An aircraft from the US based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is in Shannon Airport for a number of days to study the movements of the strong winds brought on by Storm Éowyn.
The group, which is based in Florida, is a diverse organisation which carries out research into weather developments across the Atlantic Ocean including studying hurricanes along the Gulf of Mexico, ocean surface movements during storms, as well as oceanic and marine research.
They operate two Lockheed WP-3D aircraft also known as "Hurricane Hunters", which play a key role in collecting data vital to tropical cyclone research and forecasting, using radar, satellites and computer modelling during hurricanes and severe storms.
This all forms part of their vital weather research examining the quality of the atmosphere, oceanographic conditions and climate trends.
They have operated from the Arctic Ocean down through most of the oceanic regions around the US and down to the Caribbean, which is all part of their extensive research remit in the Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico and the Eastern Pacific oceans.
They also provide back up and assistance to the US National Weather Service providing meteorological information on weather activity for daily and forecasting reports.
Ireland provides them with a particularly good vantage location from where they can fly their aircraft hundreds of kilometres out into the North Atlantic using their radar and satellite equipment to examine and measure the ocean surface winds and what they describe as the physics of Atlantic storms.
In Shannon over the next few days, they will be examining the movement of Storm Éowyn, how it develops and its movement before returning to the US.
It is understood they are flying down to Nantes in France to examine the storm movements there across the Bay of Biscay.
The group were here in Ireland in 2017, and again in 2018 and 2020.
It is understood they are returning again next week for further research work.
