The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory’s Scientific Development Squadron ONE (VXS-1) takes to the skies to deploy crucial observational buoys in the path of Hurricane Helene, providing real-time data for accurate forecasting and coastal readiness.
Battling the Storm: VXS-1 Hurricanes
The piece admires the incredible work of the VXS-1 squadron, known as the ‘Warlocks’, during their Hurricane Helene tracking mission. The second Gulf hurricane they’ve flown on in two weeks, this effort resulted in a solid 29 buoys fully deployed throughout the Florida and Alabama coastline, including four submersibles deployed to depths as great as 2400m, six spotters, three Drifters — Modified Directional Wave Spectra DP-I drifters from Catherine Edwards nearest deployment point — and three Surface Wave Instrument Floats with Tracking.
In consultation with the Marine Meteorology Division, a team fielded by the National Oceanographic Partnership Program (NOPP) known as Hurricane Coastal Impacts (NHCI) was formed to design a suite of instruments for this purpose. These buoys are essential for measuring wave height, wave direction, and storm surge in real-time which are imperative to be able to understand and predict the coastal impacts of thousands of kilometers distant hurricanes like Helene.
Prediction Technology; Be Forewarned
The buoys send their observations to the Navy’s hurricane forecast model, COAMPS-TC (Coupled Ocean/Atmosphere Mesoscale Prediction System for Tropical Cyclones) used by VXS-1 and specially tailored for the maritime environment. Known as the most skillful model for predicting hurricane strengths in the 2019 Atlantic hurricane season, this advanced model is capable of producing forecasts of tropical cyclone track, intensity and structure.
According to James Doyle, Ph. D. (Senior Scientist for Mesoscale Meteorology), Division of Marine Meteorology, using the air-deployed buoys and submersible instruments observations will inform us better how hurricanes can interact with ocean to produce waves and storm surge. This insight is crucial in calibrating COAMPS-TC and other hurricane prediction models to improve exactly such decision-making processes, yielding well-deserved coastal preparations.
Conclusion
The endless efforts of the VXS-1 squadron so that the data can be collated to understand hurricanes provides a testimony to how important military science is in saving lives. Providing a critical element to a greater understanding of these tempests (and thereby bolstering the means by which they could be forecasted, better equipping coastal communities across the globe), the Warlocks are facilitating this breakthrough through advanced observational tools and direct assimilation into-state-of-the-art operational constructs so that we might someday soon increase our temporal estimate of hurricanes – allowing cities and nations more time to properly prepare and take ameliorative action in advance of destruction. The squadron’s work demonstrates the vital role military research plays in protecting human life and property along our vulnerable coastlines—an urgent necessity that must be acknowledged.
