Tropical Depression (Possible Hurricane) Forms off Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua

[Panamajames]

An excerpt from Dr. Jeff Masters' tropical weather blog on Wunderground.com

Western Caribbean disturbance 97L likely to become a tropical depression

3:39 PM GMT on November 03, 2009
An area of low pressure with a surface circulation has developed in the Southwestern Caribbean, off the coast of Costa Rica. This disturbance, designated Invest 97L by the National Hurricane Center this morning, appears likely to develop into a tropical depression over the next two days. Satellite loops clearly show that 97L has a surface circulation, and low-level spiral bands have begun to develop. There is not very much heavy thunderstorm activity, though it is steadily increasing. An ASCAT pass from 10pm EST last night showed top winds of about 30 mph in the heaviest thunderstorms...

The forecast for 97L
Steering currents are weak in the Southwest Caribbean, and 97L will move little over the next three days. ... By Friday, steering currents are expected to pull 97L north or northwest, along the coast of Nicaragua or inland over northeastern Nicaragua and Honduras. By Monday, 97L may pass over Western Cuba and enter the Gulf of Mexico, as predicted by the ECMWF model; an alternate solution, provided by the GFS model, keeps the storm farther south, pushing it into Belize and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula....

To read the entire blog entry, click here: Wunder Blog : Weather Underground