Saildrone drone boat sails through hurricane Isaias

A 1,500-pound Saildrone vessel named SD-1045 intercepted Hurricane Isaias while its pilots remained in a control room. The unmanned surface vehicle sailed into the Category 3 storm approximately 150 miles off Pensacola and crossed through the eye amidst waves up to 65 feet high and gusts exceeding 103 mph. According to Saildrone, this mission earned a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for measuring wind speeds over 126 mph by an uncrewed surface vehicle since it first intercepted Hurricane Sam in 2021. The boat emerged floating hours before the storm made landfall near Destin, Florida.