Flying drones into storms is giving researchers new insights about severe weather. To stay on the forefront of this burgeoning research area, UNL and University of Colorado Boulder colleagues founded the Unmanned Aircraft System and Severe Storms Research Group. This consortium provides a structured working relationship among an expanding number of research partners. It’s an outgrowth of ongoing research by UNL atmospheric scientist Adam Houston and University of Colorado colleagues. The CU-UNL team’s research with drones has yielded several firsts, including the first direct sampling of a thunderstorm system by a drone and the first simultaneous samplings of thunderstorm outflow by multiple drones. Consortium collaborators from universities, federal laboratories, the private sector and other institutions work to advance the use of drones in severe storms research.
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