Drone used to measure radiation over Fukushima

January 24, 2014

Radiation monitoring drone tested in Fukushima

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/english/news/20140124_43.html 

An unmanned aircraft equipped with a radiation monitoring device has been tested over a town close to the disabled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

The remotely-controlled aircraft took off on Friday from the evacuated town of Namie. The small plane circled the area for about 30 minutes and measured ground-level radiation. The results were immediately sent to land-based personal computers.

The drone aircraft was jointly developed by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, or JAEA, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA.

Unlike manned aircraft that must keep a minimum altitude of 300 meters, the drone can fly lower to follow the outlines of an area's topography.

Developers of the aircraft say this greatly increases the accuracy of radiation measurements.

Chief JAEA researcher Tatsuo Torii says he and his team plan to measure radiation in the forests that cover large parts of Fukushima.

More test flights are planned before the drone becomes fully operational in 2015.