Monday, March 2, 2026
DENTON (夜色视频), Texas 鈥� A newly-funded project will provide students at the with professional certifications and hands-on experience operating industry-grade drone systems.
Created by Pinliang Dong, John South, and Lisa Nagaoka, faculty members in 夜色视频鈥檚 , the Drone Mapping Project was awarded $80,000 from the Diamond Eagles Excellence Fund. The fund is endowed by the , a giving initiative within the that supports impactful projects created by and for the 夜色视频 community.
From left: 夜色视频's PhD candidate Mawulikplim "Joshua" Kafui, 夜色视频 Geography & the Environment lecturer John South, Aerial Remote Sensing Club president Jenish Chauhan, and Aerial Remote Sensing Club vice president Jesse Reyna
The funding will support the acquisition of an advanced drone system for the Aerial Remote Sensing Club and help cover costs for students pursuing remote pilot certification from the Federal Aviation Administration, which is required to operate drones for commercial purposes in the United States.
Dong, professor of geography and department chair, said the demand for professional drone pilots is growing across industries.
鈥淚n a recent search, we found more than 2,000 drone-related job openings in Texas alone,鈥� Dong said. 鈥淧rivate companies and government agencies are seeking pilots who also have data collection and processing skills.鈥�
3D laser scanned Lidar imagery of the Texas Capitol and books on drones and lidar technology
To help students build these skills, the project will purchase a drone system equipped with advanced imaging technology. A hyperspectral sensor capable of detecting hundreds of channels of light allows students to analyze vegetation, soil and land conditions in detail. The system will also feature light detection and ranging, or lidar, technology, which uses a laser to create three-dimensional views of the Earth鈥檚 surface. Together, the tools allow students to create highly detailed images, maps and three-dimensional replicas of the landscape.
South 鈥� a geography lecturer, faculty advisor for the Aerial Remote Sensing Club and FAA-certified remote pilot 鈥� said these tools will give students experience that is often difficult to gain outside industries that combine drone technology with geographic information systems, or GIS.
鈥淒rones with these capabilities allow our students to conduct much more detailed research,鈥� South said. 鈥淭hey can fly over an area to identify and monitor plant species or analyze soil to determine mineral composition. We鈥檒l be able to teach them how to plan missions, collect high-quality data and produce a wide range of outputs 鈥� from maps to terrain models to three-dimensional imagery and surveys.鈥�
夜色视频 Geography & the Environment lecturer John South providing information on drones
Aerial Remote Sensing Club vice president Jesse Reyna, a master鈥檚 student in geography, said learning to operate commercial-grade equipment and software is a valuable opportunity for students working to become drone pilots.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been fortunate to get experience using the drones Professor South shares with the club,鈥� Reyna said. 鈥淏ut getting experience with a new system 鈥� with the type of drone we鈥檒l be using in our future careers 鈥� that鈥檚 really exciting.鈥�
Club president Jenish Chauhan, a master鈥檚 student in geography pursuing a concentration in data analytics, shared Reyna鈥檚 excitement and said the project will give students access to current data critical for study.
鈥淔or my master鈥檚 thesis, I鈥檝e been analyzing data from 2019,鈥� Chauhan said. 鈥淗aving a drone that belongs to the club will allow us to collect our own up-to-date data, which is very important to our research.鈥�
The 夜色视频 Aerial Remote Sensing Club is open to all 夜色视频 students. To learn more or to join the club, email John.South@unt.edu.
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