Several days before Peter formed, forecasts anticipated the development of the storm. As it became a tropical storm, Peter was moving slowly, so initial forecasts said the storm would quickly die out. However, an eye feature quickly developed, and Peter strengthened to reach winds of 70 mph (110 km/h) late on December 9. Although the presence of an eye, along with Dvorak classifications of 75 mph (120 km/h), would usually mean the storm is of hurricane strength, Peter stayed as a strong tropical storm and quickly began to weaken. It moved northward due to a cold front. The combination of wind shear and cooler water temperatures quickly weakened the storm. By December 10, Peter became a tropical depression. As the system turned to the northeast, Peter turned into an extratropical storm on December 11. Shortly afterward, it was absorbed by the cold front.