During the worst of the blizzard, a group of Stony Brook University students and their professors braved the high winds and pummeling snowfall for the greater good - to improve winter storm forecasting.

While millions of people hunkered down below, a small team of NASA-funded scientists flew over and into the storm to make measurements and better understand the evolution of winter storms.

As Marylanders buckle down for the winter storm this weekend, scientists at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

Scientists repeatedly check weather forecasts as they prepare for flight of aircraft and make last-minute checks of scientific equipment. Big winter storms are rushing in, which is exactly what scientists chasing these storms want. The team is tracking midwestern and eastern US storms on two equipped NASA planes. Scientific instruments Helps you understand how Winter storm As they are formed and developed.