Southwestern Caribbean Tropical Weather, Could It Become a Threat to the Gulf?

GULF OF MEXICO (KPEL News) - A new tropical disturbance is slowly forming just south of the Gulf of Mexico, which has meteorologists on alert.

While the system is slowly developing, it appears likely that it will head northward, though it's predicted path is still difficult to determine.

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According to the National Hurricane Center, "An area of disturbed weather over the southwestern Caribbean Sea is associated with a broad area of low pressure. Environmental conditions could support some slow development of this system during the next several days while it moves slowly northward."

The 2023 hurricane season has produced several named storms, the most recent being Tammy, which is still spinning in the mid-Atlantic. However, only two significant storms have made landfall in the U.S., when Hurricane Idalia made landfall in August and  Tropical Storm Ophelia made landfall in North Carolina.

But while the damage caused by storms has been minimal in the U.S. this year - and virtually nonexistent in Louisiana this year - there is still a month left in the season and experts warn that now is not the time to assume we've made it through unscathed.

With the current disturbance just south of the Gulf of Mexico, meteorologists are keeping an eye on anything that is set to move northward. This system appears to be moving north, but swerving to avoid most of the Gulf Coast and maybe graze Florida, depending on other conditions in the area.

But, currently, the system is loosely organized, and looks like it may take a while to form a tropical storm, if it does at all. However, if it does, there are a lot of places it could have an impact.

The 2023 hurricane season ends on November 30, meaning there is still just over a month left for more storms to develop.