Incorporating and interpreting Drone Measurements for Decision Based Applications

Drones can provide a flexible measurement platform for atmospheric measurements and emergency response. Incorporating these measurements with traditional meteorological tools provides both new opportunities for understanding atmospheric phenomena, and unforeseen complications in applying the measurements with traditional concepts for analysis, display, and data processing. In order to provide value to decision makers, the temporal nature of the measurement platform must be adequately represented within the analytical environment. Measurement of chemical effluents can derive significant benefits from adaptive measurement platforms. Utilizing these measurements for source attribution, consequence assessment, and ultimately, actionable products requires combining the nature of sensor response with the resolvability of mesoscale and turbulent mixing in atmospheric transport models. Measurements of a chemical tracer obtained from surface based receptors and drone collections will be shown to illustrate potential areas for novel application of these measurements in near-field boundary layer diffusion applications.