U of M blimp to study riverbank erosion: Free Press

Goodyear blimp, eat your heart out.
The University of Manitoba engineering school launched its own blimp this morning � a seven-meter-long craft that will photograph riverbank erosion in a major research project.

�We�re doing an asset management study for the city of Winnipeg,� said civil engineering Prof. James Blatz.

Blatz said that aerial photography can detect far more movement and shifts in riverbanks than can ground-level surveys.

�It costs a lot of money to take a plane and fly the river,� but the blimp, technically called an aerostat, �only costs about $150 each time to put it in the air � that�s for helium.�

The blimp is tethered, and will usually be operated from a boat, taking photos from about 40-metres high.

The blimp costs $3,000 and its camera equipment another $3,000, and is funded by federal research grants.

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