Coast Guard launches buoys for Hurricane Season

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Coast Guard Launches 'Floating Weather Centers' For Hurricane Season
http://www.local6.com/weather/13209064/detail.html

The U.S. Coast Guard is placing special high-tech buoys in the ocean Friday to prepare for what is expected to be an active hurricane season.

The giant buoys are "floating weather centers" that will help in detecting hurricanes and determining their severity and in what direction the storms are moving, according to Local 6 meteorologist Larry Mowry.

"Basically, (the buoy) is a weather center sitting right out there in the middle of the water," Mowry said. "So, it provides us with pressure data and wind data. (Also) water temperature that is so crucial when we are forecasting those hurricanes."

A Local 6 map showed several buoys floating around Florida.

This week, the buoys are being put in the ocean and others are being repaired by the Coast Guard.

"Every buoy has its own servicing interval which may be anywhere between one year to two or three years," Coast Guard representative Christopher Schramm said. "We are working all year round on all the different buoys we have."

The report said "detectional" buoys will help meteorologist spot hurricanes.

Forecasters are expecting an active hurricane season this year, saying there is a 75 percent chance that a major hurricane will make landfall in the U.S. this season.

"That 75 percent is for a major hurricane striking the U.S.," Mowry said. "Those buoys are so crucial for us in terms of forecasting where those monster storms will go."

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.