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Fighting Fire From the Sky

Posted by michael on from the also-known-as-rain dept.

exceed writes: "Yahoo! News has an article on an unmanned robotic airplane that is able to circle around wild fires for up to 24 hours, sending data and images back down to earth via satellite. The Altus II, created by NASA, employs cutting edge technology usually seen in military aircraft, giving fire officials a real-time view of fires that can burn over hundreds of thousands of acres. The plane could map dozens of fires and topographical features in a day, never endangering a pilot."

4 of 108 comments (clear)

  1. Yeah, NASA's great... by Telek · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Here's another example of how NASA tech coming "down to earth", as well as an earlier article about how NASA was helping fight fires (using satellites)

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    If God gave us curiosity
  2. How would this be dangerous? by gss · · Score: 1, Interesting
    This doesn't really make a lot of sense, what danger is there to the pilot that is flying over a forest fire? It's not like they're flying right in the flames. Is it something to do with the heat that is emitted?

    The article also mentions "floods, earthquakes and pollution events", pollution would make sense since there would be danger, but the others don't. But of course I'm not sure what the value of taking pictures of "pollution events" is either.

  3. cheaper, private sector versions by wsdorsey · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This sounds like a larger version of the aerial robots developed for Georgia Tech's International Aerial Robotics Competition. Although the amateur designed robots don't have the range of the NASA version, the winning designs can perform all of the tasks that the expensive counterpart can. And I'm sure for a fraction of the price.

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    -Dorsey

    If you can't beat them, exploit them. *Then* beat them... -Milk & Cheese

  4. Re:Right, but... by McBeth · · Score: 2, Interesting

    the USFS has for a long time had a policy of controlled burns, and letting things burn. Unfortunately, every once and a while things go wrong. The big fires in New Mexico last year started as a controlled burn. The Yellowstone fires started as a let them burn. When something like that happens, the USFS get ripped apart. The previous US president pushed down all sorts of orders greatly reducing their ability to do controlled burns, and mandating their fighting the small to medium fires. Which is part of why we have had these years where they have had firefighter shortages lately.