As an aircraft pilot (as well as drones) the wind speed and direction is different in the air than on the ground. We use a term backs and slacks or veers and increases ..... as you gain altitude, the wind veers and increases - it moves in a more clockwise direction and gets stronger whereas closer to the ground, it moves in a more counter clockwise direction and slows - this is due to the wind being disturbed closer to the ground by trees, building, hedges, earths surface etc. or surface friction. Obviously, in an aircraft, we fly at much higher altitudes, but maybe be worth bearing in mind - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_gradient - It is explained under the Heading of BACKGROUND - Hope this may be helpful
I agree with you totally. I took flying lessons years ago and learned about this from experienced pilots in addition to experiencing these wind conditions myself. This knowledge is handy when flying drones.
I purchased a digital anemometer approx. a month ago for the very same reasons that you did. I keep mine set to record maximum; that way, when I get home and start processing my drone video, I'll have the max. wind velocity right there at my fingertips to add to the video's text description -- and I include, "mainly steady at 1mph (1.61kph) occasionally gusting to 5mph (8.05kph)" in the description of weather conditions at flight time (which also include temperature in Fahrenheit and Celsius plus the sky conditions, e.g., cloudy, partly cloudy, light snow flurries, sunny, etc. Also, an anemometer is very handy to have in the winter when the deciduous trees are still lacking leaves so that one can determine if it's safe to fly a (non-GPS) quad *BEFORE* you toddle off to one of your local flying areas and end up wasting the trip because it turned out to be too windy to safely fly.
Totally agree with you, Billy! One of the first accesories I bought for my MAVIC was exactly this same anemometer. I´m sure many of your subscribers will appreciate this video. Cheers from ARGENTINA
I will say this device is useful but one thing to consider is that it will provide you the surface winds relative to your location. If you get to heights of several hundred feet above that measurement you could incur a different wind speed. Knowing the surface speed is good because if you decrease your altitude you can recover the drone if it drifts simply by getting back into a slower wind environment. Apps such as Hover provide estimates of wind speed as well which I have found useful before even considering unpacking the drone.
I've been using a portable digital anemometer a drone pilot for several months now; I've scrubbed a number of missions (and probably saved the drones from flyaways) based upon the readings that my anemometer furnishes. Definitely a good thing to have if you're a drone pilot!!! :-D
i have some similar device and agreed with you. Specially because data of forecast websites came from weather station at airports or other sources. Best choice is buy one of these because is really cheap and accurate enough for a safe fly
I got one of these six months ago, it's very similar to yours. And big advantage of this product is when I do remember to take it the field, there is almost no window to measure, which of course makes for a great flight.
I like techy toys, however in reality I don't see the need for this. It's pretty easy to just go outside and make the determination that it's windy and probably not a good day to fly. The winds higher up can be much stronger and more directional than what you have on the ground lulling you into a false sense security that it's safe to fly some distance. Fly out with the wind and you can gain distance real quick but try flying back against the wind and you have problems. Many new drone flyers have lost their aircraft this way. Probably better to check the wind direction and speed which you can do from any weather app.
I need one of these. They actually recommend getting these at the commercial licence course I'm half way through completing. This one seems ideal for my needs thanks 😁
You identified the weakness in the recommendation. AGL winds are nothing like winds even at 200 ft. The only way you can gauge them are via some apps and sites on the net that look at overall weather station data and at altitude wind speeds. A 20 mph AGL winds speed could easily be 50 mph at 400 feet. I had this occur right after the recent winter storm. Got up and went downwind. Thought all was well. Then, started to head into the wind to come back. Drone moving away from me at full throttle. Realized what was going on (the HS speed reported does NOT take into account direction, so I thought all was well even though it was reporting 7 mph. Problem was that was 7 mph headed away from the home point). I finally flicked into Sport Mode and was able to get back. Lesson learned. Even 10-15 mph AGL winds can turn your drone into a kite at several hundred feet.
