named storm later this week as forecasters track two systems with tropical development potential.

As of Tuesday morning, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) highlighted two areas in the Atlantic for potential tropical development, including one with a "high" 70 percent chance of cyclone formation over the next week.

"Environmental conditions are forecast to become more conducive for development during the next couple of days, and a tropical depression will likely form during the latter half of this week while the system moves westward to west-northwestward across the central tropical Atlantic," the agency said of the high-risk area.

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This National Hurricane Center graphic highlights areas in the Atlantic being monitored for potential development.

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If the system develops into a named storm, it would be the third of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season and receive the designation Cristobal.

"Should [the] high-risk area develop, the most likely intensity would be either a tropical depression or a low-end tropical storm," AccuWeather meteorologist Nick Arman told Newsweek on Tuesday.

"However, should the storm be able to better organize and avoid the dry air surrounding it, the warm waters in the Atlantic could allow it to gain more intensity, possibly reaching hurricane intensity," the meteorologist said, though Arman added that this seems the "least [likely] at the moment."

Arman said the outlet forecast August 12-15 as the most likely time frame for formation.

What Are the Chances of US Impacts?

According to Arman, the high-risk area "has a number of hurdles to go through before posing either direct or indirect impacts" to the United States.

"As the tropical wave associated with this development area approaches the northern Lesser Antilles late this weekend into early next week, it will begin to encounter more wind shear, which should help to limit strengthening. It is also possible that the wave will completely get ripped apart by the shear near the islands," he said.

"The stronger the wave becomes, the more likely it is to move north and away from the Lesser Antilles," Arman continued. "If this happens, the storm would likely move north into the open Atlantic and not impact the U.S. If the wave stays weaker, there is the chance it could move a little closer to the Southeast coast. However, it would have to get through a wall of wind shear, which would likely substantially disrupt the storm."

Arman added that the system would not approach the U.S. until at least the middle or latter part of next week, giving forecasters ample time to monitor its progress. At this point, the risk of U.S. impacts appears low, the meteorologist said.

Forecasters are also monitoring a second disturbance in the Atlantic—though, as of Tuesday morning, development risk was low. The NHC said a trough of low pressure several hundred miles northeast of Bermuda could see limited development over the next couple of days while moving eastward across the central subtropical Atlantic, though cooler waters are expected to halt its development potential by Thursday.

2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season Storm Names

These are the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season storm names:

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Matthew Robinson and Shakeema Edwards.

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