How Flying into the Middle of Hurricanes Began as a Bet
How Flying into the Middle of Hurricanes Began as a Bet Out of approximately 23,000 operational business jets in the world, this Gulfstream-IV business jet is arguably the most important one. You see, this jet plane is not just giving rides to CEO’s and celebrities. Instead it is filled with scientists. The scientists who not only save lives, but also save tens of millions of dollars for the American taxpayers each year. Owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, this jet's primary mission is to fly into hurricanes, as frequently as twice a day, during the Atlantic hurricane season. Hurricanes form over oceans and while satellites can detect and track them, they cannot predict their movement. But more importantly, satellites cannot determine either the interior barometric pressure or the maximum sustained wind speeds at the surface, meaning that satellites cannot figure out how bad the hurricane actually is! The only way to get this i...