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      AerospaceTopicTypeVideo

      Airship Renaissance

      Modern designs focus on autonomy, longevity and payload capacity

      Jean Kumagai
      30 Sep 2010
      aviationmilitarytype:videoautonomous vehiclesairshipssurveillanceblimps

      For more about modern airships, read the accompanying article, "Airships for the 21st Century."

      Transcript of video:

      If you happened to be in Caribou, Maine recently, you may have seen something like this. Engineers from Science Applications International Corp. were conducting flight tests of the Skybus 80K, an unmanned airship designed to conduct surveillance missions at altitudes of close to 2 miles up.

      The Skybus 80K is just one of a number of commercial and military airships now under development. Many people still think of airships as quaint relics of a bygone era: After all, they predate airplanes by a good century and a half.  

      But in the last several years, experts have been looking to revive the technology for applications where conventional ground and air transport just won’t do. The new vehicles are designed to lift heavy payloads, remain aloft for weeks, months, or even years at a time, and fly without pilots. And they do all that while expending far less fuel than a conventional airplane.

      Airships like this remotely piloted Skybus could be ideal for monitoring sites where improvised explosive devices or rocket launchers may be deployed. They could also be used scan for missiles and other airborne threats.

      Some space experts even think robotic airships could be used to explore Mars and other planets.

      So the next time you see a blimp in the sky, remember, you’re not just looking at the past, but also getting a glimpse of the future.

      For IEEE Spectrum, I’m Jean Kumagai.

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      360 Video: Zoom Over Zanzibar With Tanzania’s Drone Startups

      Come along for the ride as drones soar over the farms and schools of Tanzania

      Evan Ackerman

      Evan Ackerman is a senior editor at IEEE Spectrum. Since 2007, he has written over 6,000 articles on robotics and technology. He has a degree in Martian geology and is excellent at playing bagpipes.

      Michael Koziol

      Michael Koziol is an associate editor at IEEE Spectrum where he covers everything telecommunications. He graduated from Seattle University with bachelor's degrees in English and physics, and earned his master's degree in science journalism from New York University.

      Eliza Strickland

      Eliza Strickland is a senior editor at IEEE Spectrum, where she covers AI, biomedical engineering, and other topics. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.

      09 May 2019
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      dronesgadgetstype:videoEast Africa dronesmappingTanzaniaAfricadelivery drones360 video

      With 360-degree video, IEEE Spectrum puts you aboard drones that are flying high above the Tanzanian landscape: You’ll ride along as drones soar above farms, towns, and the blue expanse of Lake Victoria. You’ll also meet the local entrepreneurs who are creating a new industry, finding applications for their drones in land surveying and delivery. And you’ll get a close-up view from a bamboo grove as a drone pilot named Bornlove builds a flying machine from bamboo and other materials.

      You can follow the action in a 360-degree video in three ways: 1) Watch on your computer, using your mouse to click and drag on the video; 2) watch on your phone, moving the phone around to change your view; or 3) watch on a VR headset for the full immersive experience.

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      Evan Ackerman

      Evan Ackerman is a senior editor at IEEE Spectrum. Since 2007, he has written over 6,000 articles on robotics and technology. He has a degree in Martian geology and is excellent at playing bagpipes.

      Michael Koziol

      Michael Koziol is an associate editor at IEEE Spectrum where he covers everything telecommunications. He graduated from Seattle University with bachelor's degrees in English and physics, and earned his master's degree in science journalism from New York University.

      Eliza Strickland

      Eliza Strickland is a senior editor at IEEE Spectrum, where she covers AI, biomedical engineering, and other topics. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.

      06 May 2019
      IEEE Spectrum
      dronestype:videoEast Africa dronesRwandadelivery dronesZipline360 video

      With 360 video, IEEE Spectrum takes you behind the scenes with one of the world’s first drone-delivery companies. Zipline, based in California, is using drones to deliver blood to hospitals throughout Rwanda. At an operations center in Muhanga, you’ll watch as Zipline technicians assemble the modular drones, fill their cargo holds, and launch them via catapult. You’ll see a package float down from the sky above a rural hospital, and you’ll get a closeup look at Zipline’s ingenious method for capturing returning drones.

      You can follow the action in a 360-degree video in three ways: 1) Watch on your computer, using your mouse to click and drag on the video; 2) watch on your phone, moving the phone around to change your view; or 3) watch on a VR headset for the full immersive experience.

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      A Techie’s Tour of New York City

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      17 Oct 2018
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      www.youtube.com
      type:videoNew York CityDIYtourismvideosrocketsNikola Teslahistorytechnologyeventshackerspacenew york citynikola teslanyc tourist videonyc tourist guidetech tour nycvideonyc tech tour

      Do your travel plans include New York City? Are you a techie? If the answer to those questions is yes, let IEEE Spectrum be your guide! We've put together a list of some of our favorite places to visit, including important locations in the history of electrotechnology (New York was once the center of the electrical and electronic world) and places where fun and interesting things are happening today. See where Nikola Tesla lived, check out cutting-edge artists working with technology, or take the kids to see an Atlas and Titan rocket.

      All the locations are accessible via the subway, and many are free to visit. If you do visit, take a selfie and post a link in the comments below.

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