Caribbean Storms Strengthen, May Head for Oil Spill

Tropical Storm Alex, the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, moved across Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula today on a track that would keep it far west and south of the largest oil spill in U.S. history. The storm was forecast to enter the Gulf of Mexico later today and regain whatever strength it lost while over land. The U.S. National Hurricane Center storm track predicts Alex will then curve west toward Mexico City rather than north and east into the worst of the BP Plc oil spill.

“Odds are it is not an issue for the cleanup,” Tom Kines, a meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc., said in a telephone interview today. He said the storm is likely to intensify to a Category 1 hurricane on the five step Saffir-Simpson scale before making its final landfall near Tampico on June 30. Alex, with sustained winds of 40 miles (65 kilometers) per hour, was about 105 miles west of Chetumal and moving west northwest at 12 mph, according to the 8 a.m. advisory from the Miami based center. A tropical storm warning for the coast of Belize and the Yucatan Peninsula’s east coast likely will be discontinued today, it said.

“Some weakening is expected while over land and Alex could become a tropical depression,” the advisory said. The storm is expected to regain strength when it emerges over the southern Gulf of Mexico this afternoon.....Read the entire article.

The "Super Cycle" in Gold and How It Will Affect Your Pocketbook in 2010

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Oil Falls to a Two Week Low on Reduced Demand, Stockpile Gain

Crude oil fell to the lowest in more than two weeks as reduced demand and rising stockpiles in the U.S. will ensure adequate supplies during the North Atlantic hurricane season. Oil traded below $70 a barrel for a second day after an unexpected decline in U.S. consumer confidence and reports showed gasoline demand in the nation at the lowest in more than 12 weeks. Tropical Storm Claudette, which will be the first to make landfall in the U.S. this season, is expected to cross the coast of Florida “very soon,” according to the National Hurricane Center.....Complete Story

Colorado State Slightly Lowers '09 Atlantic Hurricane Forecast

Colorado State University hurricane researchers Tuesday revised their 2009 Atlantic hurricane forecast slightly lower. The researchers now expect 10 named storms and four hurricanes in the Atlantic basin between June 1 and Nov. 30. Two of the hurricanes are expected to be major, with sustained winds of 111 miles per hour or greater. The research team had previously forecast 11 named storms and five hurricanes, two of them major. The long term average hurricane season sees 9.6 named storms, 5.9 hurricanes and 2.3 major hurricanes.....Complete Story