As Hurricane Rita approaches the Gulf Coast, we'll bring you the latest on preparations for this major storm. The hurricane is expected to weaken somewhat before making landfall - but is still expected to come ashore as a strong Category 3 storm with winds up to 130 miles per hour. Hurricane warnings were in place for an area ranging from Port O'Connor, TX to Morgan City, LA.The storm is expected to make landfall early Saturday morning.

New Orleans is expecting to face tropical storm-level winds, and up to 5 inches of rain -- the first real rain the city has received since Hurricane Katrina. In this special coverage from NPR News, we'll look at storm planning, prediction, and preparations in the affected areas. How will the storm affect the residents of Texas and Louisiana? What about effects on infrastructure and oil production?

Call in with your questions and comments at 1-800-989-8255 (3-4 Eastern). Teachers, find more information about using Science Friday as a classroom resource in the Kids' Connection.

Guests:
Ivor van Heerden
Director, Center for the Study of Public Health Impracts of Hurricanes
Deputy Director, LSU Hurricane Center
Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Louisiana State University
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Robert Bea
Professor of Civil Engineering
University of California-Berkeley
Berkeley, California

Donald Boesch
Professor of Marine Science
President, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Sciences
University of Maryland
Cambridge, Maryland

Leonard Pietrafesa
Professor of Ocean and Atmospheric Science
North Carolina State University
Raleigh, North Carolina

Ellen Gerrity
Associate Director
Duke University-UCLA National Center for Child Traumatic Stress
Durham, North Carolina

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This segment produced by Annette Heist and Charles Bergquist