The Gulf Stream plays a key role in shaping weather and climate patterns in regions surrounding the North Atlantic. A new NOAA study reveals the Gulf Stream underwent a rapid intensification from 2014 to 2023. Fast current speed can lead to enhanced heat transport to higher latitudes, warming the upper ocean and increasing heat released to the atmosphere.
For the first time during an operational hurricane mission, NOAA and Black Swift Technologies demonstrated simultaneous dual-altitude drone flight capability, the latest advancement in the use of small uncrewed aircraft systems (sUAS) to collect critical atmospheric data in severe storms. The novel feat, coined Mobile Ocean Towers, enables scientists to fly two Black Swift S0 sUAS […]
NOAA–India Partnership Advances Next-Generation Coupled Forecasting System for the Indian Ocean Region A long-standing collaboration between NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) and India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) has reached a major new milestone with advancements in the Interactive/Indian Ocean–Land–Atmosphere (IOLA) forecasting system. Scientists from NOAA/AOML, the Indian National Center for Ocean Information […]
In celebration of National Intern Day, NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic & Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) is proud to recognize its FY-2026 class of interns. Ranging from high school to graduate students, these talented individuals are gaining hands-on experience across a wide array of research areas—including coral reefs, microbial ecology, hurricanes, ocean acidification, physical oceanography, science communication, and […]
Leveraging 27 years of radar scans from Hurricane Hunter aircraft, NOAA and partners reveal new insights into one of the most elusive phases of the tropical cyclone lifecycle – vertical alignment of the vortex, a critical precursor to rapid intensification. This study is the first to use decades of radar observations to identify the storm […]
More than 20 years after the first teacher adopted a drifter, NOAA’s Adopt a Drifter Program , co-led by the Global Ocean Monitoring and Observing Program (GOMO) and the Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), continues to grow and evolve this summer.
In recent years, uncrewed surface vehicles (USV) have become vital tools used to collect observations to improve hurricane forecasts. To fully understand how storms intensify, scientists need data at the air-sea interface where energy is transferred from the ocean to tropical cyclones. This data is most effectively collected by USVs because of their unique ability to operate in dangerous environments and extreme conditions. In a new study, scientists are able to directly quantify the air-sea momentum exchange (termed ‘wind stress’) and related frictional drag effect that acts to slow a hurricane’s rotating winds. These direct measurements of this process are the first to be collected over the ocean in hurricane-force winds.
NOAA has released their seasonal outlook for the 2026 hurricane season – spanning from June 1st to November 30th – reporting a 55% probability of a below average season. This prediction is primarily driven by several factors including a strong El Niño event expected to emerge in the Pacific basin. This phenomenon will disrupt typical […]
For the first time, data from a small uncrewed aircraft system (sUAS) – Black Swift Technologies’ S0 – will be integrated into NOAA’s hurricane forecast model during the 2026 hurricane season. Scientists from the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS) and NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML) determined that incorporating sUAS data […]
Divers drop over the gunnel. Tanks, weights, divers, and a mesh bag full of tools all descend in emerald waters beneath grey skies. Off the vessel’s bow, a yellow beacon blinks with a red flashing light and a thin data cable stretching to the seafloor, all connected to a suite of sensors twenty feet below […]
