Hurricane Polo will bring heavy rain to southwestern Mexico while offshore

Hurricane Polo strengthened into a Category five storm Tuesday with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph off the Pacific Coast. The National Hurricane Center expects the storm to bring heavy rain to southwestern Mexico while remaining offshore.

Meanwhile, tropical weather in the Atlantic Ocean remains unusually quiet during the September peak of the hurricane season.

Tropical Storm Fay is currently moving across the Atlantic Ocean. Although forecasters initially thought Fay could become the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, the National Hurricane Center indicated that outcome is now unlikely.

Weather forecasters attribute the quiet Atlantic season largely to a strengthening El Niño in the Pacific Ocean. Wind shear generated by El Niño has been strangling fledgling storms before they can develop further.

According to the U.S. National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Polo is expected to bring heavy rain to southwestern Mexico while remaining offshore. However, forecasters note that potential shifts in trajectory could alter the storm's path as it moves along the Pacific Coast.

September typically marks the peak of the hurricane season. Despite the calendar peak, forecasters expect no new storms in the Atlantic Ocean for the foreseeable future.