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Flying robots

Drones everywhere! Iraq resents American drones that monitor outside the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. Iran is delighted to capture a high-tech U.S. drone. And the United States plans more drone purchases even amid slowing growth of the military budget. ENLARGE Courtesy Francesc Sarda The drone throw is not yet in the Olympics, but model airplanes and larger pilot-free planes can play a big role in watching wildlife. As remote-control airplanes get cheaper and better, drones seem to be everywhere: Law enforcement: Drones are searching for drug traffickers in the Amazon and for illegal immigrants along the U.S.-Mexican border. Tampa, Fla., wants drones to watch protests at the Republican National Convention. Environment: Remote-control airplanes have photographed eroding banks on the Missouri River. Archeology: The Los Angeles Times reported that “Archaeologists in Russia are using small drones and their infrared cameras to construct a 3-D model of ancient burial mounds.” Going into harm’s way: In Japan, drones have sprayed pesticides on farms and monitored the melted-down Fukushima nuclear plant. In Costa Rica, an unpiloted airplane is sampling air to predict a volcanic eruption. And it turns out that drones are ideal for watching wildlife: rabbits, sea lions, gulls and a range of elusive or inaccessible species. ENLARGE Photo: Quadrocopter, LLC A six-bladed helicopter shows that not all drones have wings. Pilot-less choppers can get into tight places and hover with surprising stability. ENLARGE Courtesy Boise State University The pygmy rabbit is already gone from Washington, and in straitened circumstances in Idaho. Current aerial surveys cannot see the rabbits, but researchers hope that airborne winter watchers will be able to see the rabbit’s trails in the snow. Counting the mini-bunnies Researchers in Idaho have used drones to track the pygmy rabbit, a hand-size mammal that eats sagebrush. The rabbit, a “species of concern” in Idaho, is already extinct in neighboring Was...

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Source: The Why Files - Thursday, 9 February


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