Saildrone captures amazing new video from inside Category 4 Hurricane Fiona

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Thursday, September 22, 2022
Saildrone captures amazing new video from inside Category 4 Hurricane Fiona
The Saildrone is used to gather data around the clock to help scientists better understand hurricane intensification and processes.

Ever wondered what the inside of a hurricane looks like at sea level?

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, has released footage from the inside of Hurricane Fiona, the first Category 4 storm of the 2022 season that's heading north in the Atlantic Ocean.

RELATED: Puerto Rico struggles to reach areas cut off by Fiona, hurricane threatens Bermuda

The footage comes from the Saildrone Explorer SD 1078, a surface vehicle that gathers data around the clock to help scientists better understand hurricane intensification and processes.

SD 1078 is said to be one of seven "hurricane" saildrones operating in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico during this hurricane season.

Detailed and simplified graphics describing the sensors carried by the Saildrone Explorers during the 2022 mission.
Courtesy: Saildrone

The NOAA says this knowledge is critical to improving storm forecasting and is expected to reduce the loss of human life by enabling better preparedness in coastal communities.

"Saildrone is once again demonstrating its ability to provide critical ocean data in the most extreme weather conditions," said Richard Jenkins, Saildrone founder and CEO.

NOAA said they also have underwater gliders, surface drifters, profiling floats, and aerial assets to collectively gain deeper insight than ever before into the development of hurricanes.

This is the second video footage Saildrone has released from inside a major hurricane. Last year, SD 1045 spent 24 hours inside Category 4 Hurricane Sam, sending back high-resolution video and images in near real time.

SEE MORE: Saildrone captures inside view of Hurricane Sam in first-of-its-kind video

NOAA and Saildrone are offering a new glimpse of a hurricane through an uncrewed surface vehicle.