The planet needs a lot more trees. These robots can plant tens of thousands of new trees every day!
The world has been through a lot in the past few years. Of course, the global pandemic has been on everybody’s minds since it started in late 2019, but it seems we all forgot about the terrible fires that devastated Australia at about the same time. Billions of trees were lost during the fires, and countless animals died or lost their natural habitat.
Well, the world wildlife fund certainly hasn’t forgotten, and they have been hard at work, planting millions of new trees in an attempt to bring Australia’s wildlife back to its feet. But how do you plant so many trees in a short amount of time? With the help of robots, of course. Or, more specifically, with the use of drones.
Tree-planting drones are being used worldwide, proving to be a very reliable way to plant vast amounts of trees in a very orderly and efficient manner. But how does a flying drone plant a tree in the ground? Well, it all starts with the unique seed pods, which are tree seeds encased in organic matter to improve the chances of germination. Then, the drone flies up in the air and releases the pods in specific locations, keeping note of each pod’s landing location. Finally, the pods themselves hit the ground with a high enough velocity that they usually get embedded in the ground.
This method allows for planting about 40,000 trees in a single day, and it is proven to be a faster and more reliable method than traditional ones. After the seeding part is done, the drones can also be used to survey the ground, comparing photographs taken on a daily basis to see which seeds have grown into saplings and which have not.
It is always wonderful to see modern technology being used to help heal the planet, and we hope to see the forests of Australia thriving again soon.
