Possible Tropical System Later Today

There's plenty of activity in the Tropics, but one area is on the verge of becoming a depression or even a Tropical Storm as early as this evening .  The National Hurricane Center started issuing advisories on this system, calling it "Potential Tropical Cyclone" number 9.  They are doing this before the actual system organizes to give residents in its path an earlier chance at preparations.
The "Nine" is next in line as far as the number of storms so far this season.

The area of low pressure is roughly 350-450 miles east of the Lesser Antilles with top winds of 35 mph.

A recon mission is scheduled for this afternoon and depending on what it finds, they may upgrade its status.

A closer look at satellite imagery shows an impressive spin just East of the Bahamas, THIS IS NOT the one being tracked. This is an area of low pressure in the upper levels of the atmosphere. It may cause some rain across the SE Bahamas, but it is NOT tropical.

The area being tracked by NHC is the small spin just east of the Lesser Antilles.

Even if it does not develop, gusty winds will impact islands of the Lesser Antilles on Friday, with possible rain amounts of 2 - 4 inches for Martinique south to Grenada. This will bring along the threat of flooding, land and mudslides.

Watches and Warnings have been issued for the following areas:

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for...
* Martinique
* St. Lucia
* Barbados
* St. Vincent and the Grenadines

A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for...
* Dominica

A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area,in this case within 24-36hrs.

A Tropical Storm Watch means tropical storm conditions are   possible within  watch area, in this case within 24-36 hours.

Where is it headed?

This Potential Tropical Storm (Will be named Harvey), will be a big worry for everyone down the road. After its run-in with the Lesser Antilles, it will shoot a straight line across the Caribbean until reaching Central America.

Intensity forecasting is very difficult and with so much hot water in this area for fuel, this system has a chance to grow strong.

We'll be watching