How drones can monitor explosive volcanoes

Due to the difficult accessibility and the high risk of collapse or explosion, the imaging of active volcanoes has so far been a great challenge in volcanology.

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Tau.Neutrino said:

How drones can monitor explosive volcanoes

Due to the difficult accessibility and the high risk of collapse or explosion, the imaging of active volcanoes has so far been a great challenge in volcanology.

more…

> Due to the difficult accessibility and the high risk of collapse or explosion, the imaging of active volcanoes has so far been a great challenge in volcanology. Researchers around Edgar Zorn from the German Research Centre for Geosciences GFZ in Potsdam are now presenting the results of a series of repeated survey flights with optical and thermal imaging cameras at the Santa Maria volcano in Guatemala.

> The researchers were able to show that the lava dome shows movements on two different time scales: slow expansion and growth of the dome and fast extrusion of viscous lava. Flow velocity, movement patterns and surface temperature of the volcano.

Nice work. Nice image.

> stereo photography with a precision never seen before. Thermal imaging. Using a special computer algorithm, the researchers were able to create complete and detailed 3-D models from these images. They obtained a 3-D topography and temperature model of the volcano with a resolution of only a few centimeters.

Oh good. There are more applications for that than just volcanos. I want that computer algorithm!