MIAMI (AP) - Forecasters say Ophelia has become the 10th hurricane of the 2017 Atlantic season, churning far out at sea and posing no immediate threat to land.
The hurricane's maximum sustained winds as of 11 a.m. Thursday are near 90 mph with some slight strengthening possible over the next day or two.
Ophelia is centered about 715 miles southwest of the Azores and is moving north-northeast at 2 mph. The hurricane does not currently pose a threat to any land.
There are no coastal watches or warnings in effect.
University of Miami hurricane researcher Brian McNoldy says Ophelia is the 10th straight tropical storm to become a hurricane in an Atlantic season. That has not happened since 1893, according to McNoldy. He says a combination of slightly warmer than normal water and weak upper level winds helped make that hurricane streak.
The hurricane center's five-day forecast, which can change, has a weakened and changing to extratropical storm Ophelia heading toward the British Isles by Monday. That's a bit of an unusual track for Atlantic storms.