Russia's drones have created a brand-new form of pollution

"The Russian invasion of Ukraine will have long-lasting consequences for all of us. Like the 1939 invasion of Poland introduced the world to 'blitzkrieg'-high-speed tanks and air power quickly jumping enveloping and eliminating enemy lines-this war is the herald of a new military era of relentless unmanned war machines hunting the enemy through air, land, and water. The drones are part of a new, high-speed technological race with a major unintended consequence: endless miles of plastic string pollution."

"After Russia's wireless first-person view (FPV) drones were routinely thwarted by Ukrainian radio interference weapons, some unknown Russian engineer thought the best way to neutralize these countermeasures was by ditching radio signals for miles-long cables, just like some wire-guided anti-tank missiles use. The method proved successful for Russia. And now Ukranians have copied it, as the frontlines are quickly filling up with white plastic cables that sometimes cover entire fields, forests, and small towns."

"These plastic spider-webs are invading everything, as the two sides relentlessly launch wave after wave of these kamikaze machines, each of them equipped with spools of fiber-optic cables that directly connect the drones to the pilots that use joysticks and virtual reality goggles to control them. At the beginning, they could barely reach 3 to 6 miles. Today, they're striking targets at distances exceeding 25 miles."

The conflict has introduced tethered FPV drones that bypass radio jamming by running fiber-optic cables from pilot to drone. Both sides deploy kamikaze drones with spools of ultra-thin, lightweight fiber-optic cable that extend operational range dramatically. Frontlines and surrounding areas are being covered by miles of white plastic cable across fields, forests, and towns. Pilots use joysticks and virtual reality goggles to steer drones directly through the fiber link. Range has grown from initial 3 to 6 miles to beyond 25 miles as cable and system capabilities improved. The widespread cables produce significant plastic pollution.

Read at Fast Company