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Peeking underground with giant flying antennas
Helicopters are perhaps at their coolest when they’re being used as flying cranes — from a long dangling cable, they can carry everything from cars, to crates, to giant hanging saws. Wh…
Credit: Geoscience Australia Operations & Processing report By transmitting radio waves from a giant antenna, it’s possible to excite eddy currents in the ground itself which can then be picked up by a sensitive receiver similarly dangling from the aircraft. Credit: Typical AEM missions involve flying at moderate speeds of 70 to 120 km/h along the ground, generally on a path of parallel lines to cover a given area. Credit: USGS For this reason, many government agencies specifically release documents to explain the purpose of AEM surveys, and to highlight that they pose no risk to the public, wildlife, or the natural environment itself.
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