[jpsb]

The general westward movement of low latitute huricanes is becuase the huricane is in the "westerlies", a west movement of air caused by the earths spin. As the huricane gains latitude (moves north) the earth spin will tend to make it want to move more to the north, this northward trend can be stopped by a high pressure ridge (think of it as a wall of air that the huricane can not get over), also the flow of air around a high is anti-cyclone which is clockwise and also tends to move Rita west.

Everything is pushing Rita west, something has to change quite a bit before Rita can move north and it doesn't look to me like anything is going to change at time soon.

[WoodstockCat]

yes, but the more important question is:

How does Karl Rove's Hurricane machine make that all happen?

;-)

[Sam Cree]

I think it is easterlies that cause westward movememt, fwiw.

[Types_with_Fist]

Everything is pushing Rita west

Thank you for taking the time to explain this all to me. Isn't FReep great? I ask a question, leave for a while and when I come back there is an answer. So, according to your explanation, we need to be praying this thing goes even farther south and into Mexico.