While it may have been a disappointing holiday season for some drone makers, dollar-for-dollar drone sales in the United States have more than doubled over the past year. According to a new report from market research company the NPD Group, "premium" drones -- classified as anything over $300 -- were the biggest money makers for the twelve months starting in February 2016, but high-end features like autopilot and "follow-me" mode are now making their way into the best-selling consumer level devices. During the first two months of 2017, professional-level drones in the $1,000-plus category were the fastest selling, followed by drones and quadcopters in the $300-$500 price range, indicating that just slapping a decent camera on a quadcopter doesn't cut it anymore. As an NPD analyst notes, autopilot-equipped drones sold five times faster than dumber models and drones with a follow mode sold nineteen times faster during that two month period. Although the FAA now has more than 770,000 registered UAVs in the US, another wave of amateur pilots and hobbyists came online during the 2016 holiday season, when the sudden variety of cheap drones in the $50-$100 range made up about 42 percent of all the unit sales across the country.

In the 2012 sci-fi film Prometheus, scientists release small drones into a mysterious tunnel complex to create a detailed 3D map of the caverns in minutes. Australian researchers plan to use a similar approach to explore parts of old mines that are unsafe to visit. The drones, which are controlled by a pilot, will be able to carry out safety checks by monitoring the build-up of water and checking the extent of roof collapses, and search for valuable mineral deposits that may have been missed. They are being developed by Craig Lindley and his colleagues at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australia's government research agency. The researchers' model is based on a commercial quadcopter.

FILE - In his photo April 4, 2017 file photo, provided by the Syrian anti-government activist group Edlib Media Center, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows victims of a suspected chemical attack, in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, northern Idlib province, Syria. A senior U.S. official says the U.S. has concluded that Russia knew in advance of Syria's chemical weapons attack last week. FILE - In his photo April 4, 2017 file photo, provided by the Syrian anti-government activist group Edlib Media Center, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows victims of a suspected chemical attack, in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, northern Idlib province, Syria. A senior U.S. official says the U.S. has concluded that Russia knew in advance of Syria's chemical weapons attack last week. WASHINGTON (AP) -- The United States has made a preliminary conclusion that Russia knew in advance of Syria's chemical weapons attack last week, but has no proof of Moscow's involvement, a senior U.S. official says.

The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) recently tested autonomously flying F-16 fighter jets in collaboration with Lockheed Martin. The tests could mark a big leap for military drone technology as these jets could be used in the future for large scale air-to-ground strikes. "This demonstration is an important milestone in AFRL's maturation of technologies needed to integrate manned and unmanned aircraft in a strike package. We've not only shown how an Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle can perform its mission when things go as planned, but also how it will react and adapt to unforeseen obstacles along the way," Capt. Andrew Petry, AFRL autonomous flight operations engineer, said in a press release issued Monday by Lockheed Martin.

FILE - In his photo April 4, 2017 file photo, provided by the Syrian anti-government activist group Edlib Media Center, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows victims of a suspected chemical attack, in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, northern Idlib province, Syria. A senior U.S. official says the U.S. has concluded that Russia knew in advance of Syria's chemical weapons attack last week. FILE - In his photo April 4, 2017 file photo, provided by the Syrian anti-government activist group Edlib Media Center, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows victims of a suspected chemical attack, in the town of Khan Sheikhoun, northern Idlib province, Syria. A senior U.S. official says the U.S. has concluded that Russia knew in advance of Syria's chemical weapons attack last week. WASHINGTON (AP) -- The United States has made a preliminary conclusion that Russia knew in advance of Syria's chemical weapons attack last week, but has no proof of Moscow's involvement, a senior U.S. official said Monday.

WASHINGTON – A sci-fi staple for decades, laser weapons are finally becoming reality in the U.S. military, albeit with capabilities a little less dramatic than in the movies. Lightsabers -- the favored weapon of the Jedi in "Star Wars" films -- will remain in the fictional realm for now, but after decades of development, laser weapons are here and are being deployed on military vehicles and planes. Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon -- all the big defense players -- are developing prototypes for the Pentagon. The navy has since 2014 been testing a 30-kilowatt laser on one of its warships, the USS Ponce. Lockheed Martin has just announced a 60-kilowatt laser weapon that soon will be installed on an army truck for operational testing against mortars and small drones.

Yuneec diverted from its earlier higher-end drones to release a more affordable model last fall, the Breeze. For bundling a 4K camera and several flight modes into a $500 package, we guessed it would make it an ideal elaborate selfie machine. But now it's getting an update that lets users stream footage live on Facebook, YouTube and other services. It's not the first drone system to get the capability, as DJI upgraded its Go app last May to give its Phantom and Inspire models livestreaming ability. Likewise, the Breeze's Cam App is getting an update that will let users broadcast in 720p on the big two livestreaming platforms along with any others compatible with Real-Time Messaging Protocol.

It is a shocking experiment - and a warning for drone owners around the world to keep an eye on the weather. A new YouTube video reveals what happens when an ordinary consumer drone is hit by lighting - and it's not good news. Tom Scott from the hit YouTube channel Amazing Places and Things You Might Not Know visited the High Voltage Laboratory at the University of Manchester to sacrifice a quadcopter (or two). The experiment saw two DJI Phantom 3 drones gets hit with an electrical impulse of 1.4MV at the High Voltage Laboratory at the University of Manchester. 'The High Voltage Laboratory is a hotbed for high-voltage research, so when YouTuber Tom Scott decided to pay us a visit, we just couldn't resist carrying out some of our own electrifying tests,' the University said.

WASHINGTON – The United States has concluded Russia knew in advance of Syria's chemical weapons attack last week, a senior U.S. official said Monday. The official said a drone operated by Russians was flying over a hospital as victims of the attack were rushing to get treatment. Hours after the drone left, a Russian-made fighter jet bombed the hospital in what American officials believe was an attempt to cover up the usage of chemical weapons. The official said the presence of the surveillance drone over the hospital couldn't have been a coincidence, and that Russia must have known the chemical weapons attack was coming and that victims were seeking treatment. The official, who wasn't authorized to speak publicly on intelligence matters and demanded anonymity, didn't give precise timing for when the drone was above the northern Syrian town of Khan Sheikhtoun, where more than 80 people were killed.

While Amazon works towards unleashing drones in the sky, Walmart is looking to use them in its stores. The Arkansas-based firm has been granted a patent for in-store drones that would transport items from one department to another. It has been suggested that the system would'greatly improve the customer experience' by saving visitors trips across the massive facilities to fetch items or from having to wait for an employee to return with their desired merchandise. Walmart has been granted a patent for in-store drones that would transport items from one department to another. A human worker receives a request from a customer, via a'display screen or as a text message', who then attaches the item to the drone A human worker would receive a request from a customer via a'display screen or as a text message' and would then attach the item to the drone.