OAN Staff Avril Elfie
5:44 PM – Tuesday, October 8, 2024
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Aircraft Operations Center has released footage of a research aircraft flying directly into Hurricane Milton.
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Video footage shows Lockheed's WP-3D Orion jet, Miss Piggy, shaking violently in heavy turbulence as the plane flies through the rain from the passenger side. At least four NOAA researchers were on board the plane.
“@NOAA WP-3D Orion stormed into Hurricane #Milton,” the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center wrote in a post to X.
The NOAA Aircraft Operations Center said the purpose of the trip was to collect data for hurricane research and improve storm forecasting.
Video footage shows electrician Tom Brannigan sitting in the Airborne Vertical Atmospheric Survey System (AVAPS) as the plane shakes violently and turbulence begins to rapidly intensify.
The severe turbulence caused a bag tied to a shelf on the plane to spin upside down, spilling its contents onto the floor.
“Can you please pick up my phone right now?” asks program integration engineer Nick Underwood, who was filming the shaky flight.
The chaos escalated again as Brannigan reached for his colleague's cell phone, causing objects to fly off the plane's shelves.
Underwood's camera is pointed at the rear of the aircraft, showing numerous objects scattered on the ground due to severe turbulence.
“Damn,” he exclaimed, laughing.
“Oh my god,” Underwood said as another colleague held on to the cooler to keep it from flying away.
“If you have a chance, could you please take my wallet?'' This pocket must be zipped! ” Underwood joked.
“Good,” the researcher said, turning back to the view out the window. It turned out that the plane had reached clearer skies.
“Our NOAA WP-3D Orion aircraft has been flying through storms for almost 50 years,” said Jonathan Shannon, NOAA Aircraft Operations Center Public Affairs Specialist.
He went on to say that these missions are necessary because their scientists “don't have access to this important data at this scale and resolution.”
“We basically use weather stations to check the weather,” he said. new york post.
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