One of the things I've taken interest in this summer is the tracking of hurricanes in the gulf and their resultant impact on oil prices. From this I've gained a better understanding of hurricane development and forecasting through the regular reading of hurricane expert Dr. Jeff Masters' blog over at weather underground.
One of the things he covered that proved very interesting for hurricane Gustav was the impact loop eddys have on hurricanes passing through the Gulf of Mexico. Loop eddys are basically pools of warm water in the Gulf of Mexico created out of the current of water that flows from between Cuba and the Yucatan peninsula through a portion of the Gulf of Mexico before exiting through the Florida Straits. More info can be found here.
Loop eddys can be important for hurricane forecasting as they can fuel a rapid and sometimes unexpected intensification of a hurricane such as occured with hurricane Katrina.
This knowledge has led me to wonder the impact loop eddys will have on hurricane Ike, which is presently projected to enter into the Gulf sometime next week.
While noting the projected track of hurricane Ike, take a look at the forecast of water temperatures in the Gulf as available from data from the US Navy's Naval Oceanographic Office.
From this we can note that the present track of Ike will likely take it right over quite a large eddy in the Gulf. Now, the larger questions are whether conditions will be favorable for hurricane development as it passes over, namely if there will be low wind shear and relatively moist air.
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