One of the most important potential uses for drones is in reaching areas that are too dangerous or inaccessible for humans.
This could involve inspecting high structures for structural damage or helping in search and rescue missions after a natural disaster.
Now, a team of scientists has successfully used a drone to map the inside of an active volcano – an environment that is both dangerous and difficult to reach.
There are heat and fumes to deal with, as well as the physical challenges of the structure itself and the chance of a potentially lethal collapse or explosion.
The team, led by Edgar Zorn from the GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, used a DJI Phantom 4 Pro quadcopter equipped with optical and thermal imaging cameras.
The drones were flown into Santa María volcano in Guatemala in a series of test flights to observe its ‘lava dome’.
In a study published in the journal Scientific Reports, the researchers were able to show that this huge plug of lava was moving in two different timescales.
Zorn said that the drone was flown across the lava dome at different angles, measuring movements using a specific kind of ‘stereo photography’.
This involved a series of high-res photographs coupled with thermal imaging.
Algorithm produced complete 3D model sets
These two sets of measurements were fed into a specially designed algorithm to produce a series of complete 3D models.
They combined these to create a topography and temperature model that they claim is accurate with centimetre-scale accuracy.
This could be used to calculate a number of different properties, including the flow velocity, movement patterns and surface temperature of the volcano.
All these factors are important in allowing volcanologists to predict the potential dangers of an active volcano erupting.
Zorn said: ‘We have shown that the use of drones can help to completely re-measure even the most dangerous and active volcanoes on Earth from a safe distance.’
Thomas Walter, a volcanologist at GFZ, who was also involved in the study, said that the test flights put ‘a regular and systematic survey of dangerous volcanoes with drones’ almost within reach.
While the project could help to produce more accurate measurements without endangering human lives, Zorn said that calculating the properties of an active volcano was still a challenge.
‘In the study, we presented some new possibilities for the representation and measurement of certain ground movements, which could be very useful in future projects,’ he concluded.
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