Rita now down to 898 mb (26.52 in.)!

[tom_paine]

http://www.weather.com/maps/news/atlstorm18/stormtrack_large.html

This thing is already lower pressure than Katrina's lowest, and it has about 36-48 more hours of super-warm gulf waters to suck up before it tapers off a bit prior to landfall (I hope).

No matter where gets hit by this monster, it's going to be bad, and I sincerely hope and pray for the safety of everyone in it's path, no matter where it hits.

But I hope it hits in the least populated areas way south of Houston.

[Bouncy Ball]

1. Change your title to Rita instead of Katrina.

I just realized the two names rhyme. Weird.

[Left Is Write]

2. You mean Rita.

This is one terrifying monster.

[JimmyJazz]

3. Don't you mean "Rita?"

:shrug:

[Maple]

4. You mean Rita?

You have Katrina in your headline

[seemunkee]

5. Please explain what the lower pressure means

Does the lower the pressure mean the stronger the wind?

[Bouncy Ball]

7. Lower the pressure, the more intense the hurricane.

They actually suspect the pressure is lower than 898 MB. Which is very bad.

Right now it is the third most intense hurricane on record.

[tom_paine]

15. Got any links to the "below 898" assertion and why is that?

Please don't take that the wrong way, I am merely curious and not much of a weatherhead.

[Bouncy Ball]

16. I read it here:

www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/ref...html/21... ?

000
WTNT63 KNHC 212351
TCUAT3
HURRICANE RITA TROPICAL CYCLONE UPDATE
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL
650 PM CDT WED SEP 21 2005

...RITA BECOMES THE THIRD MOST INTENSE HURRICANE ON RECORD...

DROPSONDE DATA FROM AN AIR FORCE RESERVE UNIT RECONNAISSANCE
AIRCRAFT AT 623 PM CDT...2323Z...INDICATED THE CENTRAL PRESSURE HAS
FALLEN TO BELOW 899 MB...OR 26.55 INCHES. THE DROPSONDE INSTRUMENT
MEASURED 32 KT/35 MPH WINDS AT THE SURFACE...WHICH MEANS IT LIKELY
DID NOT RECORD THE LOWEST PRESSURE IN THE EYE OF RITA. THE CENTRAL
PRESSURE IS PROBABLY AT LEAST AS LOW AS 898 MB...AND PERHAPS EVEN
LOWER. FOR OFFICIAL PURPOSES... A PRESSURE OF 898 MB IS ASSUMED...
WHICH NOW MAKES RITA THE THIRD MOST INTENSE HURRICANE IN TERMS OF
PRESSURE IN THE ATLANTIC BASIN. SOME ADDITIONAL DEEPENING AND
INTENSIFICATION IS POSSIBLE FOR THE NEXT 12 HOURS OR SO.

RITA CURRENTLY RANKS BEHIND HURRICANE GILBERT IN 1988 WITH 888 MB
AND THE 1935 LABOR DAY HURRICANE WITH 892 MB.

[tom_paine]

18. They don't even KNOW for sure?

How did they measure Gilbert im 1988, I wonder, with lesser technologies available?

[Bouncy Ball]

19. The best they could, I guess.

Shrug.

Maybe it's just really hard to get a measurement in there right now.

[Lars39]

8. Some info from KarlSchneider...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4841077

[tom_paine]

11. I don't think it is an exact correlation, but low pressure in the eye

is a relative measure of intensity.

Any DU weatherheads care to elaborate?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/features/understanding/hurricane_cycle.shtml

[karlrschneider]

12. Here you go

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=4841077&mesg_id=4841077

[American Infidel]

14. To put it simply

The lower the pressure, the easier it is for the air to rise, a low pressure system indicates lift in the atmosphere which leads to precipitation.

[Lochloosa]

27. Yes, the lower the pressure the stronger the winds

also, the more intense the winds. I know this is kind of confusing but consider a Cat 1 storm. The pressure will be around 980 and winds at least 74 mph sustained but they are not "intense" winds. You could have a Cat 1 storm miss you by 30 miles and if you are on the west side of the storm you will have little to no damage and light rains. 30 miles to the west of a Cat 5 or Cat 4 and you are most likely dead. I have surfed 100 miles east of a Cat 3 and it was great. I wouldn't be within 100 miles of a Cat 4 or 5.

[Poppyseedman]

6. You do mean Hurricane Rita???

or maybe I eat too many mushrooms

[Bouncy Ball]

9. You eat too many shrooms.

Katrina is back.

(All kidding aside, God forbid. Rita is her badass sister and she's bad enough, thankyouverymuch.)

[Lochloosa]

28. ...

[LuCifer]

10. Aw hell, there's ALMOST the SAME!!!

Katrian: went thru Miami and on to hit east of New Orleans.
Rita: went b/t Cuba and Keys (I'm STILL getting feeder crap bands! I'm friggin 80 miles south of Orlando, WTF! HOW BIG IS THIS TURKEY!?!?!) and is bearing down somewhere south of Houston.

I WOULD SAY THIS QUALIFIES AS CREEPY! You?

Lu Cifer, and this is ME saying something is CREEPY! HELLO!

[American Infidel]

13. That makes it the third most powerful hurricane on record

After Gilbert in 1988, and the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane, according to the NHC.

[Ksec]

17. OMG

Thats incredible.

This is unprecedented.

In a 3 week span two 5's. Unbelievable.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

20. Yes, and unless we get some grown-ups elected to our government

who understand that global warming is a fact and should be placed at the top of our "to fix" list, this is just the start of many awful weather events.

[American Infidel]

21. It takes storms of this magnitude

To was away the shiny vernier and expose the rot just underneath the surface of our government.

[Ksec]

23. It wouldnt hurt to have the director of NOOA

Max whathisname to stop saying these storms are just a natural occurrence. He carries a BUNCH of weight. I dont see how he can say this with a clear conscience.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

25. I agree.

I wish someone with some serious weight and interest in global warming (Wes Clark or Al Gore?) would pass the message across to him.

[Vinnie From Indy]

22. Global Warming is only playing a grade school level game right now

Wait until she shows us her "A" game, ready for primetime, pro level hurricanes in the future. 300 miles across will seem like squall.

The only silver lining in regard to these horrific storms is that I can harass fundies I know by asking if God is mad at George Bush and (all his oil buddies) for being such a lying, thieving prick. Maybe Pat Robertson pissed God off by praying to God asking that he whack members of the Supreme Court. God ain't nobody's punk. God probably is thinking, "He wants some killing, I'll show him some old testament killing and see how he likes that! Doesn't that old fool even read my holy book? I zapped a guy because he tried to help keep my ark of the covenant from hitting the ground and touched it. Dumbass, What part of 'don't touch' don't you understand."

[theHandpuppet]

24. Sustained Winds Now at 175 MPH and down to 897 mb!!!!!

I don't know what else to say.

[GreenPartyVoter]

26. Down to 170mph and up to 907mb as of 8am this morning