NOAA aircraft investigate hurricanes Joaquin and Patricia
2015
Oct
26
Photo:
David Hall / NOAA
Pilots in the cockpit of NOAA's Gulfstream IV-SP during an Oct. 2, 2015 mission to collect data on Hurricane Joaquin.
The NOAA Hurricane Hunters investigated three tropical cyclones in October. The Gulfstream IV collected data on Hurricane Joaquin, a category 4 storm, before repositioning to Hawaii to collect data on Tropical Storm Oho. NOAA Lockheed WP-3D Orion N43RF was dispatched to Harlingen, Texas, on Oct. 21 to conduct flights into what would become Hurricane Patricia, the strongest hurricane ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere in terms of maximum sustained winds (200 mph) and lowest air pressure (879 mb).
