by Alan McBride

MIAMI, FLA. -- Ernesto became a hurricane Tuesday afternoon, made landfall along the Yucatan Peninsula overnight, and was quickly downgraded to a tropical storm.

The storm's top sustained winds were 50 mph Wednesday night and steadily falling.

It is expected to remain a tropical storm as it splashes into southern Mexico, but should swiftly become a depression not long after that.

New tropical waves are also taking shape in the Atlantic, however, and one of those waves shows promise of becoming a system worth careful consideration.

The tropics continue their seasonal warm-up.