Curious About Drones

PODCAST 122: CURIOUS ABOUT DRONES
RELEASE DATE:  JANUARY 31ST, 2021

D:  HELLO, AND WELCOME BACK TO THE CURIOUS KID PODCAST.  WE HAVE A REALLY FUN TOPIC TO LEARN ABOUT THIS WEEK, BUT BEFORE WE GET THERE, WE HAVE A BIG THANK YOU TO MAKE.  

O:  THANK YOU, MILES B.

D:  MILES IS OUR NEWEST PATRON, AND WE CAN’T THANK HIM ENOUGH FOR HIS SUPPORT.  IF YOU HAVEN’T CHECKED US OUT ON PATREON YET, YOU DEFINITELY SHOULD.  NOBODY HAS MORE ACCESS TO CURIOUS KID PODCAST AND WHAT HAPPENS BEHIND THE SCENES THAN OUR SUPPORTERS ON PATREON.  THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS OUR SUPPORTERS GET FOR THEIR SUPPORT, LIKE A SHOUT-OUT, EARLY ACCESS TO EPISODES THAT HAVEN’T RELEASED YET, BONUS CURRENT EVENTS EPISODES EVERY MONTH, MERCHANDISE, AND SO MUCH MORE.  YOU CAN VISIT US ON THE PATREON WEBSITE… PATREON IS SPELLED P-A-T-R-E-O-N, OR YOU CAN SIMPLY CLICK ON THE LINK IN THE SHOW NOTES. 

O:  MAILBAG!

D:  MAILBAG!

“HI OLIVIA, OUR NAMES ARE NATHAN AND SAMUEL, AND WE LIVE IN PITTSBURGH.  WE RECENTLY DISCOVERED YOUR PODCAST THIS SUMMER AND HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH!  WE WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO GET CURIOUS ABOUT DRONES.  WE KNOW THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT KINDS, BUT HOW DO THEY FLY?  HOW DO THEY TAKE PICTURES?  HOW ARE THEY BUILT?  WE THINK THEY ARE SO COOL AND WANT TO KNOW HOW THEY WORK.  THANK YOU AND WE WILL BE LISTENING!”

O:  THANKS FOR THE E-MAIL, NATHAN AND SAMUEL.  WE ARE GETTING CURIOUS ABOUT DRONES THIS WEEK FOR YOU.  DRONES ARE COOL, AND SO IS PITTSBURGH!

D:  WE LOVE PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.  IN FACT, PITTSBURGH IS THE FIRST REAL VACATION OLIVIA WENT ON WHEN SHE WAS JUST ONE YEAR OLD.  

O:  WE WENT TO THE CHILDREN’S MUSEUM, THE AVIARY, AND WE TOOK A DUCK TOUR.  WE HAD SO MUCH FUN.

D:  PITTSBURGH IS AN AWESOME PLACE, WITH SO MUCH TO DO WITH KIDS.  LET’S GET CURIOUS ABOUT DRONES FOR OUR PALS IN PITTSBURGH.  WHAT’S THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK?

O:  THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK IS, WHAT IS THE MAXIMUM HEIGHT ALLOWED FOR DRONES?

D:  THERE IS AN ORGANIZATION CALLED THE F.A.A., WHICH STANDS FOR FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION.  THEY MAKE RULES FOR FLYING AIRCRAFTS, AND DRONES ARE AIRCRAFTS.  ONE OF THEIR RULES IS THAT YOU AREN’T ALLOWED TO FLY DRONES OVER A CERTAIN HEIGHT… CAN YOU GUESS WHAT THAT HEIGHT IS, IN FEET?

O:  THE OTHER NAME FOR A DRONE IS A U.A.V.

D:  U.A.V. STANDS FOR UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE.  THAT JUST MEANS THAT NOBODY IS ON A DRONE WHEN IT IS FLYING, SO IT IS UNMANNED.  

