A storm-chasing aircraft has flown directly into the eye of Hurricane Erin, capturing dramatic footage of what it is like to experience one of nature’s most powerful storms from the inside.

The U.S. Air Force Reserve released the video on Friday, showing the turboprop Tempest, nicknamed “Kermit the Hurricane Hunter,” navigating through the eyewall of the Category 5 storm before reaching the calm centre.

“Last night, we flew into the eye of Hurricane Erin—and captured the breathtaking stadium effect. These missions provide critical data to the National Hurricane Center, helping keep communities safe before the storm makes landfall,” the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron wrote in a Facebook post.

What is stadium effect?

The stadium effect is a phenomenon often seen in powerful tropical cyclones. It occurs when the clouds of the eyewall slope outward with height, creating the illusion of a sports stadium when viewed from above. In this formation, the eye of the storm appears widest at the top and narrows toward the bottom.

From the aircraft, Hurricane Erin appeared as a vast spinning system, with outer bands of clouds and rain twisting tightly around the storm’s centre. As the plane punched through the eyewall, it was battered by strong winds and heavy downpours before emerging into the eye itself.

Inside, the scene shifted dramatically. The eye revealed calm skies with sunlight breaking through, ringed by immense walls of cloud that stretched upward, creating the signature stadium-like view.

What’s the latest with Hurricane Erin?

Erin lashed part of the Caribbean with rain and wind on Monday. Forecasters are confident it will curl north and away from the eastern U.S., but tropical storm and surge watches were issued for much of the Outer Banks.

Officials at Wrightsville Beach, near Wilmington, North Carolina, reported to the National Weather Service rescuing at least 60 swimmers from rip currents on Monday.

By early Tuesday, Erin had lost some strength from previous days but was still a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 kph), the National Hurricane Center in Miami said. It was about 675 miles (1,090 kilometers) southwest of Bermuda and 770 miles (1,240 kilometers) south-southeast of Cape Hatteras and was moving northwest at a slower 7 mph (11 kph).