Tropical Storm Cristobal Forms in Atlantic, Poses No Land Threat

The third named tropical storm of the 2026 Atlantic Hurricane Season, Cristobal, grew stronger over the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, August 12. It was located in the open Atlantic Ocean and moved away from any land areas quickly.

Cristobal was positioned near latitude 36.7 north and longitude 43.0 west, approximately 880 miles west of the Azores. The tropical storm was moving towards the east, near 25 mph.

According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), Cristobal had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph, along with high gusts as per its advisory released at 3 pm GMT on August 12.

The storm was being tracked as Invest 93L. Satellite and scatterometer images showed that its circulation was organized enough to qualify as a tropical storm. The NHC said that a recent scatterometer pass showed wind speeds of 35 to 40 knots in proximity to the circulation.

Cristobal is expected to turn towards the east-northeast direction and begin slowing down across the North Atlantic. The NHC forecast shows the storm weakening over cooler ocean water. Dry air and increasing wind from the north are also expected to affect the strength of the storm.

As per the first forecast discussion, NHC noted that Cristobal is expected to be "short-lived and dissipate on Thursday." It also showed winds falling to about 40 mph within 12 hours and 35 mph within 24 hours. Dissipation of the system was expected to occur around 0000 GMT Friday. The minimum central pressure of the storm was estimated at 1008 millibars.

Cristobal is moving far away from populated areas on land. No coastal watches or warnings were in effect

There were no hazardous conditions for land due to the storm according to NHC. Tropical-storm-force winds were present up to 90 miles away from the center, but the system’s rapid eastward movement kept its strongest winds over the open Atlantic.

The recent forecast shows Cristobal heading towards the eastern Atlantic and not towards the United States of America or the Caribbean.

Cristobal follows Tropical Storm Arthur and Tropical Storm Bertha, the first two named storms of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, neither of which developed into hurricanes. However, activity continues in the Atlantic Basin, where a system is also being monitored further south.