A tropical disturbance designated as Invest 94L moved out over the southern Bay of Campeche on Saturday morning.  At 2:00 p.m. EDT on Saturday the center of Invest 94L was located at latitude 19.0°N and longitude 91.8°W which put it about 20 miles (35 km) northeast of Ciudad del Carmen, Mexico.  Invest 94L was moving toward the west-northwest at 8 m.p.h. (13 km/h).  The maximum sustained wind speed was 25 m.p.h. (40 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 35 m.p.h. (55 km/h).  The minimum surface pressure was 1010 mb.  The National Hurricane Center is putting the probability of development of a tropical cyclone at 50%.  A reconnaissance plane has tentatively been tasked to investigate the system on Sunday afternoon, if necessary.

There is a broad area of lower pressure centered over the extreme southern Bay of Campeche.  However, there is no well formed core at the center of the circulation.  In addition there are only thin fragmented lines of showers and thunderstorms instead of well formed spiral bands.  The circulation seems to exist primarily in the lower portion of the atmosphere.  An upper level ridge east of Invest 94L is providing some upper level divergence.

The center of Invest 94L has moved over water and the Sea Surface Temperatures in the southern Bay of Campeche are 30°C – 31°C.  So there is plenty of energy in the upper ocean to support tropical development.  However, the western side of the upper level ridge is causing southerly winds to blow over the top of Invest 94L which is creating vertical wind shear.  The southern portion of the circulation is still over land, which is also an inhibiting factor.  The combination of positive and negative environmental factors are contributing to the uncertainty over the possible development of Invest 94L.

Invest 94L is being steered toward the west-northwest by a ridge of high pressure to its northeast.  On its anticipated track, the center of Invest 94L will remain over water for another 24 to 48 hours.  That time period represents the window during which Invest 94L could develop into a tropical depression or a tropical storm.  Invest 94L is likely to reach the coast of Mexico in about two days and when it moves inland, the chance for development will end.