NOAA Announces a Western Pacific First: Two Navy Underwater Gliders Gathered Data Directly Beneath Super Typhoon Choi-Wan in October
The U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS), part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has announced that in October 2026 two U.S. Navy underwater gliders flew beneath Super Typhoon Choi-Wan, gathering underwater data near Guam before, during and after the storm's passage. It marks the first time that underwater ocean glider data was gathered for NOAA directly beneath a major storm in the western Pacific, a milestone IOOS described as historic.
According to IOOS, the milestone was made possible through a partnership it coordinates, bringing together the U.S. Navy, NOAA and IOOS Regional Association partners to deploy gliders and make their data available to NOAA for forecasts. Autonomous gliders dive deep to collect real-time measurements of ocean temperature and salinity. Because tropical cyclones draw their power from warm waters, underwater glider data is critical to helping forecast models better predict storm intensity and potential rapid intensification, giving coastal and island communities more timely warnings and information.
Since 2018, the Navy has been a key partner in the IOOS-led hurricane glider coordination effort, deploying gliders in U.S. waters to gather the upper-ocean observations used in forecasting models. In 2026, the Navy-NOAA partnership expanded into Pacific waters, including the first gliders in Guam waters, achieving this milestone in its first year there.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：超强台风 Choi-Wan 的卫星云图与两架海军水下滑翔机在 Guam 附近海域的航迹（红线），为 NOAA IOOS 原文配图。卫星图：NOAA/NCEP 全球合并红外卫星图，航迹数据：IOOS Glider DAC，美国联邦政府作品，公共领域 / Satellite image of Super Typhoon Choi-Wan with the tracks (red) of two Navy gliders near Guam, the illustration from the NOAA IOOS story. Satellite: NOAA/NCEP Global Merged IR image; tracks: IOOS Glider DAC, U.S. federal government work, public domain. Source: https://ioos.noaa.gov/news/milestone-western-pacific-glider-data/