I just downloaded the PolarPro app, which in addition to other good info also gives wind speed and directions for five days. It’s free, and another handy feature is the level of solar interference expected on certain days.
It’s a good tool but will only give the wind speed at the level your stood at, it’s good to use with the UVA app that will give you a guide as to the wind higher up, thanks.
Billy, always a fan of your content. Only issue with this is that wind speed above 100' you won't get with this device holding it on the ground. But for those of us that travel to remote places and hiking this could be really helpful.
I have one and yes it’s at ground level. However NO APP tells me wind speed especially in the middle of no where. Apps are also, wait for it, reading ground speed for a general area. at least this device gives you a base reference point knowing that wind can often be HIGHER above you. The sad thing is that DJI knows exactly the wind speed and direction in the drone itself... ever look at flight logs? It’s in there. To bad they don’t provide that level of granularity to the user other than a wind warning.
Using this device only shows wind speeds at the pilot’s altitude and location. Sometimes the higher the altitude, the faster the wind speeds, that also goes with the location. It may be dead still at the pilot’s location but it blows 20-30 mph gusts 1000 plus yards aways from the pilot’s location... I do long range shooting and I purchased one of those devices because I shoot up to 1 mile and MOST of the time I get 3-4 different wind speeds and 2-4 wind directions away from my location. So with that said, it’s good to know these info but in all honesty that device is almost useless for the type of application used... however, I used the anemometer to fix my HVAC issue and equalized the amount of air needed for the square footage of each room so all rooms are at the same temperature throughout the house.
DJI should add a feature where their drone detects the wind speed and direction as well while the drone hovers, then shows the parameters on the DJI Go App.
Any experienced pilot will know that the surface wind is rarely the same it is at 3-400 ft. It is often significantly different in both direction and velocity. With very little effort, DJI could modify its software to use GPS information to give accurate operating winds.
Hey Billy I actually picked one up during the hurricanes and I clocked the wind speed of over 100 miles an hour. I definitely have this however I use hover. Unfortunately I had my first fly away this past weekend in Atlanta which was completely my fault. If you know anybody selling a used Mavic that’s in good condition please let me know. By the way I sent Ken a message thanks for the update
Hi BIlly, that could come in handy, however i think the important thing to know, perhaps more important then the exact windspeed, is the direction of the wind. How does this gadget help us with that ? Does it or does it not ? Cheers !!
In my case, I know where "north" is, and I can normally determine wind direction and direct the impeller blades of the anemometer to be perpendicular with the wind direction to get the most accurate reading possible from the instrument. If I'm flying away from the familiar landmarks that assist me in determining where "north" is, I simply bring a magnetic compass along for the ride and mentally make the calculations for magnetic north vs. true north so that I have reasonably accurate data to add to the "weather conditions at flight time" in the descriptive text of the video.
In my case I check it by holding it in all directions to see how it responds. Now being an old disabled Veteran all blown up to Hell and only 1 arm now working, I DO look like a VERY special kind of idiot however:-)
As an aircraft pilot (as well as drones) the wind speed and direction is different in the air than on the ground. We use a term backs and slacks or veers and increases ..... as you gain altitude, the wind veers and increases - it moves in a more clockwise direction and gets stronger whereas closer to the ground, it moves in a more counter clockwise direction and slows - this is due to the wind being disturbed closer to the ground by trees, building, hedges, earths surface etc. or surface friction. Obviously, in an aircraft, we fly at much higher altitudes, but maybe be worth bearing in mind - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_gradient - It is explained under the Heading of BACKGROUND - Hope this may be helpful
I agree with you totally. I took flying lessons years ago and learned about this from experienced pilots in addition to experiencing these wind conditions myself. This knowledge is handy when flying drones.
