Miami ? Tropical Storm Zeta, the 27th named storm of a record-breaking hurricane season, maintained its strength as it drifted across the Atlantic on Sunday, but forecasters expected it to eventually weaken.

Zeta had top sustained winds of about 50 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center. Forecasters said it was not expected to become a hurricane or threaten land.

At 9 p.m. CST, the storm was centered about 1,145 miles southwest of the Azores and moving southwest near 3 mph, the hurricane center said.

The storm developed Friday, about a month after the official end of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. It tied a record for the latest developing storm since recordkeeping began in 1851.

Earlier this month, Hurricane Epsilon became only the fifth hurricane to form in December in 154 years of record keeping.

Forecasters predict that hurricane seasons will be more active than usual for at least another decade.