Personal Quadcopter Test-Flight Over the Walled City of Jerusalem
Greetings,
Just for fun, I brought a hobbyist-quality quadcopter equipped with a 720P HD video camera on our family vacation for a novel (and hopefully elevated :-) angle on our home movies. There were real questions, however, if the amateur equipment could achieve interesting aerial imagery, and also if local authorities would be sensitive about tourists using personal drones over archeological sites and/or areas where security is often the subject of official concern.
I'm happy to report that recent experience demonstrates that there is no problem using personal drones (at less than 100 meter altitude, of course:-), even in locales sometimes considered controversial.
For instance, below is a link to a short proof-of-concept quadcopter test flight, showing take-off, ascending above thel5th Century Ottoman walls of East Jerusalem to altitude required to peek over the walls to view the Old City from outside (and above) Zion Gate, and then executing a controlled landing:
http://www.youtube.com/my_videos_edit?ns=1&video_id=rmYEcNAAOU4
A shorter (- 30 second) night video, again demonstrating quadcopter ascent and over the walls, viewing the Old City from the outside, with quick pans of the Mount of Olives, Kidron Valley, and the Silwan neighborhood of East Jerusalem:
These year-old 'Stonehenge early test flights of the are Levant' encouraging in the Golan our Heights. plans to video More the information Spring Equinox this fascinating sunrise celebrations at the 5,000 site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rujm_el-Hiri
We're looking forward to using the quadcopter to video this large structure (750,000,000 pounds of rock, 520 feet in diameter), as well as the mini-Burning-Man springtime festivities. We'll also try to document the Vernal sunrise rays (and shadows) falling on the spring-time markers from inside the tumulus, with the cooperative guidance of professional archeologists. The working-title of this project is 'Peace, Love, & AstroArcheology from Occupied Syria.' It's time to report some good news and fun times from Occupied Syria (for a change :-).
All the best,
-- Ron
PS:
The local authorities appear completely uninterested in interfering with these flights. No one was concerned about the personal drone at any border crossing, nor has anyone objected to any of our tests.
That's good news, since this colorful and lively area is a good test case for security sensitivities, as may be illustrated by conventional video I shot earlier today of the nearby Jerusalem acropolis (ie:
Temple Mount -- Harem el Sharif, the Al Aqsa Mosque, the Dome of the Rock, and the Western Wall):
PPS:
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