Development of small uncrewed aerial systems for multi-instrument geophysical data acquisition in active geothermal systems

Grant Harold Rea-Downing; Claire Bouligand; Jonathan M.G. Glen; Tait E. Earney; Laurie A. Zielinski; Jacob Elliott Anderson; Peter J. Kelly

USGS · 70250878

Development of small uncrewed aerial systems for multi-instrument geophysical data acquisition in active geothermal systems

Grant Harold Rea-Downing·Claire Bouligand·Jonathan M.G. Glen·Tait E. Earney·Laurie A. Zielinski·Jacob Elliott Anderson·Peter J. Kelly

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Abstract

Small Uncrewed Aerial Systems (sUAS) serve as critical platforms for geophysical data collection at an intermediate scale between lower resolution, regional datasets collected via crewed aerial surveys, and high resolution, but spatially sparse sampling of ground-based data collection methods. Advances in sensor design and sUAS capabilities have led to rapid advances in the amount and type of geophysical data that can be acquired using sUAS-based survey designs (Gavazzi et al., 2019). Here we showcase the utility of a single sUAS (the Matrice 600 Pro and accompanying sensor package) that collects magnetic, thermal infra-red (TIR) and gas (CO2, SO2, H2S, water vapor) data for use in geothermal resource exploration and monitoring, with case studies in eastern California and Iceland. The work highlights the flexibility of modern sUAS systems for single-team acquisition of multiple independent but coupled geophysical data which allow for a multidisciplinary approach to geothermal systems research. We summarize the workflows involved in collecting each dataset as well as several common issues encountered both during data collection and data processing.

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Grant Harold Rea-Downing, Claire Bouligand, Jonathan M.G. Glen, Tait E. Earney, Laurie A. Zielinski, Jacob Elliott Anderson, Peter J. Kelly. 2023. Development of small uncrewed aerial systems for multi-instrument geophysical data acquisition in active geothermal systems. https://pubs.usgs.gov/publication/70250878

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