Rita, 3rd strongest ever now!! 898mb

[wxwatcher91]

the only thing I'm considering right now though is all the hype about Katrina going sub 900

Im not saying Rita wont go sub 900 but just saying that it is possible 904 could be it... very slim possibility I suppose but nevertheless a possibility

[gilbert88]

850 mb is also possible. And irrelevant.

[O Town]

Lordy. lordy. I get up to eat a bite of dinner and come back to 904???? I guess it doesn't suprise me to much. She is one mean b1t@ch. A Doors song comes to mind for me........................Riders on the storm.......Take a long holiday.....let your children play.....if you give a man a ride......sweet memory will die.

[arcticfire]

850 mb is also possible. And irrelevant.

Actually I'm curious , just how low can it go theoreticly ?

[Hurrilurker]

The eye is expanding a little bit, not contracting. I don't expect an EWRC at this time. I think there may be one in 12-18 hours as the rapid deepening phase stops and it encounters cooler waters.

I'm not sure where you're seeing that. I'm just looking at IR satellite imagery but it's clear that it has contracted a bit in the last few hours. I overlayed the 17:45 UTC and 21:15 UTC images and measured the eye. It is a few pixels smaller. Granted, not an entirely scientific measurement, but it does look smaller, as well as a small amount more ragged. The previously-perfect and symmetrical gradient ring in the eyewall is now a little rough and broken up. By no means would I say it's looking bad or even necessarily weaker though.

[txwatcher91]

The eye is expanding a little bit, not contracting. I don't expect an EWRC at this time. I think there may be one in 12-18 hours as the rapid deepening phase stops and it encounters cooler waters.

I'm not sure where you're seeing that. I'm just looking at IR satellite imagery but it's clear that it has contracted a bit in the last few hours. I overlayed the 17:45 UTC and 21:15 UTC images and measured the eye. It is a few pixels smaller. Granted, not an entirely scientific measurement, but it does look smaller, as well as a small amount more ragged. The previously-perfect and symmetrical gradient ring in the eyewall is now a little rough and broken up. By no means would I say it's looking bad or even necessarily weaker though.

The eye is expanding IMO. Just look at this visible shot.

http://www.cira.colostate.edu/RAMM/Rmsd ... PICAL.html

[HurryKane]

a tom petty song comes to mind now "because i'm free, free-falling", Rita's pressure that is.

A R.E.M. song comes to my mind....

Booooooo.

[Windy]

She won't be once it gets to land, but I have to admit: out there in the open sea where she can't hurt anything, Rita right now is one of the most beautiful storms I've ever seen.

Isabel with her eye was aesthetically better, but Rita is such a raw force of nature at the moment... she's magnificent.

[Hurrilurker]

The eye is expanding IMO. Just look at this visible shot.

http://www.cira.colostate.edu/RAMM/Rmsd ... PICAL.html

You're right, it does seem to be expanding there. Strange. Thanks for the link.

[txwatcher91]

The eye is expanding IMO. Just look at this visible shot.

http://www.cira.colostate.edu/RAMM/Rmsd ... PICAL.html

You're right, it does seem to be expanding there. Strange. Thanks for the link.

Your welcome.

[simplykristi]

Unbelievable.

Kristi

[milankovitch]

the only thing I'm considering right now though is all the hype about Katrina going sub 900

Im not saying Rita wont go sub 900 but just saying that it is possible 904 could be it... very slim possibility I suppose but nevertheless a possibility

I don't know the pressure's still dropping pretty fast...920...908...904. There was a 914 in there somewhere but that was extrapolated.

[milankovitch]

The eye is expanding IMO. Just look at this visible shot.

http://www.cira.colostate.edu/RAMM/Rmsd ... PICAL.html

You're right, it does seem to be expanding there. Strange. Thanks for the link.

Your welcome.

Focus on the exposed sea it looks like the eye isn't widening it's just becoming a more intense stadium effect.

[truballer#1]

914 TO 904, THATS A 10 MB DROP IN ONE HOUR. THATS A RECORD!

[bvigal]

How often do you see Dvorak IR that looks like this??!!

[canegrl04]

I think Rita will most assuredly surpass the 1935 hurricane . Maybe go for Gilbert's record

[milankovitch]

914 TO 904, THATS A 10 MB DROP IN ONE HOUR. THATS A RECORD!

Yeah I didn't think that was a record but I just saw the same thing on one of wunderground's pro met blogs.

[dolebot_Broward_NW]

Actually the 904mb was reported at 1716(EDT) minutes after the 1700 advisory. So technically its 10mb in 16 minutes....

[O Town]

Dvorak IR.......wow! Amazing!

"Beauty and the Beast"

[Brent]

Actually the 904mb was reported at 1716(EDT) minutes after the 1700 advisory. So technically its 10mb in 16 minutes....

Well... recon did report 906 mb before the advisory, I have no idea why they went with 914.