The Vortex Data Message
(or information from inside the storm)

Almost every hurricane is studied extensively by many different means, some more exciting and up close than others. In my opinion clearly the most exciting and "up close and personal" way that the storms are studied are by the researchers and pilots that actually fly aircraft into the storms themselves to collect data and analyze the storm while it is in motion and changing around them. The people that perform these flights have earned the catchy title of "Hurricane Hunters" and as you can see by looking at their web site their job isn't one for those that don't have steady nerves and love to fly!

In reality there are actually TWO groups that do this activity routinely, the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron (also known as the "Hurricane Hunters") and the NOAA Aircraft Operations Center located out of McDill Air Force Base in Tampa Florida who actually do far more than just fly into hurricanes.

OK, so what do we obtain from flying into one of the strongest storms on the planet in a small aluminum airplane? That answer is simple - ALOT of data on the storm! Seriously though, we obtain a huge volume of data from each flight into these storms and I'm not going to attempt to address it all here. Rather I will talk about one piece of data called a Vortex Data Message that though it appears very cryptic on first glance actually holds a remarkable amount of information - if you know how to read it!

Below is in the left column is what the Vortex Data Message looked like just before Hurricane Jeanne was making landfall on September 26, 2004. If you click on each line of the message you will get detailed explanation of it in the right hand window that will thoroughly explain what is there in more understandable terms.