I purchased a digital anemometer approx. a month ago for the very same reasons that you did. I keep mine set to record maximum; that way, when I get home and start processing my drone video, I'll have the max. wind velocity right there at my fingertips to add to the video's text description -- and I include, "mainly steady at 1mph (1.61kph) occasionally gusting to 5mph (8.05kph)" in the description of weather conditions at flight time (which also include temperature in Fahrenheit and Celsius plus the sky conditions, e.g., cloudy, partly cloudy, light snow flurries, sunny, etc.
Also, an anemometer is very handy to have in the winter when the deciduous trees are still lacking leaves so that one can determine if it's safe to fly a (non-GPS) quad *BEFORE* you toddle off to one of your local flying areas and end up wasting the trip because it turned out to be too windy to safely fly.
Sweet! I need one of these! I like that it does temperature as well. Thanks for posting!
Totally agree with you, Billy! One of the first accesories I bought for my MAVIC was exactly this same anemometer. I´m sure many of your subscribers will appreciate this video. Cheers from ARGENTINA
I just use the UAV Forecast app, as it gives wind speeds at different altitudes. Plus the weather station for my area is right by where I fly most.
I will say this device is useful but one thing to consider is that it will provide you the surface winds relative to your location. If you get to heights of several hundred feet above that measurement you could incur a different wind speed. Knowing the surface speed is good because if you decrease your altitude you can recover the drone if it drifts simply by getting back into a slower wind environment. Apps such as Hover provide estimates of wind speed as well which I have found useful before even considering unpacking the drone.
I've been using a portable digital anemometer a drone pilot for several months now; I've scrubbed a number of missions (and probably saved the drones from flyaways) based upon the readings that my anemometer furnishes.
Definitely a good thing to have if you're a drone pilot!!! :-D
i have some similar device and agreed with you. Specially because data of forecast websites came from weather station at airports or other sources. Best choice is buy one of these because is really cheap and accurate enough for a safe fly
I got one of these six months ago, it's very similar to yours. And big advantage of this product is when I do remember to take it the field, there is almost no window to measure, which of course makes for a great flight.
I like techy toys, however in reality I don't see the need for this. It's pretty easy to just go outside and make the determination that it's windy and probably not a good day to fly. The winds higher up can be much stronger and more directional than what you have on the ground lulling you into a false sense security that it's safe to fly some distance. Fly out with the wind and you can gain distance real quick but try flying back against the wind and you have problems. Many new drone flyers have lost their aircraft this way. Probably better to check the wind direction and speed which you can do from any weather app.
Dalton Drone Zone 👌
Got my Proster Anemometer in the mail today.....It's great.....Thanks Billy...
👍🏼👍🏼
I need one of these. They actually recommend getting these at the commercial licence course I'm half way through completing. This one seems ideal for my needs thanks 😁
You identified the weakness in the recommendation. AGL winds are nothing like winds even at 200 ft. The only way you can gauge them are via some apps and sites on the net that look at overall weather station data and at altitude wind speeds. A 20 mph AGL winds speed could easily be 50 mph at 400 feet.
I had this occur right after the recent winter storm. Got up and went downwind. Thought all was well. Then, started to head into the wind to come back. Drone moving away from me at full throttle. Realized what was going on (the HS speed reported does NOT take into account direction, so I thought all was well even though it was reporting 7 mph. Problem was that was 7 mph headed away from the home point). I finally flicked into Sport Mode and was able to get back. Lesson learned. Even 10-15 mph AGL winds can turn your drone into a kite at several hundred feet.
I just lick my finger and hold it up.
Yep, that's what I did here; ua-cam.com/video/hcm1PPXV1Cs/v-deo.html 😀
N'th DEGREE AERIAL PERSPECTIVES i
Sounds about right...you're that same guy that throws grass in the air before teeing off, too, right? ;)
I just downloaded the PolarPro app, which in addition to other good info also gives wind speed and directions for five days. It’s free, and another handy feature is the level of solar interference expected on certain days.
Thanks for advice & info as a result I have ordered a Holdpeak 866B Anemometer from Amazon.