O:  DRONES CAN EITHER BE CONTROLLED BY A COMPUTER ON THE DRONE OR BY A PERSON ON THE GROUND.  

D:  IF IT IS CONTROLLED BY A COMPUTER IN THE DRONE, IT IS CALLED AUTO-PILOT.  THAT MEANS THAT THE PLANE IS BEING AUTOMATICALLY PILOTED BY A COMPUTER.  MANY DRONES EITHER INCLUDE CAMERAS IN THEIR CONSTRUCTION OR THERE IS A WAY TO ATTACH A CAMERA TO IT SO YOU CAN SEE THE VIEW FROM THE DRONE AS IF YOU WERE ACTUALLY FLYING ON IT.    

O:  DRONES HAVE SO MANY USES, BUT THEY WERE FIRST USED FOR MILITARY PURPOSES. 

D:  THAT’S RIGHT.  AT FIRST, DRONES WERE USED AS WEAPONS FOR THE MILITARY, IN THE UNITED STATES, AS WELL AS IN MANY FOREIGN COUNTRIES.  THESE DAYS, DRONES HAVE SO MANY DIFFERENT USES THAT ARE FUN TO EXPLORE.  

O:  DRONES ARE USED BY FARMERS TO CHECK THEIR ANIMALS AND CROPS.

D:  THERE ARE EVEN FARMING DRONES THAT ARE CAPABLE OF DROPPING FERTILIZER OR HERBICIDE ON THE FARM, SAVING FARMERS FROM HAVING TO DO SOME HARD WORK.  

O:  DRONES CAN BE USED IN SEARCH AND RESCUE MISSIONS.

D:  THAT MEANS THAT THEY PLAY A HELPFUL PART IN HELPING TO FIND MISSING PEOPLE.  

O:  DRONES ARE ALSO USED TO STUDY THE WEATHER.

D:  IN RECENT YEARS, THEY HAVE BEEN USED TO STUDY TROPICAL STORMS AND HURRICANES.  IN ORDER TO LEARN MORE ABOUT HURRICANES, BRAVE PILOTS USED TO ACTUALLY FLY INTO HURRICANES AND STUDY THEM.  THANKFULLY, DRONES ARE NOW CAPABLE OF DOING A LOT OF THAT WORK WITHOUT PUTTING LIVES AT RISK.  

O:  DRONES ARE EVEN BEING USED SO WE CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT ANIMALS.

D:  AT TIMES, IT CAN BE HARD TO LEARN ABOUT ANIMALS IN CAPTIVITY.  MANY ANIMALS ACT DIFFERENTLY IN THE WILD.  DRONES CAN BE USED TO STUDY ANIMALS IN THE WILD, WITHOUT DETECTION, SO WE CAN LEARN MORE ABOUT THE REAL BEHAVIOR OF ANIMALS.

O:  DRONES HELP FIREFIGHTERS EXAMINE FIRES.

D:  FIGHTING FIRES CAN BE DANGEROUS, ESPECIALLY IF YOU DON’T HAVE A GOOD IDEA OF THE SIZE OF THE FIRE, WHAT DIRECTION IT’S HEADED IN, AND THE DANGEROUS AREAS TO AVOID.  GETTING A LOOK AT A FIRE USING A DRONE CAN HELP FIREFIGHTERS COME UP WITH A STRATEGY FOR FIGHTING A FIRE AND KEEPING SAFE.  

O:  DRONES ARE USED BY PHOTOGRAPHERS TO TAKE SOME BEAUTIFUL PICTURES THEY COULD NEVER TAKE WITHOUT A DRONE.

D:  DRONES ARE REALLY POPULAR IN PHOTOGRAPHY TODAY.  THEY ARE BEING USED TO TAKE STUNNING PICTURES OF NATURE AND SO MUCH MORE.  WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHERS ARE EVEN GETTING IN ON THE DRONE CRAZE, AS MANY OF THEM ARE USING DRONES TO TAKE PICTURES OF WEDDINGS FROM ABOVE.  

