Tropical Depression Forms Off North Carolina

MIAMI — The second tropical depression of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season formed off the North Carolina coast Tuesday, and a tropical storm watch was issued for the eastern part of the state. Meteorologists said the depression could strengthen into a tropical storm as early as Tuesday evening. Its top sustained wind speed late Tuesday morning was 35 mph. If that reached 39 mph, the depression would become tropical storm Beryl. At 2 p.m. EDT, the depression was centered about 210 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras and was moving toward the north at about 5 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. A slow turn toward the north-northwest or northwest was expected later Tuesday or Wednesday. A hurricane hunter aircraft flew into the storm Tuesday to acquire detailed information for forecasters, hurricane specialist Jamie Rhome said. However, early indications were that the system's sustained wind wouldn't reach 74 mph, the threshold for a hurricane. "We're certainly not expecting anything major, a major hurricane or anything like that," Rhome said. The early forecast track indicated that the system could drift toward the west and be near the North Carolina coast by the middle or later part of the week, Rhome said. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,204158,00.html TRACK MAP......,Computer Models...