Tropical Cyclone Ernie formed northwest of Australia on Thursday.  At 2:00 p.m. EDT on Thursday the center of Tropical Cyclone Ernie was located at latitude 14.1°S and longitude 110.9°E which put it about 580 miles (940 km) north-northwest of Exmouth, Australia.  Ernie was moving toward the south-southwest at 5 m.p.h. (7 km/h).  The maximum sustained wind speed was 45 m.p.h. (75 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 60 m.p.h. (100 km/h).  The minimum surface pressure was 995 mb.

Thunderstorms developed around a small area of low pressure south of Indonesia during the past several days.  The storms consolidated near the center of circulation on Thursday and the Australian Bureau of Meteorology designated the system as Tropical Cyclone Ernie.  Ernie does have a well organized low level center of circulation, but many of the thunderstorms are occurring just to the west of the center of circulation.  There are also several bands of showers and thunderstorms in the southeastern quadrant of the circulation.  The thunderstorms near the center are generating upper level divergence which is pumping out mass to the south and southeast of Tropical Cyclone Ernie.

Tropical Cyclone Ernie is in an environment that is favorable for intensification.  It is moving over water where the Sea Surface Temperature (SST) is near 30°C.  An upper level ridge southeast of Ernie is generating northerly winds which are cause some vertical wind shear over the tropical cyclone.  However, the vertical wind shear is not strong enough to prevent further intensification of Tropical Cyclone Ernie.  Ernie should intensify during the next 24 hours and it could intensify rapidly during that time.  Tropical Cyclone Ernie will move into an unfavorable environment in a day or two.  Ernie will move over cooler SSTs and into a region where stronger upper level winds will produce more vertical wind shear.  The tropical cyclone will weaken at that time.

A subtropical ridge centered southeast of Ernie is steering the tropical cyclone slowly toward the south-southwest.  The ridge is forecast to strengthen and extend farther to the west.  When the ridge extends westward, it will steer Tropical Cyclone Ernie more toward the west.  On its anticipated track Tropical Cyclone Ernie currently poses no threat to land.