Conquer It
Coyotes Take The Tough Assignments
10 Manufactured by Sensintel of Tucson, Arizona, the Coyotes cost about $70,000 apiece. Yet two or three of them might be sent into a single storm with no expectation of seeing them again.
11 Dunion said the benefits will be worth it. He said the small plane can fly right above the ocean surface in a storm’s eye, which is far too dangerous for any aircraft with people aboard.
12 In the process, the Coyote will help scientists better understand how a tropical system feeds on heat from the ocean's surface.
13 “The thermodynamics of the ocean near a storm’s eye is not something we sample very often,” Dunion said. “It’s hard to sample.”
14 To intercept storms that could hit the U.S. coastline, NOAA this summer plans to station Coyote-carrying WP-3s in St. Croix, in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
In this alternative to the drag-and-drop activity, complete the activity below to show your understanding of how the pros and cons of using the Coyote are presented in this section of the article.
