Hurricane Hunters: An Inside Look

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MYRTLE BEACH, SC — The official start to hurricane season is just a couple weeks away and NOAA has started its official Hurricane Awareness Tour, which travels to different cities up and down the east coast through the end of the week.  This year, the tour stopped by Myrtle Beach for the first time since 1999.  Its main goal is to spread awareness about the upcoming season.

On the outside, the NOAA’s G-4 jet and C-130 appear to be your typical aircraft, but on the inside, they are equipped with the most advanced computer technology.

“They have a number of instruments and computers and the capability to launch from the aircraft out of the belly of the plane, these drop zones, and they can drop them in the eye and in the eye wall.  And it gives us an idea of what’s going on directly in the hurricane,” said Dr. Rick Knabb, Director of the National Hurricane Center.

The C-130 flies at 10,000 feet and directly into the eye of the hurricane.  The G-4 flies at 45,000 feet, several hundred miles ahead of the storm. The data collected helps us track a hurricane and its intensity.

“Without the data, we would not know what’s going on in that storm,” said hurricane specialist John Cangialosi.

Teaching folks about the planes and the way hurricane hunters collect data is only half of the goal of the tour.  The other is promoting preparedness.

“If you haven’t prepared in advance for that hurricane that you thought would never come to your doorstep, you will definitely wish you had,” said Dr. Knabb.

A lesson Myrtle Beach resident Ryan Cook and his family plan to practice.

“It gives us some good ideas of what to do in case a hurricane does head our way, and how we need to prepare for it,” said Cook.

Even though the official start to hurricane season isn’t until June 1, we are already tracking the first tropical disturbance just off the southeast coast, which is a good reminder to you and your family that it’s never too early to prepare.