Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog

Category: drones – Page 21

Pilotless drones being tested in Antarctica for use in scientific research

The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said successful tests would allow the drones to undertake research such as surveying marine ecosystems and studying glaciers, while reducing CO2 emissions by approximately 90%.

The Windracers Ultra UAV (uncrewed aerial vehicle) is a twin-engine, 10-metre aircraft that can carry up to 100kg of cargo or sensors for distances of 1,000km and does not require a human pilot to take off, fly or land as it is equipped with a sophisticated autopilot system.

Unlike piloted Twin Otter aircraft, which are costly to operate and face logistical challenges in the extreme environment, the BAS said the “groundbreaking” unmanned drones are safer and “could enable dramatic increases in flight time”

Escaped Monkey Hunted With Drone

The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) has recaptured the escaped Japanese macaque that led authorities on a high-profile chase for nearly five days.

The macaque in question escaped its enclosure at Scotland’s Highland Wildlife Park zoo on Sunday, prompting a frenzied search throughout the region. Japanese macaques, of course, aren’t exactly Scottish locals; the event has reportedly been quite the ordeal for the area, especially considering how deft the monkey proved at evading recapture.

“You would think we were chasing an international fugitive,” area local Carl Nagle, who caught sight of the macaque on Sunday night as it chomped down on the Scotsman’s backyard birdseed, told The New York Times earlier this week, “instead of an innocent monkey.”

Scientists Say They’ve Finally Found the Wreckage of Amelia Earhart’s Plane

South Carolina-based ocean exploration company Deep Sea Vision claims to have found the aircraft of American aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart, who famously disappeared back in 1937 while trying to become the first female pilot to circumnavigate the globe.

If confirmed, the discovery could be a huge development in one of aviation’s greatest mysteries.

With the help of an underwater drone equipped with a high-tech radar and a 16-member crew, Deep Sea Vision claims to have come across an object that closely resembles Earhart’s Lockheed Electra aircraft roughly 16,000 feet below the surface and 100 miles off Howland Island, a location where the two were supposed to land to refuel.

Drone-based bot is already saving birds from crashing into power lines

The Mini LineFly strives to improve utility workers’ safety and safeguards wildlife from accidental contact with power lines, reducing the probability of unintended bird collisions.

With the world already witnessing the launch of a myriad of robotic devices since last year, another drone-based robotic system takes to the skies.

This new unmanned robotic system called the Mini LineFly is seemingly the world’s most advanced automated robotic system devised to install bird diverts on overhead power lines, according to a statement by the founding companies.

Introducing Mini LineFly

PLP (Preformed Line Products) and FulcrumAir partnered to launch the Mini LineFly bots, the first already functioning during the High Banks Wind Project in Kansas.

China develops ‘Star Wars’-style deflector plasma shield to defend drones

According to Chinese news sources, Chinese scientists have allegedly harnessed plasma to develop a working energy shield for drones and other military tech.

Chinese scientists have allegedly developed an energy shield to protect some of its military assets, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reports. Utilizing a special kind of plasma, the energy shield is designed to resist potentially harmful microwaves from damaging delicate electronics. If the claims of its existence are true, the new shield is a significant leap in directed energy technology, especially in the ongoing aerial-to-anti-aerial arms race.

Shields up!

High-powered electromagnetic radiation (EM), like microwaves, can compromise modern technology, including military chips fortified with special circuits, even at close range. These powerful waves can cause electrical interference in the chip and significantly increase its internal temperature. For this reason, sensitive electronics must be shielded and protected as much as possible.

V-Space Unveils V Speeder-X: An Efficient and Affordable Urban Air Mobility

V-Space (official site) is a startup that built Korea’s first UAM (Urban Air Transportation) destined to transport people or payloads of up to 120 Kg with their eVTOL all-electric vehicle. As its name indicates, it is a Vertical Take Off and Landing vehicle using a quad-copter design. It has a seat for one person and looks like a drone-like small helicopter.

EVTOL can fly over a 40-mile distance at a maximum speed of 60 Mph, a little bit below most U.S highway’s speed limits. Of course, the main advantage here is the lack of traffic jams, especially in an emergency.

However, the company has a hot new design called V Speeder-X, which looks a lot more modern and aerodynamic. The payload capacity is 230 Kg, but the speed has increased to 50 Mph as one of the use cases is to use the drone as an ambulance. Note that the flight time is relatively short, with about ~20 minutes.

Cancer Treating Nano-Drones

This post is also available in: he עברית (Hebrew)

A research team from UNIST has made a discovery that might revolutionize cancer treatment as we know it-new cell-engaging nano-drones that were designed to target and eliminate cancer cells selectively.

These tiny bots are called NK cell-engaging nano-drones (NKeNDs), and their success lies in their ability to engage natural killer (NK) cells, the body’s frontline defenders against cancer. Using NK cells in cancer treatment is not new, but what sets these nanodrones apart is their precision. They are engineered to zero in on cancer cells almost like guided missiles.

SpaceX launches the first set of Starlink satellites for T-Mobile’s direct-to-cell plan

The first satellites capable of providing direct-to-cellular service via SpaceX’s Starlink network and T-Mobile’s cellular network have been sent into orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

Six of the cell-capable satellites were among a batch of 21 Starlink satellites launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 7:44 p.m. PT Tuesday. The satellites were deployed successfully, and the rocket’s first-stage booster made a routine landing on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean.

SpaceX plans to launch hundreds of the upgraded satellites in the months ahead, with the aim of beginning satellite-enabled texting later this year. 4G LTE satellite connectivity for voice and data via unmodified mobile devices would follow in 2025, pending regulatory approval.

/* */