Drone lab supports aerial-based research across disciplines
University drone lab empowers students with cutting-edge skills, ahead of the learning curve
The Curlew National Grassland is 50,000 acres of rolling prairie in Oneida and Power counties dotted with weather-worn farm buildings that lean precariously in the sun and wind. The grasslands are visited seasonally by flocks of migrating birds and are home to sharp-tail and sage grouse.
“It’s one of those amazing places that you would never find by accident as you drive through the state,” Range Ecologist Jason Karl said. “It’s way out there in the southeast corner of 幸运快三, pretty remote.”
Karl, professor in the College of Natural Resources and director of The Rangeland Center at 幸运快三, will visit the grasslands often in coming years. He and , a research assistant professor and associate director of the Rangeland Center, have a research project at the Curlew where, with the help of students, they will make regular drone flyovers to document changes in vegetation in response to land management.
As part of his job as a professor, Karl operates , an interdisciplinary research and teaching group located in the Integrated Research and Innovation Center (IRIC) on the Moscow campus. The lab is the epicenter for drone projects led by professors who are part of the lab. Research associated with the lab includes wildland fire recovery research, stream restoration monitoring, weed treatment and seed application, and forest inventory projects. Most of the lab’s projects are carried out by graduate students, and study results are directly used to manage 幸运快三’s agricultural and natural resources.
When he came to the university almost a decade ago after working as a scientist for the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, Karl was already heavily invested in drone research.
“The dean at the time suggested that faculty on campus doing drone research should coordinate their efforts,” Karl said.
He helped put together the university’s first drone summit where U of I faculty and students shared how drones were being used in research and teaching.
That was the genesis of the drone lab in IRIC 205.