Latest Hurricane News

Hurricane Rafael Maps Tracker: Spaghetti Models, Forecasts And More

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Hurricane Rafael will soon bring hurricane conditions to parts of the Caribbean and then will threaten the Gulf Coast.

You can track all of its threats and forecasts with the maps below. And if you're seeking a more in-depth look at Rafael, click here.

Current Alerts

Tropcial storm and hurricane alerts

(A watch is issued when tropical storm or hurricane conditions are possible within 48 hours. A warning is issued when those conditions are expected within 36 hours.)

Current Information

Current Satellite

(The highest cloud tops, corresponding to the most vigorous convection, are shown in the brightest red colors. Clustering, deep convection around the center is a sign of a healthy tropical cyclone.)

Current Winds

(The orange circle shows the extent of the system's tropical-storm-force winds (at least 39 mph). The purple circle indicates the extent of hurricane-force winds (at least 74 mph), according to the National Hurricane Center.)

Forecast And Threats

Forecast Cone of Uncertainty

Projected Path
(The red-shaded area denotes the potential path of the center of the tropical cyclone. It's important to note that impacts (particularly heavy rain, high surf, coastal flooding, winds) with any tropical cyclone usually spread beyond its forecast path.)

Spaghetti Models

Forecast Model Tracks
(The lines on this graphic represent several of the many track forecasts from various computer models. This is not an official forecast, but these are used as guidance for creating the projected path.)

Forecast Rainfall

(This should be interpreted as a broad outlook of where the heaviest rain may fall. Higher amounts may occur where bands or clusters of thunderstorms stall for over a period of a few hours.)

Forecast Tropical-Storm-Force Wind Probabilities

(The contours above show the chance of tropical-storm-force winds (at least 39 mph) and when they could first arrive, according to the latest forecast by the National Hurricane Center.)

Environmental Conditions

Forecast Wind Shear

History

Track History

Jonathan Belles has been a graphics meteorologist and writer for weather.com for 8 years and also assists in the production of videos for The Weather Channel en español. His favorite weather is tropical weather, but also enjoys covering high-impact weather and news stories and winter storms. He's a two-time graduate of Florida State University and a proud graduate of St. Petersburg College.