COLUMBIA, S.C. — This weekend, attention is turning to a broad area of low pressure in the eastern tropical Atlantic, tied to a tropical wave.

It is producing a disorganized cluster of showers and thunderstorms, but conditions are favorable for development. There is about a 60 percent chance it will become a tropical depression within the next two days, and a 90 percent chance it will form within the next week.

The system is slowly drifting westward at 5 to 10 miles per hour, and if it strengthens, it could approach the Lesser Antilles by the middle to latter part of next week. Residents in those islands are encouraged to follow updates closely, even though any potential impacts are still several days away.

This system is being tracked as an “invest,” which simply means forecasters ar

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