The 2017 hurricane season has proven to be a busy one as Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico and several other islands have all suffered devastation at the hands of major storms. As part of their annual hurricane unit, students in Mrs. Rigney’s and Mrs. Seal’s 4th and 5th grade Quest Classes have had the opportunity to track many of them. On October 10th, they were thrilled to welcome a guest speaker who has experienced the wrath of these storms firsthand. Captain Will Simmons is a Meteorologist and Hurricane Hunter with the Air Force Reserve 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron which operates out of Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, MS. He shared some of his most recent experiences flying into the eyewalls of Hurricanes Irma, Jose, Katia, and Maria. Captain Simmons explained how the hurricane hunters use sensors to measure temperature, pressure, wind speeds, directions, and latitude/longitude locations of these powerful storms. The students learned just how important these data collecting missions are to the safety of everyone affected by dangerous hurricanes each year. We appreciate the work that Captain Simmons does and for taking the time to speak to the PUE students.
