The formation of Hurricane Beryl is record setting, but what else holds for this tropical system as it crosses the Caribbean and Yucatan Peninsula this week?

Participants: Rod Bain and USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey

Transcript

It is uncertain if Beryl reaching category 5 hurricane status late Monday can make a landfall in the U.S. later in the week, but USDA meteorologist Brad Rippey says this tropical system has gained significant attention in that Beryl became the earliest category 5 hurricane on record, shattering the old record by more than two weeks.

That was set in 2005 on July 16th.

Beryl is currently making its way to Jamaica and is expected to weaken by the time it reaches Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula by late Thursday or early Friday before entering the Gulf of Mexico.

Beryl also became the earliest tropical storm to reach cat 4 status this past Sunday, one week ahead of Hurricane Dennis which reached cat 4 in 2005.

If 2005 rings a bell, that is a year that at the time set an all-time record for the number of tropical storms or hurricanes.

I'm Rod Bain reporting for the U.S.

Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C.