Hurricane Matthew has downgraded slightly to a Category 3 storm (120 mph) as it wobbles just off shore and threads the gulf stream needle meandering NNW at 14mph. The eye wall itself is about 70 miles off shore and the hurricane force winds extend 60 miles from center, so you can see it’s skirting the coast…. very close.
Each mile makes a big difference.  Palm Bay, Melbourne and Titusville Florida are feeling the scour of the wind field now.  The paramount concern is the wall of water (storm surge) being pushed by Matthew as it heads toward Jacksonville Florida, Georgia and South Carolina.
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UPDATE 200 AM EDT (0600 UTC), the eye of Hurricane Matthew was located by NOAA Doppler weather radars and an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft near latitude 27.6 North, longitude 79.7 West.
Matthew is moving toward the northwest near 14 mph (22 km/h). A turn toward the north-northwest is expected later today, and a turn toward the north is expected tonight or Saturday. On the forecast track, the center of Matthew will be moving near or over the east coast of the Florida peninsula through tonight, and near or over the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina on Saturday.
Maximum sustained winds have decreased to near 120 mph (195 km/h) with higher gusts. Matthew is a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Although some additional weakening is forecast during the next 48 hours, Matthew is expected to be a powerful category 3 hurricane as it moves near the coast of Florida.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 60 miles (95 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 185 miles (295 km). During the past hour, a wind gust to 70 mph (113km/h) was reported at Vero Beach, Florida, and a gust to 60 mph occurred at Melbourne, Florida.
The latest minimum central pressure reported by the reconnaissance aircraft was 938 mb (27.70 inches). (more)

Posted in Hurricane Matthew, Weather Events
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