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Very exciting project! Love the idea, and can't wait to see some proof of concepts eventually. It obviously has the potential to be revolutionary in the aerospa
by yathern 8y ago
Very exciting project! Love the idea, and can't wait to see some proof of concepts eventually. It obviously has the potential to be revolutionary in the aerospace industry, though time will tell if it's as effective as claimed of course.
They compare the TURN concept to satellites in the beginning, mentioning only positives by comparison - of which there are indeed many (cheaper, better comms). One thing I didn't see mentioned was the failure mode between the two. A satellite that ceases to function will stay in orbit, until this orbit decays enough for it to burns in the upper atmosphere. If one of the rotors on this device fails, it will just come crashing down to earth.
And also, in typical neo-luddite fashion, I'm fearful for the surveillance applications of this device. Even if staying airborne isn't eventually completely free (eternal flight) with this system, the ability to stay up for 9 hours at a time on a few Li-Ion cells opens up a world of possibilities, not all of which are great. If NOAA can afford to put a number of these out in the Atlantic to get better atmospheric readings, surely cities, states, city-states, and others can afford to put a number of these above their populace.
However, progress is inevitable, and the technology can't always be blamed for it's potentially negative applications. I think this is an amazing project - but it will require some self-control to not let this push us further into a surveillance state.
- Mtinie 8y agoRegarding your second point: https://www.airbus.com/defence/uav/zephyr.html https://www.airbus.com/defence/uav/zephyr.html "The first unmanned aircraft of its kind to fly in the stratosphere, Zephyr harnesses the sun's rays, running exclusively on solar power, above the weather and conventional air traffic. It is a HAPS: a High Altitude Pseudo Satellite, able to fly for months at a time, combining the persistence of a satellite with the flexibility of a UAV." This isn't a new idea, at all. You have to go back to the late 1780's to find a time before the use of balloons as recon platforms: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_military_ballooning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_military_ballooning
- daveFNbuck 8y agoYou'd have to go back before humans to find a time before facial recognition was used to track individuals, yet people get upset about when facial recognition is used to automatically track and record all of your movements through ubiquitous cameras. There's a big difference between a person going up in a balloons for a few hour to scout a military locations and a swarm of drones constantly monitoring a city in peacetime.
- Mtinie 8y agoI was not making a judgement about whether or not there's a difference between a single balloon and a drone swarm (there is), but addressing the comment: > And also, in typical neo-luddite fashion, I'm fearful for the surveillance applications of this device. Even if staying airborne isn't eventually completely free (eternal flight) with this system, the ability to stay up for 9 hours at a time on a few Li-Ion cells opens up a world of possibilities, not all of which are great.
- daveFNbuck 8y agoIt looks a lot like you were saying these are similar. I'm not sure what else your comment could mean. What was your intended meaning?