Hurricane Bill Update

A NOAA plane investigated Hurricane Bill Wednesday and confirmed Bill's continued Category Four strength, with maximum sustained winds of 135mph. However, the hurricane hunters did measure 152mph winds at flight level during one pass through the storm. Bill will maintain major hurricane strength as it continues to move over very warm ocean waters the rest of this week with low wind shear. By this weekend, though, Bill will pass into cooler Atlantic waters as it turns north and northeast, possibly brushing New England and Nova Scotia, and is accelerated northeast as a large upper-low moves through the Northeast U.S. and Eastern Canada.

Major Hurricane Bill

Hurricane Bill is now a major hurricane, meaning it has reached at least Category Three status with maximum sustained wind speeds of at least 111mph. As of early Wednesday morning, Bill is a Category Four storm with maximum sustained winds of 135mph, and is moving WNW at 16mph. A NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft is currently en route to further investigate Hurricane Bill.

As Bill moves around the southern edge of high pressure in the central Atlantic, it should turn to the north this weekend at the same time that a long-wave trough moves into the eastern U.S. This trough should nudge Bill northeast, but if the timing or strength of this approaching upper low changes, this would change Bill's projected turn to the northeast and likely keep it slightly more northerly toward New England.

However, all the long-range track estimates are still in good agreement in projecting this turn northeast.

Hurricane Bill Clockwork

High pressure remains over the central Atlantic, with Hurricane Bill on the southern edge of this ridge. The air flow around this high is clockwise, so Hurricane Bill will move like the hand on a ticking clock clockwise around this high pressure the rest of this week. As of Tuesday morning, Bill is a Category Two hurricane with maximum sustained wind speeds of 100mph, but it is expected to intensify over the next 24 hours to a major hurricane as it moves over slightly warmer surface waters and its structure remains intact in low wind shear.