There is now a high chance of the first cyclone of the season forming off the Queensland coast early next week, the Bureau of Meteorology said today.
In an update, forecasters said the tropical low system is expected to form east of the Solomon Islands - about 1800km from the Queensland coast.
It is likely to move south-west towards the warm waters of the Coral Sea through the weekend.
There is a high chance of it reaching tropical cyclone strength from Monday.
Australia's tropical cyclone season typically runs from November to April.
During this six-month period, there are usually nine to 10 cyclones.
Weatherzone said computer models are forecasting that the tropical cyclone could enter the north-eastern corner of Australia's tropical cyclone boundary by the middle of next week.
Others suggest the system will move south-east, away from Australia next week.
The BoM said the extreme weather system is likely to remain a long way from the Queensland coast and no direct impacts are expected.
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The deepening low and its encircling cloud was captured by satellite imagery near the islands early today.
Later next week, south-easterly winds could become strong and gusty along the Queensland coast as a high pressure ridge and the offshore low pressure system interact.
