Tropical Storm Amanda has formed in the Pacific Ocean, marking the first named storm of the eastern Pacific hurricane season, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). The storm developed on Wednesday and is currently located about 1,475 miles west-southwest of Mexico's Baja California peninsula.
With its centre over open water, Amanda poses no immediate threat to land. The storm has maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph), and forecasters predict it will strengthen over the next few days before weakening by the weekend.
The Pacific hurricane season began on 15 May, while the Atlantic season started on 1 June but has yet to produce any cyclones. The next name on the Pacific list for 2026 is Boris.
NOAA's outlook for the eastern Pacific predicts a 70% chance of above-normal activity due to a strong El Niño, which suppresses Atlantic storms but enhances Pacific cyclone formation. In contrast, the 2025 Atlantic season saw no hurricane landfalls in the US for the first time in a decade, though tropical storms caused damage elsewhere.
