Introduction to Randall Pietersen’s Work
Randall Pietersen, a civil engineer in the U.S. Air Force, has been working on a project to develop faster and safer approaches for assessing airfields. In 2022, Pietersen participated in a training mission to assess damage at an airfield runway, practicing "base recovery" protocol after a simulated attack. This experience highlighted the potential for his research to enable remote airfield assessments.
The Problem with Current Methods
The current method of assessing airfield damage is time-intensive, painstaking, and potentially dangerous. Pietersen’s team had to walk over the area in chemical protection gear, radioing in geocoordinates as they documented damage and looked for threats like unexploded munitions. Even with ultra-high-resolution cameras, it is difficult to identify unexploded ordnances from the air, as they can look like rocks or debris.
Pietersen’s Research
Pietersen’s goal is to create drone-based automated systems for assessing airfield damage and detecting unexploded munitions. His research has taken him down several paths, including deep learning, small uncrewed aerial systems, and "hyperspectral" imaging. Hyperspectral imaging captures passive electromagnetic radiation across a broad spectrum of wavelengths and is becoming increasingly useful in a range of applications, including agriculture, emergency response, mining, and building assessments.
Finding Computer Science and Community
Growing up in a suburb of Sacramento, California, Pietersen was drawn to math and physics in school. He also enjoyed cross country and was an Eagle Scout, and he wanted to find a way to combine his interests. Pietersen majored in civil engineering at the Air Force Academy, where he first began learning how to conduct academic research and learned a little bit of computer programming.
Embracing Extreme Sports and Research
By the time Pietersen got to MIT, he had also developed a passion for extreme sports like ultra-marathons, skydiving, and rock climbing. He has worked as an indoor skydiving instructor in New Hampshire and has been part of the local running community. Pietersen’s research has taken him to various locations, including Florida and Saudi Arabia, where he was deployed and wrote one of his PhD journal publications from a tent in the desert.
Research with a Purpose
In the summer of 2020, Pietersen did an internship with the HALO Trust, a humanitarian organization working to clear landmines and other explosives from areas impacted by war. This experience demonstrated another powerful application for his work at MIT. Pietersen’s research could help speed up the process of clearing post-conflict regions and make it far safer.
The Future of Airfield Assessments
After graduation, Pietersen will be stationed in Guam, where Air Force engineers regularly perform airfield assessment simulations. He hopes that someday soon, those assessments will be done not by humans in protective gear, but by drones. Pietersen believes that by using spectral imaging and deep-learning solutions, remote assessments can be conducted, making everyone safer.
Conclusion
Randall Pietersen’s research has the potential to revolutionize the way airfield assessments are conducted. By developing drone-based automated systems, Pietersen’s work could make airfield assessments faster, safer, and more efficient. His research also has applications in other fields, such as humanitarian demining and environmental monitoring.
FAQs
Q: What is the current method of assessing airfield damage?
A: The current method involves a team of people walking over the area in chemical protection gear, documenting damage and looking for threats like unexploded munitions.
Q: What is Pietersen’s goal?
A: Pietersen’s goal is to create drone-based automated systems for assessing airfield damage and detecting unexploded munitions.
Q: What is hyperspectral imaging?
A: Hyperspectral imaging captures passive electromagnetic radiation across a broad spectrum of wavelengths and is becoming increasingly useful in a range of applications.
Q: Where will Pietersen be stationed after graduation?
A: Pietersen will be stationed in Guam, where Air Force engineers regularly perform airfield assessment simulations.
Q: What is the potential impact of Pietersen’s research?
A: Pietersen’s research could make airfield assessments faster, safer, and more efficient, and also has applications in other fields, such as humanitarian demining and environmental monitoring.
