Hurricane Hunters deploy to Hawaii to track Darby Published July 21, 2016 403rd Wing Public Affairs KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Aircrews and maintenance personnel with the Air Force Reserve “Hurricane Hunters” assigned to the 403rd Wing at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi are on their way to Lihue Airport, Kauai, Hawaii to fly data-gathering missions into Tropical Storm Darby. The 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron, or “Hurricane Hunters,” are scheduled to fly the first mission July 22. The storm as of Thursday morning was 650 miles east of Hilo, Hawaii, and is projected to pass near Hawaii’s Big Island this weekend, according to the National Hurricane Center forecast. The data the 53rd WRS collects during their flights significantly improves the NHC and Central Pacific Hurricane Center forecasts and storm warnings, said Maj. Douglas Gautrau, 53rd WRS aerial reconnaissance weather officer. “Oceans are data-sparse environments and satellites don’t tell forecasters where the exact center of the storm is or what the surface and central pressures are,” said Gautrau. “We fly into the storm to get this data.” During a mission, the aircraft collects weather data such as temperature, wind speed, wind direction, humidity, and surface pressure. Aircrews fly through the eye of a storm four to six times to locate the low-pressure center and circulation of the storm. During each pass through the eye, they release a dropsonde, which collects weather data on its descent to the ocean surface, specifically gathering data on the surface winds and pressure. An automated data package is sent out every 10 minutes while manual observations, such as the dropsonde data, are sent as necessary, said Gautrau. For more information about this mission, media members should contact the 403rd Wing Public Affairs at 228-377-2056 or 403WG.PA2@us.af.mil.