A U.S. Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter crew captured breathtaking footage from inside the eye of Hurricane Melissa, offering a rare and mesmerizing look at the heart of one of the most powerful storms ever recorded in the Atlantic.

The video, filmed on October 27 during the “Teal 74” reconnaissance mission, shows a perfectly clear and symmetrical eye — a phenomenon meteorologists say is rarely seen with such precision in the Atlantic basin. The calm interior, surrounded by towering walls of clouds, contrasts sharply with the violent 175 mph winds and torrential rain raging just beyond.

The Hurricane Hunters flew into the storm’s center as Melissa roared across the Caribbean as a Category 5 system, maintaining an extraordinary core pressure of 901 millibars — ranking it among the most intense Atlantic hurricanes in modern history.

According to crew reports, conditions around the eyewall were “severe and chaotic,” but once inside, the scene shifted to eerie stillness, with sunlight streaming through the circular opening above. The footage quickly went viral, drawing attention to the skill and courage of the storm reconnaissance teams who routinely fly into some of the planet’s most dangerous weather to gather vital data.

Meteorologists say the data collected from the mission will play a crucial role in refining models of Melissa’s path and intensity as the storm continues to threaten parts of Jamaica and the western Caribbean.

Hurricane Melissa has already drawn comparisons to legendary storms like Hurricane Wilma (2005) and Hurricane Patricia (2015) for its extreme power and rapid intensification over warm Caribbean waters.