Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute

 

Authors

Date of this Version

2018

Document Type

Article

Citation

waterforfood.nebraska.edu

Abstract

Unmanned aerial vehicles, known as “drones,” are increasingly popular for capturing aerial images. The United States Federal Aviation Administration eased their regulations for drone flights in June 2016, making drones more accessible for common use. Drones may supplement pre-existing imaging technology (e.g. satellites, manned aircraft, etc.). One case study in Nebraska found a niche application for drones. The participating producer used manned aerial imagery to identify potential problem spots in his fields. Then he used GPS navigation to direct the drone to more closely inspect the identified potential problem spots. This way the drone is not tasked with scouting entire fields – an unrealistic and time-consuming option for a large farm, while providing valuable information about crop issues in certain areas.

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