• After witnessing the continued decrease of involvement in the SpotterNetwork staff in serving SN members with troubleshooting issues recently, I have unilaterally decided to terminate the relationship between SpotterNetwork's support and Stormtrack. I have witnessed multiple users unable to receive support weeks after initiating help threads on the forum. I find this lack of response from SpotterNetwork officials disappointing and a failure to hold up their end of the agreement that was made years ago, before I took over management of this site. In my opinion, having Stormtrack users sit and wait for so long to receive help on SpotterNetwork issues on the Stormtrack forums reflects poorly not only on SpotterNetwork, but on Stormtrack and (by association) me as well. Since the issue has not been satisfactorily addressed, I no longer wish for the Stormtrack forum to be associated with SpotterNetwork.

    I apologize to those who continue to have issues with the service and continue to see their issues left unaddressed. Please understand that the connection between ST and SN was put in place long before I had any say over it. But now that I am the "captain of this ship," it is within my right (nay, duty) to make adjustments as I see necessary. Ending this relationship is such an adjustment.

    For those who continue to need help, I recommend navigating a web browswer to SpotterNetwork's About page, and seeking the individuals listed on that page for all further inquiries about SpotterNetwork.

    From this moment forward, the SpotterNetwork sub-forum has been hidden/deleted and there will be no assurance that any SpotterNetwork issues brought up in any of Stormtrack's other sub-forums will be addressed. Do not rely on Stormtrack for help with SpotterNetwork issues.

    Sincerely, Jeff D.

UAVs used for Research during Hurricane Maria

Randy Jennings

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May 18, 2013
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Air & Space Magazine (10/10/2017) - As Hurricane Maria roared northward, Joseph Cione, a research meteorologist with the NOAA Hurricane Research Division, was staring at a computer screen and bouncing in his seat aboard a NOAA P-3 Orion, well inside the storm. Also aboard were seven Coyotes, small disposable remotely operated vehicles built by Raytheon and designed for military reconnaissance. Cione wanted to see if the drones could collect data from the lowest levels of a hurricane where it’s hard for scientists to reach.

The Coyotes, wrapped inside a protective sleeve, weigh only 13 pounds and have a wingspan of five feet—not much larger than some flyable model airplanes. The P-3 deploys them from its dropsonde-dropper with a small parachute. But, unlike the dropsonde, when the Coyote is free of its protective sleeve, its wings and rudders swing into flying position. Each Coyote can fly for about one hour, piloted remotely by a Raytheon representative aboard the P-3, before its battery fails and the tiny drones fall into the ocean.

...

The extended time off proved worthwhile. During Hurricane Maria the Coyotes proved able to operate up to 35 miles away from their P-3 mothership. Four of the aircraft “worked remarkably well” and provided “extraordinary data,” says Cione. Three of those aircraft flew within the hurricane’s eyewall at low altitude, a feat that crewed hurricane hunters cannot risk. While the small aircraft were tempest-tossed, essentially hitchhiking on the swirling winds, they only made it part way around the eye wall before they were lost.

Full story at:
https://www.airspacemag.com/daily-planet/noaa-sacrifices-drones-appease-poseidon-180965188/

The sad news is that they are now down to a single Coyote and have no other funding: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/news/a28466/noaa-hurricane-hunter-drone-coyote/
 
It is very sad to hear that this worked well but is now out of funding, any time that you can eliminate the risk taken by actual humans is a good thing meanwhile collecting groundbreaking data.
 
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