Drone-assisted Remote Gas Sensing in Volcanic Scenarios

The study of volcanoes is of primary importance due to the great impact that eruptions can have on the economy, safety, air traffic, and several other human activities. A main indicator of volcanic activities, crucial to predicting events, is based on the analysis of gases emitted from a volcano's vents. Acquisition of gas samples is, however, challenging due to extreme working conditions and safety precautions. A further challenge is also locating and relocating volcanic gas measurement devices, as plume density and direction can quickly change. In this paper, we propose to use an open-path gas analyzer mounted on a Pan-Tilt Unit that tracks a multirotor equipped with suitable mirrors. This allows to autonomously perform gas measurement missions in volcanic environments via Tunable Diode Laser Absorption Spectroscopy. The great advantage brought by such a multirotor-based approach is the rapid and accurate measurement of gases, which makes monitoring and prediction activities safer, timely, and cost-effective. The effectiveness and accuracy of the proposed approach has been tested in a real application.