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Tropical Storm Harvey nears BermudaForecasters see little increase in strength over next 24 hours
 Tropical Storm Harvey heads for Bermuda on Wednesday afternoon. RELATEDTROPICAL STORM HARVEY11 p.m. ET Wednesday Position of center: 80 miles (130 kilometers) southwest of Bermuda Latitude: 31.5 degrees north Longitude: 65.8 degrees west Top sustained winds: 60 mph (95 km/h) Source: National Hurricane Center SPECIAL REPORTYOUR E-MAIL ALERTS(CNN) -- Tropical Storm Harvey -- the eighth named storm of the hurricane season -- will pass very close to Bermuda early Thursday morning, said the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida. The center's 11 p.m. ET Wednesday advisory said Harvey had maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (95 km/h), with higher gusts, and was 80 miles (130 kilometers) southwest of Bermuda, moving east-northeast at around 13 mph (20 km/h). The storm developed in the Atlantic earlier Wednesday and in just three hours -- 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. -- its winds intensified by 20 mph. Since then, it has not strengthened, and forecasters said they expected no significant change over the next 24 hours. The center issued a tropical storm warning for Bermuda, and the Bermuda Weather Service issued a hurricane watch. A tropical storm warning means such conditions are expected within 24 hours. A hurricane watch indicates such conditions are possible during the next 24 hours. Hurricane conditions mean sustained winds of at least 74 mph (118 km/h). Forecasters said the small archipelago of islands, a self-governing British colony, could expect 2 to 4 inches of rain. Tropical storm-force winds extended 85 miles (136 kilometers) from Harvey's eye. On its current track, the storm would pose no threat to the U.S. mainland. Forecasters said Harvey is the earliest-forming eighth tropical storm on record. In the years that have had at least eight storms -- which is only about half of all seasons since 1851 -- the mean date of formation for the eighth storm is September 29. On Tuesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration revised its forecast upward for the remaining four months of the season, saying it expects an additional 11 to 14 tropical storms through November. Of those, NOAA predicted seven to nine would become hurricanes, with three to five becoming major hurricanes, defined as Category 3 storms or higher, with sustained winds of at least 111 mph (178 km/h). (Full story) NOAA said its experts have found optimal conditions for hurricane development in the Atlantic region, including unusually warm ocean surface temperatures and low wind shear. (Full story) "This may well be one of the most active Atlantic hurricane seasons on record," NOAA Director David Johnson said in a statement. A record seven tropical storms formed in the first two months of the season. Two of them became major hurricanes, Dennis and Emily, reaching Category 4 status with 135 mph (217 km/h) winds. Dennis also became the earliest Category 4 hurricane recorded in the Caribbean basin. NOAA's original outlook for the season, issued in May, predicted a total of seven to nine hurricanes, three to five of them major. (Full story) 
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