Steady flight of kestrels could see aerial safety soar | RMIT University

RMIT University
Aug 6 2024

A new joint study by RMIT and The University of Bristol has revealed the secrets to the remarkably steady flight of kestrels and could inform future drone designs and flight control strategies.

Making drones safer and more stable in turbulent conditions, or in cities where wind gusts from tall buildings make flying more difficult, makes applications like parcel delivery, food delivery and environmental monitoring more feasible, more often.

While initially focused on smaller aerial vehicles, the team hopes to simplify the data collected so that it can be adapted for larger scale aircraft.

‘Steady as they hover: kinematics of kestrel wing and tail morphing during hovering flights’ published in the Journal of Experimental Biology (https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.247305) is a collaboration between Mario Martinez Groves-Raines, George Yi, Matthew Penn, Simon Watkins, Shane Windsor and Abdulghani Mohamed.

With thanks to Leigh Valley Hawk and Owl Sanctuary.

Secrets of hovering kestrels to help drones beat city winds

22 hours ago
Chris Vallance
Technology reporter

New insights into the secrets of hovering kestrels could help delivery drones navigate the gusty air in cities, scientists at the University of Bristol and RMIT University in Australia suggest.

The sight of a kestrel hanging motionless above the ground as it scans for prey is a delight for nature lovers, and a trick drone experts are keen to investigate.

Using motion capture technology of the sort used to record performances in blockbuster movies, researchers were able to better understand how kestrels stay so still.

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Camera and motion capture technology enabled researchers to observe two Nankeen Kestrels, called Kevy and Jedda, as they hovered in a wind tunnel operated by RMIT.

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