Hurricane Matthew: How to follow the storm like a true weather geek

Hurricane Matthew is set to deal a devastating, potentially catastrophic blow to the east coast of Florida through Friday night. No major hurricane on record has ever taken the path it is predicted to take -- skirting along Florida's east coast from north of West Palm Beach to Cape Canaveral and up to Jacksonville.

This track is a nightmare scenario for the highly populated east coast of the state. Hurricane Matthew's 140-mile-per-hour or greater winds will act as a buzzsaw, tearing apart buildings and rendering some areas "uninhabitable for weeks or months," according to the National Weather Service.

If you are trying to follow the storm closely, there are a wealth of resources online that true weather geeks, including me, turn to for data.

Here are a few off the best ones, as well as terminology to look out for and what it means.

Terms to know

When forecasters talk about the storm's minimum central air pressure, they're doing so because it is a key way to measure the intensity of the storm. In general, the lower the pressure, the stronger the storm.

As of 11 a.m. ET on Thursday, the hurricane had a minimum central pressure of 940 millibars. To put this reading into perspective, only six hurricanes have ever made landfall in Florida with a pressure below 940 millibars. These storms are the ones highlighted in meteorological history books, including the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane, Hurricane Andrew and Hurricane Donna.

When forecasters refer to the hurricane's storm surge, they are talking about the rise in water that occurs from a combination of the storm's onshore winds and low atmospheric pressure. The storm surge is expected to cause inundation of coastal areas of 9 feet or more in some spots in northern Florida, meaning that 9 feet or more of water will cover typically dry land if the storm hits at the time of high tide.

References to the storm's wind speed always refer to the maximum sustained winds observed in the storm, although higher gusts are likely to occur.

Lastly, the storm's "eye wall" refers to the towering thunderstorms that surround the hurricane's eye, and which contain the fiercest winds and often the heaviest rain as well. Typically, the strongest winds are found in the northeastern side of the eye wall for a storm moving from south to north, like Hurricane Matthew.

Online resources

Here are some helpful online resources I turn to for covering hurricanes here at Mashable.

National Hurricane Center

This is the official source of all hurricane forecasts, watches and warnings. Check here often for updates about Hurricane Matthew, and links to local NWS offices' statements for their specific area.

Levi Cowan's Tropical Tidbits website

This is the website to turn to to find out what the Hurricane Hunter aircraft are finding in the storm, live, as the planes are in the air. It is also great for computer model simulations of the storm, at no charge. Just be sure to remember that each model is a projection of the storm, not an actual forecast.

Best satellite sites: NOAA and the University of Wisconsin

Weather geeks are very particular about their satellite imagery. Some prefer visible loops, while others like colorful infrared displays. You'll find all the best options to track the intensity and location of the storm at this NOAA site and this site at the University of Wisconsin. Some of the data the University of Wisconsin provides is a bit technical, but there is documentation detailing the hurricane on the university's sire as well.

Most comprehensive bloggers

The two most comprehensive bloggers on hurricanes are Jeff Masters and Bob Henson of Weather Underground. Their frequent updates are not to be missed.

Radar imagery

No weather geek can be far from their radar tool for long. If you're trying to follow the storm on mobile, the pay-for app RadarScope is unparalleled in providing access to radar and lightning data, including dual-pole Doppler products including the storm's winds as seen by the radar system.

Brian McNoldy, a hurricane scientist, maintains a site with running radar loops of Hurricane Matthew that is also helpful.

Twitter accounts of weather geeks following the storm

Ryan Maue: a PhD scientist who is a wizard at creating engaging weather maps.

Eric Blake: Hurricane scientist who provides level-headed analysis.

Capital Weather Gang: Washington Post's weather team covering the storm obsessively.

Andrew Freedman: That's me, Mashable's senior editor for science and special projects.

TropicalTidbits: Levi Cowan's Twitter presence is an extension of his website -- heavy on the science and infectious enthusiasm for meteorology.

National Hurricane Center: Official Updates.

NWS Miami: Official updates for Miami area.

NWS Melbourne: Official updates for Melbourne, Florida area, on the state's northeastern coast.

NWS Jacksonville: Official updates for extreme northeastern Florida and southeastern Georgia.

NWS Charleston: Official updates for the Charleston, South Carolina area.

Michael Lowry: Weather Channel's storm surge expert whose guidance on storm surge flooding may save lives.

Gary Szatkowski: Former NWS meteorologist who famously gave out his home phone number before Hurricane Sandy, pleading with people to evacuate the New Jersey Shore. He is a must-follow.

USA Today Weather: USA Today's weather team (they don't just do the colorful back page weather map, you know).