Hurricane drones heading into Gulf of Mexico for the first time

Remember Saildrone, the California company that made history by sending an ocean drone into the eye of a hurricane? It is again launching a fleet of ocean drones to collect critical hurricane data to make coastal communities safer.

With the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)’s Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research as its partner, Saildrone is sending seven ocean drones into the Atlantic Ocean and, for the first time ever, the Gulf of Mexico. These drones will brave the treacherous hurricane season to collect unparalleled insights into how destructive hurricanes can become and how fast they can intensify.

The saildrones will transmit meteorological and oceanographic in situ data in real time including air temperature and relative humidity, barometric pressure, wind speed and direction, water temperature and salinity, sea surface temperature, and wave height and duration. NOAA will use this data to improve hurricane forecast…