On Saturday morning, the non-tropical area low pressure area located northeast of Bermuda acquired subtropical characteristics and sufficient deep convection to be classified as Subtropical Storm Ana, making 2021 the seventh straight year in which a pre-season named storm developed. Ana is moving away from Bermuda, is already weakening and is likely to become a remnant low on Sunday.

As of 5:00 p.m. EDT, Subtropical Storm Ana was centered near 34.5°N 62.4°W, and was moving northeastward at about 5 mph. Maximum sustained winds were 35 knots (40 mph), with an estimated minimum pressure of 1007 mb. Ana’s formation marks the 7th straight year with a pre-season subtropical or tropical storm in the Atlantic, is the 12th subtropical or tropical cyclone forming in the last 15 years during the off-season month of May, and is the 9th pre-season named storm in the last 7 seasons. The recent increase in pre-season activity prompted the National Hurricane Center (NHC) to issue routine Tropical Weather Outlooks starting on May 15 this year, and the NHC also appears to be considering moving up the start date of the season. Ana’s threat to Bermuda has diminished as the cyclone is moving away, and the Tropical Storm Watch previously in effect has been discontinued. Ana is a very small cyclone, and its radius of maximum winds has decreased considerably since yesterday. There is still a narrow window for Ana to make a transition into a fully tropical cyclone tonight, as the environment Ana is located in is not expected to change much with sea surface temperatures near 21°C (70.8°F) with relatively light wind shear. However, Ana is expected to open up into a trough by Monday morning, but it is possible Ana could become a post-tropical remnant low sooner than that.

Invest 91L, which had been monitored for tropical development over the western Gulf of Mexico yesterday, has moved inland over eastern Texas and is no longer expected to develop into a tropical cyclone.