Storm Chasers Around The World Are Paying Tribute To Bill Paxton In The Coolest Way

Bill Paxton died on Sunday at the early age of 61, after complications from surgery. As many fans have noted in comments and on social media, Paxton was the type of actor who could make any character seem down to earth while still being larger than life on screen. One of the best examples of this ability was his star turn in storm-chasing drama Twister, in which he embodied the partially crazy, partially heroic actions of a storm chaser and made many people fall in love with climate and weather science in the first place.

In honor of that service, storm chasers and weather scientists all over the country and the world are showing their thanks to the deceased actor. The most outlandish and meaningful tribute is a gesture made by The Spotter Network, in which they organized storm chasers into a pattern of the actor’s initials using individual GPS coordinates. According to the AP, this is the first time such a gesture has been extended to a non-storm chaser.

The initials spanned the border of Oklahoma and Kansas, where Twister was set. More than 200 people were involved in the final product.

Other scientists, news anchors, and weathermen from around the country posted their thanks and appreciation for Paxton putting storm chasing on the map.