Flight For Nature @ Mare Island

Local eco-drone enthusiasts and innovators are once again visiting USGS researchers on Mare Island (http://www.werc.usgs.gov/Location.aspx?LocationID=10) for a day of discussion and inspiration! This time we will focus on demonstrating several types of missions, from orthophotography and photogrammetry to real-time habitat surveys and beyond.

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Our team includes:

• Sean Headrick -- Aerotestra (http://www.aerotestra.com/)

• Jeff Miller -- CSU East Bay (http://iphonedroneimagery.com/), iphonedroneimagery.com (http://iphonedroneimagery.com/)

• Colin Snow -- KopterVision (http://koptervision.com/), @DroneAnalyst (https://twitter.com/droneanalyst)

Schedule:

9am -- Welcome, Coffee/Snacks/Fruit

9:15am - Noon -- Flight Demos

Noon - 1pm -- Lunch & Chat (Bring Your Own, Drinks/Snacks/Fruit provided)

1pm - 3pm -- Debriefing, Technical Presentations, Review images & Data, Discussion

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Quadcopter with GoPro camera at last year's Mare Island NatureNerdFest.

Yes, it's on a "workday" so more USGS folks can make it, but this is still a public event and you are more than welcome to join us.

If you have equipment or skillz that might fit into our "nature robot" demonstrations, please contact us! If you'd just like to watch and join the discussions, that's fine, too.

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Mission Planner (https://code.google.com/p/ardupilot-mega/wiki/Mission) image from Sean Headrick's photogrammetry experiments at Bedwell /Bayfront Park

However, this is not a general flying event open to anyone who shows up -- we will be working closely with USGS personnel to tailor each mission to help answer specific questions about the state of current UAV technology and how they might use low-cost drones and imaging techniques to improve their science. In other words, check with us before you bring your gear!

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Wireframe mesh derived from aerial photography at Bedwell Park.

image credits, top to bottom: Ken McGary, Ed Brownson, Sean Headrick (2)