A low pressure system out over the Atlantic Ocean that has been watched closely by hurricane forecasters has now developed into Tropical Storm Gordon as expected. It is the seventh named storm of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season.
Gordon is expected to move away from the United States on a track over the open ocean.
The storm formed early Thursday with maximum sustained winds were near 50 mph (85 kph). The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami says Gordon could grow into a hurricane by the weekend.
Gordon is centered about 640 miles (1,035 kilometers) east of Bermuda and imoving northeast at 16 mph (26 kph).
Gordon is expected to strengthen over the next 48 hours as it moves over the open waters of the north-central Atlantic in the next two days.
Meanwhile in the Pacific, Tropical Depression Hector is weakening and is expected to become a remnant low Thursday night or early Friday.