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Washington, DC -- {ollowing up on his concerns that the QuikSCAT satellite used to accurately forecast hurricanes is on the verge of failure, U.S. Rep. Ron Klein Wednesday sent a letter to the Air Force Reserves, requesting a meeting to discuss the status of Hurricane Hunter aircraft, which are used as a secondary source to forecast hurricanes.
Hurricane Hunter aircraft are administered by the U.S. Air Force Reserves. The planes fly directly into and around the path of hurricanes to gather important data that helps forecasters make accurate predictions during a hurricane and to increase the understanding of the storm processes, thereby improving their forecast models.
While Hurricane Hunter aircraft are not intended to replace the long-term benefits of the QuikSCAT satellite, Klein wants to make sure the role, capability, and readiness of the aircraft are capable of sufficiently tracking storms during the upcoming hurricane season, which is less than two months away.
The following is the text of the letter:
April 11, 2007
Office of Air Force Reserves
Director of policy and integration
Mr. Wayne Gracie, AF/REI
1150 Air Force Pentagon
Room 5D 712
20330-1150
Dear Mr. Gracie:
I recently learned that the QuikSCAT satellite, an important hurricane forecasting tool developed by NASA and utilized by the National Hurricane Center, has already extended beyond its expected life span and is in danger of going off-line in the near future. During a briefing last week, General David Johnson, the Director of the National Weather Service and NOAA Assistant Administrator for Weather Services, informed me that NASA designed QuikSCAT to observe Ocean Surface Vector Winds (OSVW). This data collection and utilization has been widely acknowledged as a success in providing more accurate hurricane forecasting.
However, General Johnson also informed me that NASA designed QuikSCAT with a three-year life span. Launched in 1999, it now has been performing for eight years – far beyond its projected life expectancy. More alarming, General Johnson told me that a replacement for QuikSCAT will not be ready to launch for another three to five years, at the earliest.
As a Member of Congress who represents over seventy miles of Florida coastline, I am deeply concerned with this situation. The National Research Council’s Decadal Survey in 2007 verified that the QuikSCAT satellite provides crucial data that increases the accuracy of hurricane forecasting. In addition, the Associated Press recently reported that the National Hurricane Center’s new director, Bill Proenza, said that without QuikSCAT’s critical data, three-day forecasts of a storm’s path could be as much as 16% less accurate, putting greater stretches of coastline and greater numbers of residents in danger.
General Johnson further informed me that NOAA and NASA are working on several options to mitigate the pending loss of QuikSCAT. One short-term option involves using Hurricane Hunter aircraft. While NOAA has indicated that the data these aircraft will obtain cannot achieve the level of accuracy of QuikSCAT, I feel strongly that we must do what we can to prepare for the loss of QuikSCAT immediately. The use of Hurricane Hunter aircraft may be our best short term option. NOAA has not been able to inform me when these aircraft will be ready to gather data.
As you can understand, the availability of Hurricane Hunter aircraft in light of QuikSCAT’s eventual failure is a serious concern. To this end, I would request a meeting with you and your staff to discuss the role, capability, and readiness of the Hurricane Hunter aircraft as a viable alternative the QuikSCAT satellite.
Please contact James Cho in my office at (202) 225-3026 to arrange a meeting at your earliest convenience. Thank you for you attention on this important matter.
Sincerely,
Ron Klein
Member of Congress
CC: Col. Warren Henderson | 
