UAV Solutions

My interest in UAVs started during my MSc studies at Karl-Franzens University Graz, Austria. For my master thesis' fieldwork on Mt. Etna volcano (Sicily, Italy), I used a DJI Phantom to survey important 20th century eruptions such as those from 1971, 1983, 1986 and 1999.

Since then, I have worked with professional drone systems produced by DJI, Yuneec, and GAUI-MRT, and organised and conducted several survey missions on Mt. Etna volcano and Stromboli volcano in Italy. I also hold a UAV pilot license issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand.

One of my main objectives is to develop reliable solids and fluids sampling devices attachable to drones. The aim is to reduce risk exposure for drone operators, while allowing to successfully conduct sample retrieval operations.

UAV aided applications for earth and environmental research and monitoring are diverse, such as:
- Sample fresh and unconsolidated volcanic deposits during and after eruptions
- Capture airborne volcanic particles, gas and vapour emissions
- Collect water samples from crater lakes
- Sample flood deposits during and after flooding events
- Collect water samples from lakes and rivers for water contamination
- Capture air samples for pollutant analyses

My latest publication in this field is available as open access here.