Special Issue(24-06):Utilising Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for Real-time Disaster Risk Assessment Posted on 2024-08-02

UAVs can serve as early warning systems (EWSs) by gathering data and evaluating it for forecasts. The applications of UAVs in disaster management have developed along with the technology. UAVs can enhance situational awareness in impacted areas, collect data, and supply communications infrastructure. Drones deliver thorough and fact-based damage reports by quickly taking overhead photos and data, providing a detailed picture of the most damaged areas and inaccessible places. Due to restrictions on the physical load size and weight onboard, UAVs are only able to deliver a certain amount of food, medicine, and other supplies. weather-related catastrophes like storms and excessive rain. Rescuers can locate missing persons more rapidly when they use an emergency drone. It aids in the hunt for lost persons or animals in difficult-to-reach areas like summits, destroyed buildings, etc. The capacity of multispectral sensors to detect body heat makes them indispensable in search and rescue operations. Compared to manned aerial vehicles, drones can be deployed quickly and easily, making them very effective as first responders. Drone delivery of emergency medical supplies and kits can accelerate the response time when life-saving vaccines, biological samples, transfusion plasma, or organs are needed in a variety of humanitarian situations.

Unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, are capable of quickly mapping sizable regions before, during, and following floods. They enable prompt identification of any safe locations. Inspectors may assess the damage from a safe distance with drones, reducing the chance of accidents. Drones with high-resolution cameras and sensors are able to collect detailed data and photographs without endangering human inspectors. By identifying hazard zones related to flood plains, coastal inundation and erosion, and active faults, remote sensing can support risk reduction programs. Some regions may be too risky or inaccessible for human responders to enter after an earthquake because of debris, unstable structures, or other risks. These difficult-to-reach places can be accessed by drones without endangering human life. Videos showing the massive size of a camp for people displaced by disaster or aerial shots of a vast flooded area are examples of how useful drone images are in helping the public understand the scope and breadth of a specific tragedy. The creation and upkeep of a medical drone network, regulations, safety concerns, flying conditions, privacy issues, and other difficulties provide challenges to the use of drones in emergency management. It is necessary to address the risks of malicious use and cybersecurity breaches associated with drones. UAVs are utilized in drone journalism, asset protection, disaster response, search and rescue, firefighting, communications relay, healthcare, and agriculture in addition to surveillance and delivery applications.  law enforcement and surveillance for border control. Hurricane and tornado tracking and forecasting. Due to the numerous investments that are being made daily into this potential business, hundreds of new drone applications are currently being developed. Drones have been used by terrorists to target civilian centers, diplomatic missions, energy infrastructure, international trade, and state military assets.

 Topics of interest for the special issue include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Unmanned aerial system traffic control framework for real-time risk assessment
  • Utilizing aerial drones for assessing potential flood risks.
  • Image processing and geocomputing using UAVs to track hazards and disaster risk.
  • Unmanned aerial machines in disaster-related uses.
  • Integrating unmanned aerial vehicles in rescue initiatives.
  • Deep neural networks and unmanned aircraft for detection of disasters.
  • safety evaluation and analysis of risk, both qualitative and quantitative, of drone activities performed on the internet.
  • Utilizing unmanned aerial vehicles to assess and reduce the risk of disasters at factories.
  • Unmanned aerial aircraft technology for disaster management and monitoring.
  • Unmanned aerial vehicle security analysis and risk assessment for national airspace system operation.
  • Obstacles related to catastrophe mitigation with drones and virtual/augmented environments.
  • Disaster management methods utilizing aerial drones.

GUEST EDITOR CREDENTIALS:

Dr. Shakeel Mahmood

 Dr. Sofiane Bensefia

 Dr. Helen Muhammad Abdul Hussein Al-Badiri

  • College of Education for Girls,
  • University of Kufa,
  • Najaf, Iraq.
  • Email - [email protected]

 Dr.Muhammad Irfan Ahamad

SI TIMELINE:

  • Submission Deadline        05, Nov 2024
  • Authors Notification       30, Jan 2025
  • Revised Papers Due         20, Mar 2025
  • Final notification    15, May 2025