If you remember Hurricane Katrina, then you would also remember the images of devastation it left in its wake. Developed or developing, no country can withstand the onslaught of tropical storms like hurricanes when they decide to run amok. Hurricane Katrina is also the costliest natural disaster as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the U.S.

All these alarming facts should put the need for hurricane early warning systems (and hurricane tracking websites relying on such systems) in perspective. Hurricane tracking websites are especially important during the hurricane season. For individuals, it could serve as a caution when planning vacations or packing up with essential supplies. For example, the vacation hotspot of The Bahamas fall slam bang in the middle of a few hurricanes now and then.

Keep an eye on the storms with the help of these hurricane tracking websites.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC)

 

This is perhaps the go to site for constant and the latest weather updates. It is the official mouth piece of the U.S. government and covers the North Atlantic and the Eastern North Pacific Ocean areas. Information is very detailed as it is collected from satellite imagery, aerial recon, and radar among other weather forecasting tools. You can also learn a lot about hurricane preparedness on the site and via its outreach programs. Updates are also available in alternate versions on mobiles and PDAs.

Stormpulse

 

Stormpulse monitors weather changes in the continental United States and Caribbean. You can subscribe to the site’s weather tracking reports as it tracks tropical storms. It is primarily focused on business solutions, but individual users too can catch the updates on the map. You can track individual storms on the map and check their activity status. The information is sourced from the National Hurricane Center and other agencies and displayed on the map mash-up.

My Hurricane

My Hurricane is a neat site which overlays storm forecasts and data on a Google Map. You can use the toggle switches to choose the information you want to have displayed. For instance, you can switch on (or off) the historical path of the storm and also forecast its path as it develops further. You can setup alerts and receive them on Twitter.

The Weather Underground Tropical Weather Page

Infrared heatmaps and satellite imagery make this site and its tropical weather page a must visit if you are planning a vacation anywhere during the hurricane season. The site is available in a Lite version, a mobile version, and an iPhone version too. Check out the downloads section for the many aids you can use with your devices. The WunderRadio and WunderMap for iPad could be two of them. The site also has a comprehensive archive of hurricane related articles.

IBISEYE

This hurricane tracking tool covers the North Atlantic and gives you updated news on current hurricanes. It displays it all on a large Google Map supported with satellite imagery overlays. You can browse through a list of the latest storms and locate them on the map. Easy to use map controls also help to make sense of the complex weather data.

MyFoxHurricane

This graphics heavy site comes courtesy the Fox Television Network. With satellite imagery, climate models, and animated maps, this site offers good visualizations for understanding hurricanes. Interactive radar maps cover Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean.

BoatUS Hurricane Resource Center

The storm tracking page of the BoatUS issues public advisories as it tracks the latest storms to hit U.S. coasts. Images and weather information is sourced from NOAA. The site is simple without any interactivity.

Storm Advisory

Storm Advisory plots tropical cyclones, typhoons, hurricane paths and gives you the projected status information on Google Maps for Atlantic, Eastern Pacific, and Western Pacific. The site is again very simple and gives you a glimpse of the developing storm fronts at a glance.

Bad weather disrupts. It affects every area of our lives and has an economic cost. The least we can do is to be forewarned about it and prepare to the best of our ability. Are you a weather watcher? Which are the other tools you use to track weather? Let us know if you have ever been severely affected by hurricanes and the value you place on these hurricane tracking websites.