Barnard Microsystems Limited

Developing Unmanned Aircraft Systems to benefit Mankind

The advantages of low altitude flying - Low Altitudes

“The recent trend towards higher flight heights and loose-drape fixed-wing surveys, using conventional aircraft, results in unacceptable loss of resolution of small discrete magnetic anomalies, such as those produced by Kimberlites, even in moderately rugged terrain…

Clearly for high resolution aeromagnetic surveys in Kimberlite exploration, tight-drape, low level surveys are essential.

Aircraft designed to fly at low levels, such as the Pacific Aerospace Cresco 750 … have the necessary performance within operational safety limits and provide a cost effective alternative to helicopter platforms but with a better magnetometer noise envelope.”

- from “Drape-related problems in aeromagnetic surveys: the need for tight-drape surveys”

by D. Cowan and G Cooper, Exploration Geophysics (2003) 34, 87-92.

The advantages of performing a survey at close to ground level

UAV operation at low altitudes

Photograph clearly showing the improvements to be had from low altitude survey work.

From “Drape-related problems in aeromagnetic surveys: the need for tight-drape surveys”

by D. Cowan and G Cooper, Exploration Geophysics (2003) 34, 87-92.

Comparison of regional and ultra-detail aeromagnetic data. High gain, AGC filtered, total magnetic intensity images, with conventional grey scale, where white = high intensity.

On the left, flown with a 400m line spacing at a height of 80 m.

On the right is the same region, in which a Cresco 750 crop duster was used to with a 30 m line spacing at a height of 20 m.

The improvement in anomaly resolution in the right most plot, in which a low flying aircraft was used, is striking. This is another area where the UAV excels: low level flight.

UAV operation at low altitudes