Now Available: New Drone Technology for Radiological Monitoring in Emergency Situations

Recently there has been breakthrough advances in UAVs and major developments are expected in the near future, including larger payloads, integrated detectors and sensors, improved self-navigation and the ability for the vehicles to work in cooperation with other UAVs as well as ground systems. The IAEA is currently working on the integration and testing of new, improved instrumentation, including its adaptation to the next generation of UAVs. 

“These novel developments will allow both longer flight time of the UAV and determination of the dose equivalent rates and gamma spectra in a single measurement,” said Danas Ridikas, Head of the IAEA Physics Section. “When combined with high quality camera capabilities, the new system will allow obtaining a full 3D aerial photogrammetry model superimposed with the radiological maps and radionuclide identification.”

UAV-based technologies will be crucial for advancing radiation monitoring, including enhancing the application of environmental mapping and improving long-term monitoring of contaminated areas, explained Miroslav Pinak, Head of the IAEA Radiation Safety and Monitoring Section.

The data collected using the UAV systems developed by the IAEA and validated by Fukushima Prefecture can be used to assess potential radiation risks and help establish appropriate remediation, decontamination and nuclear waste management plans and strategies in Japan.

A detailed IAEA technical document of the project results, including instrumentation calibration, methodology validation, in-situ dose rate measurements and mapping of the radioactive waste temporary storage sites in Fukushima Prefecture will be made available publically.

The developed technology, methodology and training opportunities are available to IAEA Member States upon request and are already being implemented in some countries with the Agency’s support.

The UAVs are equipped with radiation detectors, cameras and GPS devices. After the UAV takes off, radiation readings and other relevant information are synchronized with exact GPS position and sent in real time to the pilot at the ground station and stored onboard. After landing, all detailed data is recovered, which means that the photographic/geographic information is reconstructed together with the corrected data of the radiation measurements. The satellite-like photographs and the analysed radiation data measurements are then made available to decision-makers for further action.