WATCH: U.S. Air Force plane flies inside Hurricane Melissa

As Hurricane Melissa roared toward Jamaica as a powerful Category 5 storm, a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance aircraft flew straight into its heart, capturing rare and breathtaking footage from inside the eye.

The mission, carried out by the 53rd Weather Reconnaissance Squadron—better known as the “Hurricane Hunters”—aimed to collect vital meteorological data for the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

The aircraft entered the storm from the southeast just after sunrise, breaking through layers of dense gray clouds before emerging into the eerie calm of the eye.

Inside, the crew recorded the dramatic “stadium effect,” where the storm’s towering walls bend outward to form a colossal, arena-like shape. Sunlight glimmered on the far rim, and lightning flashes illuminated the swirling clouds around them.

“The sea surface is always interesting to the eye, with waves moving in different directions,” the crew posted on X, along with video showing the vast swirl below. The footage revealed both the beauty and violence of nature’s most powerful forces—an otherworldly calm surrounded by chaos.