Hurricane Ike

UPDATED BELOW

As we predicted, Ike is now a hurricane.

IN ABOUT 72 HOURS... OCEAN AND ATMOSPHERIC FACTORS BECOME QUITE CONDUCIVE FOR INTENSIFICATION... AND THE DYNAMICAL MODELS GFDL AND HWRF... FORECAST A MAJOR HURRICANE BY DAYS 4 and 5... .
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ALL OF THE MODELS DO SHOW THE BEGINNINGS OF A MOTION NORTH OF DUE WEST BY DAY 5... BUT IT IS TOO EARLY TO DETERMINE IF THIS IS THE START OF RECURVATURE... OR IF ENOUGH RIDGING WILL REMAIN BEYOND DAY 5 TO KEEP IKE MOVING GENERALLY WESTWARD.

UPDATE
9-3 pm
National Hurricane Center, 8 pm: Ike is now a Category 3 hurricane. The forecast track remains the same, and here it is --