This March, a truck pulled onto a runway in Oregon, towing a miniature plane for a test flight. At 650 pounds, the plane was too large to be a toy, but too small to fit a pilot. That's because the ArcticShark isn't a toy, and it doesn't need a pilot. Department of Energy scientists at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory commissioned its design in order to fly over the Alaska North Slope to take data in the Arctic atmosphere. As it flies through the air at a modest 75 miles per hour, the drone will measure the size of atmospheric particles, levels of infrared radiation, humidity, wind direction, and more--measurements that will help scientists understand basic atmospheric processes like how clouds form, which they could eventually apply to climate models.

The Federal Aviation Administration has said that online shopping powerhouse Amazon may not employ drones to deliver packages, at least not anytime soon. The revelation was buried in a FAA document (PDF) unveiled Monday seeking public comment on its policy on drones, or what the agency calls "model aircraft." The FAA has maintained since at least 2007 that the commercial operation of drones is illegal. A federal judge ruled in March, however, that the FAA enacted the regulations illegally because it did not take public input before adopting the rules, which is a violation of federal law. Flight regulators have appealed the decision, maintaining that commercial applications are still barred.

When might that come in handy, besides to generally explore the relative unknown? The oil and gas industries wouldn't mind knowing more about what lurks below and the military has already sought ways to position sensors on the bottom of the ocean. Stilwell says technology such as what he and his team are developing could also make underwater searches, like the unsuccessful nearly three-year effort to find missing Malaysian Airline flight MH370, more affordable and faster.

A US drone strike has killed five suspected members of al-Qaeda in central Yemen, according to local news media and a government security official. Yemen Ajel, a local news website, reported that the drone fired three consecutive missiles at 12:30am local time on Sunday, or 22:30 GMT on Saturday, at a car reportedly transporting weapons to Marib province. Speaking on condition of anonymity, a military official told AFP news agency that the car belonged to a local leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). The strike comes 24 hours after a similar raid killed three suspected AQAP operatives in the southern Shabwa province, which has been a central target of the US military. The US has stepped up its use of drone strikes under President Donald Trump, with the Pentagon confirming more than 70 strikes since February 28.

Sean Ruddy and his team of operator-soldiers from the US Cyber Brigade entered a Locked Shields, a NATO-organized cyber-defense war game that pits teams from dozens of countries against "live-fire" attacks. It was their first time. And of the 19 countries represented, the US finished dead last. This week, they got their shot at redemption. Locked Shields challenges participating countries to show off their defensive prowess, rather than offensive firepower.

Video Friday is your weekly selection of awesome robotics videos, collected by your Automaton bloggers. We'll also be posting a weekly calendar of upcoming robotics events for the next two months; here's what we have so far (send us your events!): Let us know if you have suggestions for next week, and enjoy today's videos. This is Walt, Audi's new collaborative robot. As part of a Flemish research project lead by prof.

A crash test dummy gets hit in its "head" by a drone. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) wants to know, so they conducted a study to understand and mitigate the risks of drones flying over people, and what happens if a drone loses connection to its pilot or just crashes to the ground. It turns out that small drones are safer near people than was thought. "We were able to identify blunt force trauma, penetration injuries and lacerations as the most significant threats to people on the ground," said David Arterburn, an engineer at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and lead investigator for the study, which was conducted by several universities and released Friday afternoon in Washington, D.C. As part of the test, the researchers dropped a typical drone (a Phantom 3, weighing 2.7 pounds) on a crash test dummy at a typical speed of about 34 mph.

A key leader of the terror group Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) was killed in a U.S. airstrike in Yemen on Sunday, the Pentagon said. Abu Ahmed Al Awlaqi had led operations for the group in the Shabwa province. He also planned external attacks and coordinated the group's movement of weapons and explosives, authorities said. The death of the leader, according to Navy Captain Jeff Davis, was the result of a monthslong campaign designed to kill leaders of the group and other Yemeni operatives. Seven other members of the group were also killed in Sunday's strike, Davis said.

Dubbed Operation Mansouri, after former leader Akhtar Mohammad Mansour who was killed last year in a U.S. drone strike, the spring offensive announcement on Friday comes a week after one of the most devastating attacks on Afghan forces since the Taliban was driven from power more than 15 years ago.

Imagine this scenario: A terror suspect is holding hostages in a public space. A police-operated drone with a camera swoops in to assess the situation and determines he is armed and dangerous.