O:  MORE AND MORE PEOPLE ARE FLYING DRONES AS A HOBBY BECAUSE IT IS A LOT OF FUN.

D:  IT IS LOTS OF FUN.  THERE ARE MANY GOOD DRONES OUT THERE THAT CAN BE PURCHASED AT AN AFFORDABLE PRICE, FOR FAMILIES LOOKING TO HAVE SOME FUN FLYING DRONES.  LET’S START LEARNING HOW DRONES FLY.  THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT KINDS OF DRONES OF ALL SHAPES AND SIZES, FROM ONES THAT ARE AS BIG AS AN ACTUAL AIRPLANE TO ONES THAT ARE SMALL ENOUGH TO FIT IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND.  FOR THE PURPOSES OF LEARNING HOW THEY FLY, WE ARE GOING TO LEARN ABOUT QUADROTOR DRONES, WHICH ARE, BY FAR, THE MOST POPULAR DRONES FOR PEOPLE WHO FLY DRONES FOR FUN.  

O:  THE WORD QUADROTOR MEANS FOUR ROTORS.

D:  THE PREFIX QUAD- MEANS FOUR, FOR EXAMPLE, QUADRUPLETS ARE FOUR BABIES BORN AT ONCE.  A ROTOR IS A BLADE THAT SPINS ROUND AND ROUND.  

O:  THE ROTORS ON A DRONE SPIN HORIZONTALLY.

D:  THAT MEANS THAT THE ROTOR IS PARALLEL TO THE GROUND, THE SAME WAY IT IS ON A CEILING FAN OR IN A HELICOPTER.  

O:  JUST LIKE A CEILING FAN, THE BLADES ON A DRONE PUSH AIR DOWN.

D:  THAT’S WHAT ALLOWS THEM TO ACHIEVE LIFT AND CLIMB UP INTO THE AIR.  IF YOU WANT THE DRONE TO CLIMB UP HIGHER, JUST INCREASE THE SPEED THE BLADES ARE SPINNING, WHICH WILL HELP INCREASE LIFT AND PUSH THE DRONE FURTHER UP.  

O:  DRONES ARE CAPABLE OF HOVERING, CLIMBING, AND DESCENDING.

D:  IN ORDER TO GET THE DRONE TO HOVER, OR FLY IN PLACE, YOU NEED THE FORCE OF LIFT TO EQUAL THE FORCE OF GRAVITY THAT IS TRYING TO BRING THE DRONE BACK DOWN TO THE GROUND.  IN ORDER TO MAKE THE DRONE DESCEND, OR COME BACK DOWN TO THE GROUND, YOU ACTUALLY NEED THE ROTORS TO SPIN A BIT FASTER THAN THEY DO TO HOVER.  I’LL TELL YOU WHY THAT IS.  WHEN YOU ARE TRYING TO GET THE DRONE TO COME BACK DOWN, THERE IS AN ADDITIONAL FORCE ACTING ON THE DRONE WE HAVEN’T DISCUSSED YET, CALLED AIR DRAG.  IN ORDER TO OVERCOME DRAG THAT PUSHES BACK UP AGAINST THE DRONE AS IT TRIES TO COME DOWN, THE ROTORS NEED TO SPIN A BIT FASTER THAN THEY DO TO HOVER IN PLACE.  

O:  HOW DO DRONES TURN LEFT AND RIGHT?

