Storm explorers have sent a marine robot to the center of a violent cyclone, a mission that is needed to understand how hurricanes are escalating into monstrous storms with devastating winds and deadly floods.
As part of an innovative collaboration between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States and Saildrone, which is developing innovative drones, the device was sent to Hurricane Fiona, and it is moving towards the eastern coast of Canada.
The Saildrone device operated in 15 metres of waves and wind, moving at a speed of 160 km/h. However, the device was able to collect data even though it did.
The warm waters of the ocean are "fuels" for storms, and Sayldrones will help researchers understand how the oceans transmit this heat and energy to storms.
As Mashable has already reported, the conditions that contribute to the rapid rise of tropical storms are of particular interest to storm researchers, and for human settlements, the stronger storms are filled with destructive winds and large storm surges on the coast — dangers that are useful for every resident to know.
"The frequency of events has increased over the past four decades, and this increase is related to climate change," explained Jim Kossin, an atmospheric scientist. "The seas are now inexorably warm, and they absorb most of the heat that civilization holds on Earth."