Multirotor sUAS

The MUSAS team deploys multicopters (quad-, hexa-, or octocopter drones that take off and land vertically) to complement the atmospheric research done by the RAAVEN. 

The HELIX hexacopter is equipped with pressure, temperature, and humidity sensors, and a pair of stabilized pyranometers and a multispectral camera for measuring up- and downwelling broadband shortwave irradiance and associated imagery from the underlying surface. This platform has a diameter of approximately 1.4 m and a total weight of approximately 26 lb. and has been deployed in various environments to collect atmospheric data and information on the underlying surface. 

In addition, the MUSAS team has worked with collaborators operating custom “weather” UAS (wxUAS). For example, as part of DOE’s TRACER (Tracking Aerosol Convection Interactions Experiment) campaign, we worked with the University of Oklahoma to deploy the CopterSonde2 wxUAS to capture frequent profiles of the atmosphere. 

The CopterSonde2 has since been commercialized, and CU Boulder became the first customer for the InterMet CopterSonde 3 (CS3), which provides high-quality vertical profiles of atmospheric properties, including temperature, pressure, humidity, and winds. The recent MITTEN-CI campaign deployed the CS3 on over 300 flights over the course of a month-long deployment to Lake Michigan.