Tropical Storm Zeta developed in the eastern Atlantic, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) south-southwest of the Azores, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center reported.

The extended hurricane season in the Atlantic has broken several records, with 27 tropical storms, 14 of which became hurricanes.

For the first time since authorities started keeping tabs in 1851, three hurricanes ranked at the topmost category five on the Saffir-Simpson intensity scale, with sustained winds of 280 kilometers (175 miles) per hour.

One of those, Wilma, which hit Florida in October, became the most intense Atlantic hurricane ever, with its central pressure falling to 882 millibars.

The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1 to November 30, and it is rare for cyclones to form after that.

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