In a mission critical to public safety, US Air Force “Hurricane Hunters” have flown directly into the center of Hurricane Melissa, a Category 5 monster and the most powerful storm of 2025. The flight captured extraordinary video of the hurricane’s “stadium effect,” a seldom-seen visual where the storm’s eyewall clouds form a distinctive outward curve with increasing height, mimicking a sports stadium from the air.
This vital data collection effort is supporting the National Hurricane Center’s forecasting models as the storm bore down on Jamaica, where it eventually made landfall as the island’s most severe hurricane since 1851. The “stadium effect” footage, shared via X, offered a breathtaking view of the aircraft’s journey through the storm’s core.
Before making landfall, Melissa’s fury was already evident. Jamaica suffered three fatalities, with four more reported across Haiti and the Dominican Republic, plus one individual unaccounted for. A significant storm surge, potentially reaching 13 feet, was anticipated along Kingston’s coastline, endangering key infrastructure like the main airport and power plants. More than 50,000 households were plunged into darkness, and reports of hazardous conditions, including landslides and fallen trees, surfaced.
Hurricane Melissa was tracking towards Cuba and then the Bahamas. Fortunately, the continental United States was not in its immediate forecast path.