MIAMI, FLORIDA / Content Syndication Services / — Tropical Storm Amanda, the first named storm of the 2026 eastern Pacific hurricane season, formed over open waters west southwest of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula and maintained 40 mph maximum sustained winds late Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm was centered near latitude 11.4 North and longitude 129.3 West at 8 p.m. Pacific time, about 1,505 miles from the southern tip of Baja California.
Amanda was moving toward the west northwest at 9 mph, with that general motion expected to continue for the next couple of days before a slower turn toward the west and southwest during the weekend. The storm had an estimated minimum central pressure of 1006 millibars, and tropical storm force winds extended outward up to 70 miles from its center. No coastal watches or warnings were in effect.
The storm formed after the eastern Pacific hurricane season began on May 15 and became the basin’s first tropical cyclone of the year. Amanda remained far from land, and forecasters listed no hazards affecting land in the latest public advisory. The Atlantic hurricane season began on June 1, with no tropical cyclones reported in that basin at the time Amanda was being tracked.
Tropical storm remains over open ocean
Forecast guidance kept Amanda over the eastern Pacific, away from coastal areas, while allowing for modest strengthening during the next day or two. The forecast showed maximum winds increasing to about 50 mph by late Thursday into Friday before a gradual weakening trend. The system was projected to continue over waters between Mexico and the central Pacific rather than approach the mainland or island areas.
The National Hurricane Center said Amanda had shown little change in strength late Wednesday, with only poorly defined banding features and renewed convection near the center. Peak seas were near 12 feet in the storm’s immediate area, according to the broader tropical weather discussion for the basin. The center was forecast to move near 13.0 North and 131.4 West by Thursday evening.
Weakening forecast this weekend
Amanda was expected to encounter less favorable conditions later in the period, including drier and more stable air, while remaining embedded within the open water steering pattern. The forecast track placed the storm near 13.5 North and 133.4 West by Friday evening, then near 12.8 North and 134.4 West by Saturday evening. Forecasters projected the system would weaken to a remnant low by late Sunday.
The eastern Pacific basin is monitored through regular advisories during hurricane season, which runs through November 30. Amanda’s formation marks the first named system on the 2026 eastern Pacific list, followed by Boris as the next storm name. Officials continued to issue marine and forecast updates for Amanda, with the storm’s main confirmed impacts confined to winds, seas and convection over open Pacific waters.