Another one? Hurricane forecasters up chances of new system forming in Atlantic

Debby may be dissipating, but the tropics are continuing to heat up.

On Saturday, forecasters kept tracking a tropical wave that's producing a large area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms far out in the Atlantic.

The system should be slow to develop, the National Hurricane Center said, but forecasters are giving it a 80% chance of becoming a tropical depression in the next seven days as it approaches the Lesser Antilles and Caribbean Sea. That's up from the chances forecasters gave the system on Friday.

Hello, Ernesto?

If it eventually becomes a named tropical storm, it would get the name Ernesto.

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"The tropical feature in question just pushed off the coast of Africa at midweek and was located over the east-central tropical Atlantic on Thursday," AccuWeather meteorologist Alyssa Glenny said in an online forecast. "Into Sunday, this system is unlikely to organize into a tropical depression, but as it approaches the Leeward Islands early next week, it could be a vastly different story."

This is because "conditions are expected to become more conducive for development," the NHC said Friday.

It's too early at this time to determine if there will be any impact to the U.S. from the tropical wave.

Debby heads north: Fast-moving Debby threatens Northeast with more dangerous conditions: Live updates

'A direct concern?'

However, "there is a likelihood if this tropical feature survives to the zone near and just north of the Caribbean next week, it will go on to become a tropical storm, and from there, it could be drawn in close enough to the East Coast of the U.S. to be a direct concern," AccuWeather meteorologist Alex DaSilva said.

Forecasters urge all residents to continue monitoring the tropics and to always be prepared. That advice is particularly important for what is expected to be a very active hurricane season.

Active hurricane season predicted

Federal forecasters have predicted an "extraordinary" season, with as many as 24 named storms possible, including the four that have already formed (Alberto, Beryl, Chris and Debby.)

NOAA Thursday updated its prediction for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, more than two months and four named storms after its first prediction was released in May.

This season could "rank among the busiest on record," NOAA announced Thursday, while slightly decreasing the number of named storms but increasing the chance for an above-normal season to 90%.

Contributing: Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY; Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NHC hurricane forecasters up chances of a new system forming