It’s a good tool but will only give the wind speed at the level your stood at, it’s good to use with the UVA app that will give you a guide as to the wind higher up, thanks.
Billy, always a fan of your content. Only issue with this is that wind speed above 100' you won't get with this device holding it on the ground. But for those of us that travel to remote places and hiking this could be really helpful.
You re the man....greetings from the Philippines
I have one and yes it’s at ground level. However NO APP tells me wind speed especially in the middle of no where. Apps are also, wait for it, reading ground speed for a general area. at least this device gives you a base reference point knowing that wind can often be HIGHER above you. The sad thing is that DJI knows exactly the wind speed and direction in the drone itself... ever look at flight logs? It’s in there. To bad they don’t provide that level of granularity to the user other than a wind warning.
UAV Forcast app wind speeds have been reliable for me. Does altitude winds also!
There worth the money, cheers Billy
Thanks, man!
i use the Windy app, works great
Wish we still had ATTI mode. We could check wind speed and direction at altitude.
Using this device only shows wind speeds at the pilot’s altitude and location. Sometimes the higher the altitude, the faster the wind speeds, that also goes with the location. It may be dead still at the pilot’s location but it blows 20-30 mph gusts 1000 plus yards aways from the pilot’s location... I do long range shooting and I purchased one of those devices because I shoot up to 1 mile and MOST of the time I get 3-4 different wind speeds and 2-4 wind directions away from my location. So with that said, it’s good to know these info but in all honesty that device is almost useless for the type of application used... however, I used the anemometer to fix my HVAC issue and equalized the amount of air needed for the square footage of each room so all rooms are at the same temperature throughout the house.
DJI should add a feature where their drone detects the wind speed and direction as well while the drone hovers, then shows the parameters on the DJI Go App.
Any experienced pilot will know that the surface wind is rarely the same it is at 3-400 ft. It is often significantly different in both direction and velocity. With very little effort, DJI could modify its software to use GPS information to give accurate operating winds.
I'll definitely be purchasing an anemometer on payday, thank you!!! :-)
It will give safe takeoff and landing speeds at least
Holy crap its cold in your house lol
Good call. I like it. Ty
wind is the biggest enemy of drone flying
Yep, I always use my Anemometer and won't ever fly above 20 MPH at ground level.
Hey Billy I actually picked one up during the hurricanes and I clocked the wind speed of over 100 miles an hour. I definitely have this however I use hover. Unfortunately I had my first fly away this past weekend in Atlanta which was completely my fault. If you know anybody selling a used Mavic that’s in good condition please let me know. By the way I sent Ken a message thanks for the update
Ooooh I might need this
Hi BIlly,
that could come in handy, however i think the important thing to know, perhaps more important then the exact windspeed, is the direction of the wind. How does this gadget help us with that ? Does it or does it not ?
Cheers !!
Good question, I'd like to know that too, direction has such a massive impact.
No they don't do that. Throwing a bit of grass up or something of similar weight will give you approximate wind direction though
In my case, I know where "north" is, and I can normally determine wind direction and direct the impeller blades of the anemometer to be perpendicular with the wind direction to get the most accurate reading possible from the instrument. If I'm flying away from the familiar landmarks that assist me in determining where "north" is, I simply bring a magnetic compass along for the ride and mentally make the calculations for magnetic north vs. true north so that I have reasonably accurate data to add to the "weather conditions at flight time" in the descriptive text of the video.
In my case I check it by holding it in all directions to see how it responds. Now being an old disabled Veteran all blown up to Hell and only 1 arm now working, I DO look like a VERY special kind of idiot however:-)
Do you have the Removu K1 on order?
Wow, you looked young back then
I bought one after flying in Hawaii.
Usless... Feel wind don't fly. That all.
UAV Forcast douse it better
pretty kewl
Wish DJI would fix the Spark
What is there to fix ?
Jon BJ For example the signal stability/imagine transmission
Nice 👍🏽