TropicWatch Hurricane Tracking

TropicWatch is designed as the place to get all the information you need about Hurricanes and other Tropical Systems in the Atlantic Ocean. When a Tropical Storm comes your way, you may go to the National Hurricane Center for information, but they aren't the only source on the web. We pull information from several sources to give you information the professionals use to track hurricanes.

General Tropical Info

Even when there are no tropical systems active in the Atlantic, you'll still see the basic tropical information. You'll get the official NHC Active Storms map, a Surface Analysis map showing high/low pressure systems, a map with atmospheric Steering Currents, a model showing dust and dirt particles caused partly by Saharan Air, a real-time atmospheric Water Vapor map, models of the current Wind Shear, and Atlantic Ocean Water Temperatures. Tropical Storms and Hurricanes require favorable conditions in these in order to thrive.

When there are cyclones in the Atlantic, information for that storm will automatically appear. For each storm, you'll get (when available): a Satellite Image, computer models for both intensity and direction, official NHC 3-day and 5-day track models, the official NHC Discussion text, and official models for both Wind Swath and Intensity.

National Hurricane Center Active Storms Map

What is an "Invest"?
When a National Hurricane Center forecaster sees a tropical disturbance that may be a threat to develop into a tropical depression, the forecaster may label the disturbance an "Invest" and give it a tracking identification number. There is no formal definition of what qualifies as an "Invest". Declaring an "Invest" is merely done so that a set of forecasting aids like computer model track forecasts can be generated for the disturbance. The "Invest" is given a number 90-99, followed by a single letter corresponding to the ocean basin--"L" for the Atlantic.[source]

Tropical Depression - 38 mph (33 kt or 62 km/hr) or less.
Tropical Storm - 39-73 mph (34-63 kt or 63-118 km/hr).
Category 1 Hurricane - 74-95 mph (64-82 kt or 119-153 km/hr).
Category 2 Hurricane - 96-110 mph (83-95 kt or 154-177 km/hr).
Category 3 Hurricane - 111-130 mph (96-113 kt or 178-209 km/hr).
Category 4 Hurricane - 131-155 mph (114-135 kt or 210-249 km/hr).
Category 5 Hurricane - greater than 155 mph (135 kt or 249 km/hr).

If the image below is all white, it means that the NOAA satellite did not pass over the storm. This is not a bug with TropicWatch.
The satellite image will appear when a NOAA satellite successfully passes over the storm.

ZCZC MIATCDAT1 ALL
TTAA00 KNHC DDHHMM
 
TROPICAL STORM ALBERTO DISCUSSION NUMBER   4
NWS NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL       AL012012
1100 AM EDT SUN MAY 20 2012
 
THE CENTER OF ALBERTO HAS BECOME MORE EXPOSED THIS MORNING...AND THE
DEEPEST CONVECTION APPEARS TO BE MOVING WESTWARD AWAY FROM THE
SYSTEM.  OBJECTIVE AND SUBJECTIVE INTENSITY ESTIMATES ARE ALL
SUGGESTING AN INTENSITY AROUND 35 KT...BUT THE ADVISORY INTENSITY
IS ONLY BEING LOWERED TO 40 KT FOR NOW.  AN AIR FORCE HURRICANE
HUNTER IS SCHEDULED TO INVESTIGATE THE SYSTEM THIS AFTERNOON...AT
WHICH TIME ADDITIONAL ADJUSTMENTS CAN BE MADE.
 
ALBERTO APPEARS TO HAVE AT LEAST THREE STRIKES AGAINST ANY
RE-INTENSIFICATION.  FIRST...DEWPOINTS OVER SOUTHEASTERN U.S. ARE
ROUGHLY 50 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT...AND THE CYCLONE IS LIKELY INGESTING
SOME OF THIS DRY AIR.  SECOND...THE CENTER IS MOVING WEST OF THE
GULF STREAM OVER COOLER SHELF WATERS NEAR THE SOUTH CAROLINA/
GEORGIA COAST.  AND THIRD...UPPER-LEVEL WESTERLY WINDS ARE EXPECTED
TO INCREASE OVER THE SYSTEM DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS.  THE OFFICIAL
FORECAST THEREFORE KEEPS ALBERTO AT LOW-END TROPICAL-STORM STRENGTH
THROUGH WEDNESDAY WITH WEAKENING AND DISSIPATION OCCURRING ON
THURSDAY.  THIS SCENARIO IS SUPPORTED BY VIRTUALLY ALL OF THE
INTENSITY GUIDANCE.  ALBERTO IS FORECAST TO BECOME POST-TROPICAL BY
72 HOURS...ALTHOUGH THERE IS CONSIDERABLE UNCERTAINTY ON THE EXACT
TIMING OF THAT TRANSITION.
 
A BLOCKING PATTERN OVER THE EASTERN UNITED STATES HAS CAUSED ALBERTO
TO MOVE SLOWLY WEST-SOUTHWESTWARD SINCE YESTERDAY...AND THE CURRENT
MOTION IS 250/5 KT.  THE BLOCKING ANTICYCLONE CURRENTLY POSITIONED
OVER WESTERN NEW ENGLAND IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN SLIDING EASTWARD
TODAY WITH A PROGRESSIVE MID-LATITUDE TROUGH APPROACHING FROM THE
UPPER MIDWEST.  ALBERTO SHOULD CONTINUE TO MOVE LITTLE THROUGH
TONIGHT...BUT THE EVOLVING STEERING PATTERN IS EXPECTED TO
ACCELERATE THE STORM NORTHEASTWARD BEGINNING ON MONDAY.  THERE IS
VERY LITTLE SPREAD IN THE TRACK GUIDANCE THROUGH THE NEXT 48 HOURS.
THEREAFTER...THE ECMWF DIVERGES FROM THE CLUSTER OF OTHER MODELS
AND SHOWS A SLOWER...MORE SOUTHERN SOLUTION.  THE OFFICIAL FORECAST
IS THEREFORE A LITTLE SLOWER AND FARTHER SOUTH THAN THE MULTI-MODEL
CONSENSUS ON DAYS 3 AND 4.
  
FORECAST POSITIONS AND MAX WINDS
 
INIT  20/1500Z 31.5N  79.7W   40 KT  45 MPH
 12H  21/0000Z 31.2N  79.7W   35 KT  40 MPH
 24H  21/1200Z 31.4N  79.1W   35 KT  40 MPH
 36H  22/0000Z 32.3N  77.6W   35 KT  40 MPH
 48H  22/1200Z 34.2N  75.4W   35 KT  40 MPH
 72H  23/1200Z 38.0N  70.5W   35 KT  40 MPH...POST-TROPICAL
 96H  24/1200Z 39.5N  66.5W   30 KT  35 MPH...POST-TROPICAL
120H  25/1200Z...DISSIPATED
 
$$
FORECASTER BERG/PASCH
 
NNNN

Welcome to the ClientSide Productions TropicWatch Beta! Please be aware that this is a "Beta" release. This means you may run into a bug here and there. If you have questions, comments, or wish to report a bug, contact us.

What is TropicWatch?
TropicWatch is an aggregator of information relating to current Atlantic Ocean tropical activity. It was intended to be the one-stop-shop for the most up-to-date information on current storms. In order to get the most up-to-date information, this page will update every ten minutes, during which the site is taken offline. Hopefully TropicWatch helps you keep tabs on the tropics.

Sources:

Please prepare yourself in case a Tropical System comes your way. The American Red Cross has information about steps to take to prepare your family in case a storm threatens you.

Coding and Layout © ClientSide Productions 2008-12 — All weather data presented is in the public domain and is thus not copyright protected.