The Obama presidency has been know for their extensive use of drones in their assassinations of terrorist suspects but more attention needs to be placed on their use domestically. With the FAA recently approving drone applications for 106 government entities, there has been growing concern about people’s constitutional right to privacy. CBS News reports on new technology that may allow drones to patrol the US skies ‘indefinitely’:
A recently demonstrated breakthrough in technology may help Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), better known as drones, stay airborne for very long periods of time before having to return to Earth.
This development comes at a time when the U.S. government is actively encouraging the domestic use of drones, first by law enforcement, and later, by private concerns.
Lockheed Martin and a company called LaserMotive have been able to keep a drone flying for some 49 hours non-stop, using a ground-based laser to recharge the drone’s on board battery, says Tom Koonce, the project manager for Lockheed Martin, in an interview with KNX1070 Newsradio.
How long could a drone be kept in the air using this laser recharging system? Koonce says, in theory, indefinitely.
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