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Robotic Scout To Survey Arctic Ice

Posted by Zonk on from the here-robot-birdie dept.

Roland Piquepaille writes "The Meridian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a single-engine research aircraft with fixed landing gear designed by engineers at the University of Kansas. According to Technology Review, it will be used to see what happens beneath the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. Two units are currently being built for a cost of about 3 million US dollars. The Meridian will fly for up to 13 hours over a distance of 1,750 kilometers. The first flight over Greenland is forecast for next summer, and a second flight will take place over the Antarctic later in 2008."

2 of 58 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Melt the ice? by ScrewMaster · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    True enough, however there will never be more than a few robotic planes traveling over the ice fields, and the scientific data they return will, I'm sure, be worth any minor environmental damage. Millions upon millions of automobiles now ... that's a different story.

    --
    The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
  2. Re:Come on, this is /. - by thatskinnyguy · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    Them's fightin' words. You don't want to say something that could be misconstrued as flaimbait would you?

    --
    The game.