Imagine going up to battle against incoming 50-foot waves. That’s what happened when an autonomous Saildrone entered the eye, and all the catastrophic disaster surrounding it, of hurricane Sam. And it’s all caught on a POV video.

The drone comes equipped with a high-definition camera that allows it to reveal startling images that put on full display a massive hurricane’s wrath.

Moreover, this video gives us rare visuals of catastrophic circumstances in the open sea while a major hurricane bears down.

The purpose of the Saildrone is to collect data that hopefully helps our national and global forecasting systems. The visuals, along with the collected data, helps scientists better understand hurricane logistics. When a hurricane pummels open waters, we don’t have any way to perform a damage assessment. Surveying damage helps us understand the storm’s profile better during wind-related storms, such as tornadoes and hurricanes. Forecasters currently have access to buoys that transmit wave and current data, but it’s not as if waves get literally broken.

The Saildrone uses high-end technology to withstand winds of 120 MPH and 50-food monster waves. And it transmits weather-related data back to home base.

For our purposes, of course, just seeing what’s been a mystery until now is pretty wicked. Beware, though; this video may make you a little seasick. You might want to snuggle up in a lifejacket.

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