This course explores principles and techniques of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS, also 'drones'), applied to natural resource and environmental issues. The course provides hands-on experience with UAS vehicles, sensors, imagery, and software. Course topics include: UAS flight characteristics, regulations/safety, mission planning, flight operations, data collection, image analysis, and applications. Examples of UAS applications to be explored include forest and natural resource inventory, wetland monitoring, and land cover mapping.
Prereq: None, but prior coursework in GIS is recommended.