This image provided by NOAA taken at 4:15 a.m. EDT Thursday Aug. 16, 2007 shows hurricane Dean in the lower right portion of the image. Hurricane Dean formed in the open Atlantic early Thursday and headed toward the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, forecasters said. At 5 a.m. EDT, Dean was centered about 485 miles east of Barbados and about 590 miles east of Martinique, according to the National Hurricane Center. It was moving west near 24 mph, and was expected to continue the same path for the next 24 hours. Maximum sustained winds were near 75 mph, above the 74-mph threshold for a hurricane. Dean is a Category 1 hurricane and is expected to strengthen during the next 24 hours, forecasters said. (AP Photo.NOAA) - ( AP )