FUSE Young Reporter
iTECH
PRECIPITATION
17:00 A CLOUD
I don ’ t think this cloud can hold all of us for much longer !
17:10 IN THE AIR AND FALLING .
I was right ! We are currently in snowflakes . We will probably melt when we get a bit lower .
17:15 A VERY BIG RAINDROP .
RUNOFF
We have melted . We will get to the ground soon .
17:30 HALFWAY UP A MOUNTAIN
I landed on this mountain . I can ’ t easily seep into the ground , so I am flowing down the slope instead .
17:50 A RIVER
After I reached the bottom of the mountain , I sploshed into this river . It ’ s going quite fast .
18:00 A WIDER BIT OF THE RIVER
The river is getting slower , wider and closer to the sea .
18:20 A RIVER Almost back to the ocean now !
DRONES IN THE WATER CYCLE ?!
A ' drone ' is an ' unmanned aerial vehicle ', UAV , that doesn ' t need a human pilot on-board .
As a hobby , some people fly small drones by remote control . By attaching a special drone camera , they can film anything from simple scenes to much trickier landscapes .
The company Thames Water supplies 15 million people in the UK with drinking water and wastewater services . Recently it began using drones to film and inspect its 100 tall cranes ! Official tests are on-going but seem to show it is cheaper and safer than a person climbing special scaffolding .
Thames Water says ; “ Cranes are just the start . We want the thermal imaging cameras we can attach to the drones to test for leakage in the trunk mains and […] for reservoir inspections , leaks , bursts , roof inspections and aerators – if you see bubbles from the air , that means diffused aeration . In slow sand filter beds , you ’ re looking for discolouration .”
18:30 THE OCEAN . Phew ! I have made it back to the ocean .
Image : NASA / JPL-Caltech
Photo : Thames Water
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