Keep tabs on hurricanes at Stormpulse

Want to see what's going on this hurricane season without having to visit lots of different, poorly-organized website? After that close call with Gustav, you're wise to want to keep tabs on the situation out there: So check out Stormpulse, maybe the easiest and most comprehensive look at active (and historical) hurricanes on the web.

Stormpulse's home page shows you active storms (visit now and you can find Hanna, Ike, and Josephine being tracked), offering up-to-the-hour maps and data panels with location information, wind speed, and barometric pressure information. The map overlay shows exactly where each storm is centered while showing a wedge that indicates where the storm could head next, with data points showing where it's most likely to land each day.

The really cool stuff comes when you activate the "forecast models" feature on the top right of the map pane. Turn them on (and turn on the "historical track" while you're at it) and you'll get about a dozen specific path predictions for various weather services and satellite systems. Use the zoom buttons to get a closer look at what might happen over the next few days... it's fascinating to see how various models diverge as time goes on.

Historical storms are also archived on the site for your perusal. Use the search feature to type the name of the storm or the year it occurred to see how we fared in the past.

Be safe out there. Stock up on water and canned goods and bookmark Stormpulse. (And, if you have more suggestions for good storm tracking sites, post them here!)