Requirements and Limitations of Thermal Drones for Effective Search and Rescue in Marine and Coastal Areas

Search and rescue (SAR) is a vital line of defense against unnecessary loss of life. However,in a potentially hazardous environment, it is important to balance the risks associated with SARaction. Drones have the potential to help with the efficiency, success rate and safety of SAR operationsas they can cover large or hard to access areas quickly. The addition of thermal cameras to the dronesprovides the potential for automated and reliable detection of people in need of rescue. We performeda pilot study with a thermal-equipped drone for SAR applications in Morecambe Bay. In a varietyof realistic SAR scenarios, we found that we could detect humans who would be in need of rescue,both by the naked eye and by a simple automated method. We explore the current advantages andlimitations of thermal drone systems, and outline the future path to a useful system for deploymentin real-life SAR.