Hurricane Irene leaving Bahamas in its wake

The GOES-13 satellite captures Hurricane Irene moving through the Bahamas at 10:02 a.m. Thursday. Credit: NASA/NOAA GOES Project

As of 8 p.m., Hurricane Irene is pulling away from the Bahamas, and all signs point to strengthening as its central pressure has dropped to 946 mb from 950 mb at the 5 p.m. update.

Maximum sustained winds remain at 115 mph. Forward movement is still north-northwest at 14 mph.

The forecast cone is tightening, meaning forecasters are becoming even more certain of its path.

The forecast right now puts landfall just west of Morehead City, N.C., at around 2 p.m. Saturday, then skirting up the coast, mostly inland through North Carolina, Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey and smack into New York City on Sunday afternoon.

Get National Hurricane Center details and maps here.

And check out this cool tracking website here.

8 p.m. forecast track