At 5:00 a.m. EDT, the center of Tropical Storm Katia was located near latitude 13.9 north, longitude 39.1 west, or about 985 miles west of the southernmost Cape Verde Islands. Katia is moving toward the west-northwest near 21 mph, and this general motion is expected to continue with a gradual decrease in forward speed during the next couple of days

At 8:00 a.m. EDT the center of Hurricane Irene was located near latitude 20.6 north, longitude 70.6 west. Irene is moving toward the west-northwest near 10 mph and this general motion is expected to continue through tonight, followed by a turn toward the northwest on Wednesday

At 5:00 p.m.

The Tropical Storm Warning for the U.S. Virgin Islands has been discontinued.

The hurricane warning for Puerto Rico, Vieques and Culebra has been replaced with a tropical storm warning. Data from an air force reconnaissance aircraft indicate that the center of Hurricane Irene is moving away from Puerto Rico on a west-northwest track with a forward speed of about 14 mph. This general motion is expected to continue for the next couple of days, with the center of Irene continuing to move away from the north coast of Puerto Rico this morning and approaching the northern coast of the Dominican Republic later today.

Irene strengthened this morning over Puerto Rico, becoming the first hurricane of 2011 Atlantic season. As of 6:00 a.m

NOAA is launching a comprehensive initiative to build a “Weather-ready” nation to make America safer by saving more lives and protecting livelihoods as communities across the country become increasingly vulnerable to severe weather events, such as tornado outbreaks, intense heat waves, flooding, active hurricane seasons, and solar storms that threaten electrical and communication systems.

Tropical Storm Franklin formed early Saturday morning in the open waters of the Atlantic. Franklin is moving toward the east-northeast at around 20 mph. This general motion is expected to continue during the day on Saturday, followed by a gradual turn toward the east on Sunday.

At 5:00 PM EDT, The center of Tropical Depression Six was located about 26 miles north of Bermuda. The depression is moving toward the east-northeast — away from the United States and Bermuda — at about 16 mph. This general motion is expected to continue for the next couple of days.

NOAA’s National Weather Service released the Atlantic hurricane season outlook today, upping the number of expected storms: 14 to 19 named storms, including 7 to 10 hurricanes, of which 3 to 5 could be major hurricanes (Category 3, 4 or 5).