Agricultural Drones

Farming is hard work. It requires a lot of effort with a relatively low and unreliable return, but drones are changing that.

Now, these aren’t the military-style machines you’re probably thinking of. They’re more like flying cameras. They’re becoming relatively cheap, thanks to a drop in the prices of processors, cameras, and GPS units — there’s even open source drone software at places like DIY Drones.

These drones can autopilot themselves — from takeoff to landing — and take extensive pictures of a farm for later analysis. Infrared pictures can point out unhealthy areas of crops that are hard to see from the ground, and they can also show farmers irrigation problems or pest infections. To increase crop yields and use less resources, drones are an integral part of the next generation of farming.

And with so many people on this planet, farming needs to be as efficient as possible.