The only named storm in January to make an impact on a land mass was Alice in 1954, which moved over the Lesser Antilles.
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The storm is now centered a few hundred miles West-Southwest of Bermuda and has produced winds up to 65 miles per hour but it is unlikely for it to form into a subtropical or tropical storm in 48 hours with only a 10 percent chance of that happening.
Low pressure was organizing between Bermuda and the Carolinas on Thursday, producing a large area of tropical-storm force winds offshore.
In case the weather system attains the status of a tropical storm, it would be named “Pali”.
“Environmental conditions appear conducive for additional development over the next couple of days as the system drifts toward the north and northwest”, forecasters said.
The 2015 Pacific hurricane season ended on November 30 and the 2016 Pacific hurricane season starts on June 1.
Feltgen said there are three storms since 1851 listed as having formed in January. Also, a small handful of tropical systems have formed in December before dissipating in January, most recently including Tropical Storm Zeta in 2005-2006.
Pali is the earliest Central Pacific tropical storm on record. Tropical Depression 9C formed on New Year’s Eve and dissipated on New Year’s Day.
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Forecasters are watching a developing weather system far south of Hawaii that could become the second tropical cyclone of the year in the Central Pacific.
