If you’ve ever wanted to be a storm chaser but would prefer not to risk your life, Microsoft Flight Simulator might just scratch that itch. Dozens of virtual pilots have spent the past couple of days hurling their planes into Hurricane Laura as it bore down on the US Gulf Coast.
As Texas and Louisiana braced for impact, the real-time weather featured in Microsoft Flight Simulator was providing a visual spectacle for those flying directly into the storm. The stunning screenshots and videos that followed demonstrate the game’s incredible realism and accurate depiction of storm cloud formations. Virtual storm chasers have been eagerly capturing sights by flying above the hurricane, hurtling through its all-encompassing outer edges, and soaring within the surreal calmness of the eye of the storm.
For as impressive as this all is, it’s also worth noting the seriousness of Hurricane Laura. The storm made landfall overnight near Cameron, Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane, bringing catastrophic storm surge, extreme winds, and flash flooding to portions of the state, as reported by CBS News. It was downgraded to a Category 2 several hours after coming ashore, but the National Hurricane Center said the storm is still extremely dangerous, with a life-threatening storm surge continuing early Thursday along much of Louisiana’s coastline.
