The Atlantic hurricane season has not officially started but the National Hurricane Center has already identified the first tropical cyclone of 2023 — and it formed months ago.
The subtropical storm formed in mid-January off the northeastern U.S. Coast and will officially be designated as the first cyclone for the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season, the NHC said in a tweet Thursday.
The Hurricane Center said key information about the system will be released in a tropical report in the next few months.
The news about the subtropical storm was released the same day the NHC began their tropical weather outlook for the 2023 hurricane season, which doesn’t start until June 1. There is currently no tropical activity expected in the next seven days, according to NHC.
The Atlantic Basin includes Gulf Coast and East Coast states including Mississippi, Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.
The subtropical storm was given an ID for tracking but was not a named storm. The first system to reach tropical storm strength in 2023 will be named Arlene.
