for those computer models that predict the hurricane s path and its intensity, constantly sending their results to the national hurricane center in miami. john talbot, the chief meteorologist has flown into more than 150 eyewalls over 26 years. the most critical element is geographic position of the storm. if you don t know where it started, you don t know where it will finish. during our 11-hour flight, researchers released a dozen highly sensitive probes with gps built in. they fall toward the ocean with a tiny parachute, relaying back vital information including humidity, pressure, wind speed and temperature. thinking about six right. reporter: upfront, the commander guides us through blinding clouds. everything you learn as a pilot, an aviator is to leave bad weather. we do just the opposite. reporter: we are about to show you something very few people see up close, the hurricane s eyewall.
times. their mission, to collect data for those computer models that predict the hurricane s path and its intensity, constantly sending their results to the national hurricane center in miami. john talbot, the chief meteorologist has flown into more than 150 eyewalls over 26 years. the most critical element is geographic position of the storm. if you don t know where it started, you don t know where it will finish. during our 11-hour flight, researchers released a dozen highly sensitive probes with gps built in. they fall toward the ocean with a tiny parachute, relaying back vital information including humidity, pressure, wind speed and temperature. thinking about six right. reporter: upfront, the commander guides us through blinding clouds. everything you learn as a pilot, an aviator is to leave bad weather. we do just the opposite. reporter: we are about to show you something very few people see up close, the hurricane s eyewall.
they fall toward the ocean with a tiny pair ra chute relaying back vital information including humidity, pressure, wind speed and temperature. up front, the flight s commander guides us through blinding clouds. everything you learn as a pilot, as an aviator out there is to leave bad weather. and we do just the opposite. here in the cockpit we re about to show you something that very few people ever see up close, the hurricane s eye wall. we are three minutes away. 15 miles from there. the wind speeds outside this aircraft is more than 100 miles per hour. minutes later we finally enter the eye and get our first glimpse of blue. below those white-capped waves are more than 30-feet high. the storm itself more than 200 miles long. they come in all shapes and sizes. this is a big one. this is a large wind field. this is going to affect a huge area. but sunset we head home. another set of hurricane hunters
reporter: during the 11-hour flight researchers released nearly a dozen highly sensitive probes called dropsons with gps built in. they call toward the ocean with a tiny parachute, relaying back vital information, including humidity, pressure, wind speed, and temperature. up front, the flight s commander, shane devlin, guides us through blinding clouds. everything you learn as a pilot, as an aviator out there, is to leave bad weather. and we do just the opposite. here in the cockpit we re go to show you something very pew feel ever see up close the hurricane s eye wall. we re now three minutes away, 15 miles from there. the wind speeds outside this aircraft are more than 100 miles per hour. minutes later, we finally enter the eye, and get our first glimpse of blue. below, those white capped waves are more than 30 feet high. the storm itself more than 200 miles long. they come in all shapes and sizes and this is a big one. this is a large wind field.