Sandy begins transition into hurricane nor’easter blend

Hurricane Sandy: How to prepare for the storm

Satellite image of Hurricane Sandy Friday evening (NOAA) Sandy is still a hurricane this evening, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. But the National Hurricane Center says it is evolving into a new type of storm.

“Sandy is showing characteristics of a hybrid cyclone this evening,” it writes in its technical discussion. That means it has some attributes of a hurricane and some of a nor’easter.

The storm’s peak winds have been diminishing since yesterday as its core unwinds. However, its overall wind field has expanded in area coverage. Amazingly, tropical storm force winds extend 415 miles from the center.

Sandy is currently positioned 90 miles north of Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas and is moving north at 7 mph. The track forecast has not changed, and landfall is still projected occur to between the Virginia Capes and southern New England between Monday night and late Tuesday. The center of the track guidance brings the storm ashore over the Delaware Bay.

We will have much more on Sandy later today. Here is some suggested reading, in case you missed it Friday:

Washington, D.C. will not escape Hurricane Sandy: latest storm scenarios

Hurricane Sandy may be unprecedented in East Coast storm history

Name the storm

Hurricane Sandy: Five tips for avoiding hype

Hurricane Sandy: ‘Frankenstorm,’ a government brainstorm

CNN bans ‘Frankenstorm’ term for Hurricane Sandy

How Hurricane Sandy could affect the election

View Photo Gallery: From Hurricane Isabel to approaching Hurricane Sandy, the nation’s capital has been a center of severe weather in recent years. Here’s a partial list of what she’s sent our way.

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