Oklahoma Firm Partnering with NOAA on Hurricane Forecasting, Damage Assessment

Cherokee Nation Technologies has entered a partnership to support hurricane forecasting and damage assessment.

The collaborative effort between Cherokee Nation along with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and NASA has been using an unmanned aircraft to fly above several hurricanes, according to the Times Record.

The aircraft deploys probes that automatically transmit information about its surroundings.

Forecasters use the collected data to assist in predicting the intensity and path of current and future hurricanes.

JC Coffey, a retired naval aviator and now Cherokee Nation Technologies’ executive director, said forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami are provided with real-time meteorological observations, which are used to get better forecasts on pending hazardous weather events and to increase satellite data continuity.

The team for the unmanned aircraft Global Hawk is also working closely with the Hurricane Hunters, aircrews that fly into Atlantic and Pacific storms to gather weather data.

“This important work is making it possible to learn more about severe weather without risking a life in uncertain environments,” Cherokee Nation’s diversified business president Steven Bilby said. “It’s also assessing and alerting emergency personnel to damage left in the immediate wake of hazardous storms.”

CNT, which is headquartered in Tulsa, has been serving government clients with software and application services, network services and business process services since 2009.

Topics Catastrophe Mergers & Acquisitions Natural Disasters Hurricane Oklahoma Aerospace