Sending a drone into the center of a hurricane, scientists got a shocking image

Yi Ge comes from Ao Fei Temple
Qubit | Official account QbitAI

Do you want to see what it's like inside a hurricane ?

Now, without having to put themselves in harm's way, scientists are sending drones into Hurricane Fiona, which is about to hit Canada .

It passed through 15-meter -high waves and winds exceeding 160 kilometers per hour , and brought back a shocking video.

Just watching the video, it seems like you can feel the suffocation of the huge waves rushing towards you.

The drone's camera also swayed violently due to the rough sea.

Not only does this footage give us a unique perspective on one of the most destructive forces on Earth, it also provides scientists with data to help them understand hurricanes and improve forecasts .

Some netizens expressed shock after watching it: This was the first time he had seen this side of the Atlantic Ocean.

More netizens can't wait for more videos.

Storm Chaser Saildrone USV

The drone that penetrated deep into the hurricane is called SD 1078 , or Saildrone USV 1078.

The appearance is similar to both a sailboat and an airplane wing, and the orange fuselage is particularly eye-catching.

It is specifically designed to withstand the extreme weather during hurricanes, transmitting live meteorological and oceanographic data in real time, including air temperature and relative humidity, air pressure, wind speed and direction, water temperature and salinity, sea surface temperature, and wave height and duration.

Don’t worry about battery life. It is powered by wind and solar energy and can perform data collection missions on the high seas for up to 12 months .

In addition, it is equipped with GPS and computer systems, which enable it not only to navigate according to the prescribed route, but also to autonomously consider the influence of wind and water currents.

During Hurricane Fiona, SD 1078 continued to sail at a speed of more than 14 kilometers/hour, and even reached a maximum speed of 63.9 kilometers/hour in huge waves at one point.

Until now, it is still located 315 nautical miles southwest of Bermuda in the Atlantic Ocean, continuing to follow the footsteps of Hurricane Fiona.

In fact, there are more than just SD 1078. There are seven similar Storm drones deployed around the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico .

They are all made by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Saildrone , a technology company that develops drones , and are used to collect data around the clock to understand the formation process of hurricanes.

This data is very important for scientists to improve the efficiency of hurricane forecasting, said Richard Jenkins, founder and CEO of Saildrone:

The data Saildrone is collecting will help the scientific community better understand how hurricanes rapidly intensify, giving people living in coastal areas more time to prepare.

not the first time

In fact, this is the second time that Saildrone has been used in a major hurricane:

Last year, SD 1045 spent 24 hours during Category 4 Hurricane Sam, similarly sending back high-resolution video and images in near real-time.

To date, Saildrone has sailed more than 80,000 nautical miles and more than 18,000 days.

Regarding the future development of Saildrone, Captain Philip Hall, Director of NOAA's Unmanned Systems Operations Center, said:

These exciting emerging technologies provide NOAA with a valuable tool that allows us to collect data in places that are inaccessible through other observing systems.

It will likely help NOAA improve its mission to better understand the environment.

Reference links:
[1]https://www.saildrone.com/news/atlantic-hurricane-mission-new-era-observing-forecasting
[2]https://www.saildrone.com/press-release/saildrone- video-hurricane-fiona
[3]https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/hurricane-fiona-robot-footage
[4]https://futurism.com/the-byte/scientists-robot-hurricane-fiona