A photogrammetric flight was performed in December 2016 as BVLOS (Beyond Visual Line of Sight) operation over Penguin Island (South Shetland Islands, Western Antarctica). Images were taken by the PW-ZOOM fixed-wing UAV equipped with a digital SLR Canon 700D camera. The flight was performed at 550 m ASL and covered a total distance of 231.58 km.The plane take-off and landing site was near the H. Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station (Arctowski) on King George Island, South Shetlands. The main aim of the mission was to collect environmental data to estimate the size of penguin and pinniped breeding populations and to map vegetation cover and landforms. The plane returned to Arctowski with 1630 images of Penguin Island with the ground sample distance (GSD) lower than 0.07 m. The images allowed us to locate and identify individuals of two penguin species (Adélie and chinstrap), and individuals of two species of pinnipeds (Southern elephant seal and Weddell seal). Three types of tundra communities were mapped together with numerous landforms such as: volcanic, mass movement, fluvial, coastal and aeolian ones. The UAV BVLOS photogrammetric operation proved to be very robust in gathering valuable qualitative and quantitative data necessary for monitoring distant and isolated polar environments.

An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) as an alternative to manned aircrafts is an excellent, less invasive, safe tool, especially in sensitive polar regions. Here we used a fixed-wing UAV to collect data on seabird and pinniped populations in hardly accessible Antarctic areas. The implementation of an auto-piloted UAV equipped with a digital camera (Canon EOS 700D, 35 mm f/2.0 lens) allowed us to collect high-quality material applicable to a quantitative analysis of the fauna populations. A successful photogrammetric mission, at an altitude of 550 m above sea level, was accomplished during one Beyond Visual Line of Sight flight above hard-to-access Penguin Island and Turret Point Oasis (King George Island). Obtained selected RGB images were processed to generate a panoramic image stitch with resolution of 0.07 m ground sampling distance. A total of 4290 (SD = 33.08) breeding individuals of two penguin species, Adélie (Pygoscelis adeliae) and chinstrap (Pygoscelis antarcticus), 426 (SD = 7.78) individuals of the southern elephant seal (Mirounga leonina) and 6 individuals of the Weddell seal (Leptonychotes weddellii) were identified in both study areas. Additionally, 222 (SD = 2.0) individuals of the southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus) and 76 (SD = 1.0) of the Antarctic shag (Phalacrocorax atriceps bransfieldensis) in the Turret Point area were recognized. The presented observations on the natural history of the investigated fauna together with the available literature may be useful in future research on population trends. A comparison with available historical data for both investigated areas suggests a decrease of 68.29% in both penguin species in the 1980-2016 period. The presented results confirmed that UAVs are useful for remote census work for Antarctic seabirds.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a study on methods for load spectrum (LS) determination and extrapolation, basing on data obtained from experiments.Design/methodology/approachA sequence of loads registered in flight becomes an object of analysis aimed to calculate full cycles of loads, and on this basis two possible types of LS are determined, i.e. as the transfer array, or in classic form (as the plot presenting appearances of load increments, called “incremental load spectrum”). While the use of incremental LS enables just application of deterministic extrapolation methods, the transfer array enables application of the stochastic method of extrapolation that consists of random redistribution of the transfer array cell values.FindingsThe paper presents a comparison between the results of application of deterministic or stochastic extrapolation methods. Attention was focused on the LS registered during thermal flights. The stochastic extrapolation method is less conservative than the deterministic ones, and enables better adjustment of estimated LS to the reality.Originality/valueThe novel extrapolation method consists of cumulation of the results of stochastic redistribution of the values in transfer array obtained from the experiment.

The aim of this article is to show geomorphological mapping of remote Antarctic locations using images taken by a fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) during the Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations. We mapped landform assemblages developed in forelands of Ecology Glacier (EGF), Sphinx Glacier (SGF) and Baranowski Glacier (BGF) in Antarctic Specially Protected Area No. 128 (ASPA 128) on King George Island (South Shetland Islands) and inferred about glacial dynamics. The orthophoto and digital elevation model allowed for geomorphological mapping of glacial forelands, including (i) glacial depositional landforms, (ii) fluvial and fluvioglacial landforms, (iii) littoral and lacustrine landforms, (iv) bodies of water, and (v) other. The largest area is occupied by ground moraine and glacial lagoons on EGF and BGF. The most profound features of EGF are the large latero-frontal moraine ridges from Little Ice Age and the first half of the 20th century. Large areas of ground moraine, frequently fluted and marked with large recessional moraine ridges, dominate on SGF. A significant percentage of bedrock outcrops and end moraine complexes characterize BGF. The landform assemblages are typical for discontinuous fast ice flow of tidewater glaciers over a deformable bed. It is inferred that ice flow velocity decreased as a result of recession from the sea coast, resulting in a significant decrease in the length of ice cliffs and decrease in calving rate. Image acquisition during the fixed-wing UAV BVLOS operation proved to be a very robust technique in harsh polar conditions of King George Island.

ABSTRACT:A program to monitor bird and pinniped species in the vicinity of Arctowski Station, King George Island, South Shetlands, Antarctica, has been conducted over the past 38 years. Annual monitoring of these indicator species includes estimations of breeding population sizes of three Pygoscelis penguin species: Adélie, gentoo and chinstrap. Six penguin colonies situated on the western shores of two bays: Admiralty and King George are investigated. To study changes in penguin populations Unmanned Aerial Vehicles were used for the first time in the 2014/15 austral summer season. During photogrammetric flights the high-resolution images of eight penguin breeding colonies were taken. Obtained high resolution images were used for estimation of breeding population size and compared with the results of measurements taken at the same time from the ground. During this Antarctic expedition eight successful photogrammetry missions (total distance 1500 km) were performed. Images were taken with digital SLR Canon 700D, Nikon D5300, Nikon D5100 with a 35mm objective lens. Flights altitude at 350 -400 AGL, allowed images to be taken with a resolution GSD (ground sample distance) less than 5 cm. The Image J software analysis method was tested to provide automatic population estimates from obtained images. The use of UAV for monitoring of indicator species, enabled data acquisition from areas inaccessible by ground methods.