Tropical Storm Karina strengthens into a hurricane in the Pacific, could become a major storm

Hurricane Karina strengthened over the Pacific on Sunday, and forecasters said it could reach major-hurricane status later in the week. The storm’s center remained far offshore and was not threatening land.

Karina had maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour, making it a Category 1 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. A major hurricane is classified as Category 3 or higher.

The storm was about 820 miles southwest of the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula. It was moving northwest at 15 miles per hour on a forecast path farther into the Pacific.

Although Karina was expected to stay well away from land, its swells could create dangerous surf and rip-current conditions along parts of southwest Mexico and the Baja California Peninsula. Elsewhere in the Pacific, Tropical Storm Lowell was about 1,150 miles southeast of Hawaii and also posed no threat to land.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecast a below-average Atlantic hurricane season linked to El Niño. It projected eight to 14 named storms, including three to six hurricanes and one to three major hurricanes.