Insect-size Camera will be Spy in Sky

Microscopic planes, with cameras not much bigger than insects, are being developed by American scientists to spy on enemy positions in wars of the future.
An extraordinary array of micro air vehicles (MAVs), all easily held in the palm of the hand, is emerging from experimental laboratories throughout the United States. Most are only six inches long.
Although their size would limit their operational range, research is under way to design small rockets that could propel them long distances.
Compared with the 103ft wingspan of manned American U2 spy planes that take photographs from an altitude of more than 70,000ft, the MAVs will be tiny cousins. But the idea of minute surveillance planes taking pictures of enemy troops from only 300ft up is being taken seriously in the US, according to the latest edition of Jane's International Defence Review.
One MAV being developed by the US Navy Research Laboratory has electric motors on each wingtip to drive folding propellers. The report says that the US Navy is mainly interested in a MAV capable of radar jamming, and its tactical electronic warfare division is designing one with sufficient power for flights of up to 30 minutes. One idea is for a pencil-shaped motor "weighing no more than six grammes". Its speed would be about 30ft a second - as fast as an Olympic sprinter.
Studies in America on hand-size planes began in the early 1990s, and two years ago the US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) launched a for-year MAV programme costing $35 million (£23 million). It chose six inches as the maximum dimensions for MAVs, deliberately to push the technology as far as possible.
The report add: " The small size and light weight of MAVs result in many potential advantages. In addition to low cost and inherently stealthy operations - in terms of noise, radar and visual signatures - these include the ability to carry out unconventional missions".
One role could be to detect and identify biological or chemical agents. If used as a radar-jammer, it could "fly close enough to the target to be effective" Another concept is to provide a downed pilot with reconnaissance information or transmit a signal for search and rescue forces.
Jane's said the prototypes cost up to $50,000 each (about £33,000), but DARPA expected this to drop to $5,000 in production and "hopes to achieve a figure as low as $1,000"
Aerodynamics is one of the main challenges for designers. "The Small size and low speed means they operate in an environment more common to small birds and large insects" .
Researchers are developing a camera that weighs less than one gramme, with an aperture of 2.6mm capable of clear images from 300ft high.
Different ways are being studied for launching MAVs. Apart from tiny rockets, other ideas include "piggy-backing" them on air launched guided missiles or releasing them from unmanned air vehicles such as the American Predator.

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