Go with the Flow: Micro Aerial Vehicles as Lagrangian Particles in the Atmospheric Boundary Layer*

Conventional particle velocimetry techniques are restricted to measurement volumes on the centimeter scale; recent tracking algorithm and tracer particle advances increase domain sizes into the meter range, but to reach hundreds or thousands of meters alternative methods are required. The authors propose LagranDrone, a particle velocimetry technique based on 30 gram Micro Aerial Vehicles (MAVs). Tasked only to oppose the force of gravity, LagranDrones move freely due to the wind force in three dimensions. A "swarm" of such drones is released simultaneously and tracked by GPS, collecting atmospheric boundary layer data as they are swept by the wind. The data can be used to analyze the atmosphere at the kilometer scale.