Unmanned Aerial Vehicles like the
Global Hawk are increasingly used in military operations.
Here is a civilian application
"Satellites offer a glimpse from above and ground observations give
some information, but to understand the albedo level of these brown
clouds, the best method is to fly into them with sophisticated
instruments. Manned aircraft can do the job, but the cost can be
between $5,000 to $10,000 an hour, greatly limiting the amount of time
they can be available to gather data.
Enter the Manta AUAV. Built
by Advanced Ceramics Research of Tucson, Ariz., these AUAVs carry
miniaturized instrument packages developed by members of Ramanathan's
team, including Greg Roberts, M V Ramana and Craig Corrigan. These
instruments are capable of measuring solar radiation, cloud-drop size
and concentrations, particle size and concentrations, turbulence,
humidity and temperature. The craft can remain airborne for several
hours, travel hundreds of miles and as high as 15,000 feet. They are
also substantially cheaper to operate than manned aircraft, meaning
they can make more flights and observations."
National Science Foundation
Photo Credit: Advanced Ceramics Research
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