TAS::80 0119::TAS UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES (UAVS) ARE ASSUMING MORE NUMEROUS AND INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT ROL…

Public award description

TAS::80 0119::TAS UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES (UAVS) ARE ASSUMING MORE NUMEROUS AND INCREASINGLY IMPORTANT ROLES IN GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND ATMOSPHERIC RESEARCH. THERE IS A CORRESPONDING GROWTH IN EQUIPMENT NEEDS FOR UAVS SO THAT THEY MAY MEET THEIR MISSION GOALS. SOME CRITICAL MEASUREMENT NEEDS CAN ONLY BE SATISFIED BY IN-SITU MEASUREMENTS. KEY EXAMPLES OF SUCH MEASUREMENTS INCLUDE DETAILED ATMOSPHERIC PROFILES, POINT METEOROLOGICAL CONDITIONS ON THE SURFACE, AND IN-SITU MEASUREMENTS FOR CALIBRATION AND VALIDATION OF REMOTE SENSING SYSTEMS. A SCALABLE DROPSONDE LAUNCHER WILL BE DEVELOPED THAT WILL BE ABLE TO FIT A RANGE OF UAVS. IT WILL BE ABLE TO LAUNCH A VARIETY OF DROPSONDES DERIVED FROM ANASPHERE'S EXISTING RADIOSONDE AND DROPSONDE FAMILIES. DROPSONDES FOR HIGH-PRECISION, HIGH-DENSITY, AND SURFACE-BASED MEASUREMENTS WILL BE DEVELOPED. PHASE I WILL INVOLVE DESIGNING A LAUNCHER THAT USES AN EXISTING ANASPHERE DROPSONDE AND FITS INTO A REPRESENTATIVE UAV PROVIDED BY VANILLA AIRCRAFT. THE LAUNCHER WILL BE DEMONSTRATED IN THE LABORATORY AND IN A HIGH-SPEED AIRFLOW ENVIRONMENT. THE ULTIMATE RESULT OF THE PROJECT WILL BE A DROPSONDE SYSTEM THAT CAN BE FITTED TO MANY NASA UAVS AND ENABLE THEM TO GATHER IN-SITU ATMOSPHERIC PROFILES AND SURFACE MEASUREMENTS USING DROPSONDES.