Ophelia, Philippe Linger in the Tropics

Two tropical storms continue to churn in the Atlantic this week, but forecasters say neither will have much impact on the mainland United States, despite altered paths that show both traveling in a more westerly direction.

Late Tuesday, forecasters again declared that Ophelia is a tropical storm and could potentially reach hurricane status.

Follow the latest updates on Ophelia.
Follow the latest updates on Phillippe.

East of Ophelia is Tropical Storm Phllippe, which has weakened significantly over the last few days, but its path has shifted more westerly.

Ophelia is “forecast to become a hurricane by the end of the week,” wrote the Weather Channel. “It is drifting northwestward east of the Leeward Islands, and is forecast to turn northward over the next couple of days.

Though Ophelia fell apart last week and was downgraded, this week’s upgrade doesn’t change its impact on the U.S.

Check out this cool Weather Channel Hurricane Tracker.

Ophelia “Will not directly affect the mainland U.S., although slight chance it could directly affect Bermuda this weekend as it heads out to the North Atlantic,” the Weather Channel wrote.

Phillippe, on the other hand, could come close to the U.S., but it likely won’t be a hurricane or tropical storm, the Weather Channel forecasts.

Phillippe “could eventually move westward, in the direction of the U.S., during the next week or more, but unlikely to reach the U.S. as a tropical cyclone, and should eventually curve northward into the North Atlantic.”