By Shay Satmary
DRI has been conducting cloud seeding research and applied science for over 60 years worldwide. However, most of these historic research projects have been focused on enhancing critical watersheds throughout the Western United States, including the Lake Tahoe/Truckee River watershed. Cloud seeding is a weather modification technique that improves a cloud’s ability to release additional precipitation over a targeted area by introducing tiny ice nuclei into specific types of storm clouds.
Through this process DRI has added 10-15% to the annual snowfall in the Sierras for the last 60 years. Cloud seeding has been very successful in helping with drought and climate change not only in the Tahoe region but all around the world. A key part in this research is the data collection. Sampling the targeted seeded areas shows if the weather modification was successful. Obtaining these samples has been challenging due to terrain. The Tahoe region consists of steep mountains that are subject to avalanches.
Project ROSE (Remote Operated Sample Extraction) is designed to make obtaining these samples easier. Project ROSE’s goal is to be able to remotely collect samples via drone. ROSE’s team consists of UNR students and alum, Kai Frudden (mechanical engineering senior), Kemma Kolstrup (biomedical engineering junior), and me – Bryce DuHamel (Physics graduate). Together we work as a team to design, create, and test the ROSE prototype. We are collaborating with DRI Principal Research Technician Jesse Juchtzer using our engineering minds and inventiveness to help solve real-world data collection problems.
When given the opportunity to join this project I immediately said yes. I have been an outdoor enthusiast and science fanatic my whole life. Being able to work on a project that involves my two greatest passions has been an extraordinary experience. I hope to carry on in similar work after project ROSE in efforts to give back more than I take from our ecosystem. In our project we’ve had to learn how to work as a team and really use the strengths of each team member. We are currently about to be in the testing process of our project. We are all very excited and anxious to see ROSE’s results.
Bryce DuHamel
University of Nevada 2023 Graduate, Physics Major
Nevada Robotics Outreach Coach
ROSE Project Team Member