Tropical Depressions, Tropical Storms, and Hurricanes all have different characteristics that are compared and contrasted in this video

MIAMI – Forecasters with the National Hurricane Center (NHC) say Invest 98L has become better organized over the warm waters of the Caribbean Sea and strengthened into Tropical Storm Melissa late Tuesday morning.

The NHC said that Tropical Storm Melissa’s winds have reached 50 mph, officially designating the system as a tropical storm.

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A tropical storm is a tropical cyclone that has maximum sustained winds between 39 and 73 mph, which is an upgrade from a tropical depression.

Tropical Storm Melissa is currently located about 300 miles to the south of Port Au Prince, Haiti, and was moving off to the west at 14 mph.

The NHC said that Tropical Storm Melissa could continue to strengthen in the coming days.

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through Nov. 30.

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