With both thermal sensors and cameras, UAVs can help discover the location of lost persons quicker and at a lower cost than full size aircraft. The search and rescue mission is a battle against time, particularly in harsh conditions, and UAVs become a powerful tool because of the ease of deployment particularly at night or in challenging terrain.
UAVs fill a gap between manned aerial inspections and traditional fieldwork by monitoring hard to reach areas, or taking readings in contaminated areas where human health would be at risk. The ability to quickly deploy and capture an area of interest in concert with In position measurements, provides an advantage to contamination and reclamation work. Near-infrared sensors provide details of plant health to determine environmental health. UAV aerial data can produce prescription maps to aid farmers in determining crop stress levels, drought indicators, temperature effects and water and fertilizer variation and more. The site-specific insight will greatly improve habitat restoration, environmental assessments, monitoring, and remediation.
After a highway accident or natural or man-made disaster, a UAV provides a quick means to gather information, navigate debris with portable and useful sensors. Applications include a variety of sensors for hazardous material incidents, wildfires (to determine extent and thermal sensors to determine hot spots). In addition, aerial images can provide important information for accident reconstruction that ground systems may miss.
UAVs are being used to track wildlife and take livestock “head counts”. They can provide new insight into animal behavior, as well as protection from poachers. With the ability to operate at night, and with thermal camera sensors, UAVs provide unprecedented protection.
UAVs can quickly enable real-time “thru the camera lens” imagery via monitoring goggles and portable monitor display, giving the ground crew aerial surveillance, data capture (evidence collection), provide detailed imagery of unforeseen obstacles , multispectral imagery without endangerment of personnel.