Another tropical storm as big as Hurricane Harvey is approaching US and the Caribbean. Hurricane Irma has been assigned as a Category 3 storm, with a wind speed of about 115mph. It is currently located in the Atlantic Ocean, about 1,725 miles from the Caribbean's Leeward Islands.
Irma may reach an "extremely dangerous" Category 4 while approaching the Leeward Islands, according to the prediction of the NOAA's National Hurricane Center (NHC). While the path of the hurricane is still uncertain, scientists are hoping that it will head out to open sea instead of hitting the shore.
"It's too early to know where Irma is headed. This storm could still sneak out to sea", says Michael Ventricle, a Meteorological Scientist at the University of Albany, on Twitter. Although majority of the predicted paths for Irma include the east coast of the US, Canada, and the Caribbean, no warnings have been issued to the public yet. Scientific estimates suggest that the storm is at least a week away from the US.
Ventricle has also said that the intensity of the hurricane is fast increasing and its eye is expanding "with a ring of low brightness temperatures around it." Julian Heming from the Met Office states that Hurricane Irma is expected to head westwards in the next few days. Any impact it has will be on the far north side of the Leeward Islands, according to him.
Latest forecast track for Hurricane #IRMA issued by the National Hurricane Center. Large uncertainty for the 2nd half of next week. Matt pic.twitter.com/b2TQvU8I8u
— BBC Weather (@bbcweather) September 2, 2017
Tropical Storm #MAWAR will make landfall in southern China (near Shantou) late Sunday. Flooding a greater concern than wind strength. Matt pic.twitter.com/wbWS6M2yHG
— BBC Weather (@bbcweather) September 2, 2017