D:  SO UNTIL NOW, WE JUST LEARNED HOW THEY GO UP AND DOWN.  WHEN GOING UP AND DOWN, THE SPEED OF THE SPINNING ROTORS WAS THE SAME FOR ALL FOUR ROTORS ON THE DRONE.  WELL, WHEN YOU WANT THE DRONE TO TURN, SOME OF THE ROTORS SPIN FASTER AND OTHERS SPIN SLOWER.  IF YOU WANT TO TURN LEFT, FOR EXAMPLE, THE TWO ROTORS ON THE LEFT SPIN SLOWER AND THE TWO ON THE RIGHT SPIN FASTER, WHICH WILL TILT THE DRONE AND TURN IT TO THE LEFT.  THE OPPOSITE IS TRUE IF YOU WANT TO TURN THE DRONE TO THE RIGHT.  IF YOU WANT TO MAKE THE DRONE SPIN AROUND IN PLACE, YOU NEED TO INCREASE THE SPEED OF TWO DIAGONAL ROTORS WHILE DECREASING THE SPEED OF THE OTHER TWO.      

O:  DRONES ARE PRETTY NEAT.  IT WAS SO MUCH FUN LEARNING MORE ABOUT THEM.  

D:  I AGREE.  HOW ABOUT WE ANSWER THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK.  HOW HIGH ARE PEOPLE ALLOWED TO FLY THEIR DRONES?

O:  THE MAXIMUM HEIGHT ALLOWED IS 400 FEET. 

D:  THERE ARE GOOD REASONS FOR THIS.  MOST AIRPLANE ACTIVITIES WITH PEOPLE ON BOARD TAKE PLACE AT A HEIGHT OF AT LEAST 500 FEET.  THE ONLY EXCEPTION IS WHEN AIRPLANES ARE IN THE AREA OVER AND SURROUNDING AIRPORTS, WHERE THEY TAKE OFF AND LAND.  ORIGINALLY, THE PLAN WAS TO ALLOW DRONES TO GO UP TO 500 FEET IN THE AIR FOR THIS REASON.  THEY ULTIMATELY DECIDED TO ALLOW DRONES TO CLIMB TO 400 FEET, GIVING A 100 FOOT BUFFER JUST IN CASE DRONES ACCIDENTALLY CLIMB TOO HIGH FOR A MOMENT OR PLANES FLY TOO LOW.  BEFORE THIS RULE WAS CREATED, THERE WERE 921 RECORDED INCIDENTS OF CLOSE ENCOUNTERS BETWEEN AIRCRAFTS AND DRONES.  IN 28 OF THOSE CASES, THE AIRCRAFT NEEDED TO MOVE OUT OF THE WAY TO AVOID A DRONE.  THIS IS OBVIOUSLY DANGEROUS FOR ALL THE PEOPLE ON BOARD THE AIRPLANE.

O:  IF YOU HAVE A DRONE, HAVE FUN FLYING, BUT PLEASE BE SAFE AND HELP KEEP EVERYONE ELSE SAFE.

D:  WELL, THAT’S A WRAP FOR THIS WEEK’S HIGH-FLYING EPISODE.
O:  122 - DRONES.

D:  GREAT JOB, OLIVIA, AND GREAT JOB NATHAN AND SAMUEL FOR SUGGESTING WE GET CURIOUS ABOUT DRONES.  NATHAN AND SAMUEL GAVE US THEIR SUGGESTION ON FACEBOOK.  WE LOVE GETTING LISTENER SUGGESTIONS, SO IF THERE IS SOMETHING YOU ARE CURIOUS ABOUT, THERE ARE A BUNCH OF WAYS TO LET US KNOW.  YOU CAN SEND AN E-MAIL TO CURIOUSKIDPODCAST@GMAIL.COM.  YOU CAN DROP US A LINE ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, OR TWITTER.  YOU CAN LEAVE US A 5 STAR REVIEW ON APPLE PODCASTS WITH A TOPIC SUGGESTION IN THERE.  YOU CAN ALSO LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL BY CALLING 856-425-2324.  JOIN US NEXT WEEK, WHEN WE WILL GET CURIOUS ABOUT BIGFOOT FOR A LISTENER IN ELK GROVE, CALIFORNIA.  AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND GETTING CURIOUS WITH US.