Next year we are going to be flying pre-race for SailGP to help keep the track clear of marine mammals, especially Hector's dolphins. We've been asked to help the organisers avoid wildlife. The trial flights were successfully completed recently and we are excited to be involved in the process. It also provides us with the opportunity to capture data about these animals which will also be shared with everyone on our platform.
SailGP is an international sailing competition using high-performance catamarans. The competition involves several Grand Prix worldwide. We'd like to say thank you to Christchurch City Council for getting us down to the South Island. The idea is that this data can help race organisers make better-informed decisions on where and when the races should take place. For example, as New Zealand Herald reports, a whale once caused a race to be postponed in San Francisco!
We're proud to be a part of a joint collaboration with local Iwi, Christchurch City Council, and SailGP to help the races run smoothly while being considerate of other inhabitants of our ocean! Every time we spot a dolphin, we will share this with the race organisers. This will also be linked to our new citizen science app (SeaSpotter) which is coming soon!
The team preparing for another drone flight!