Exercising in nature is superior to exercising in the city or at the gym

Exercising in green surroundings improves mood, reduces stress levels, and improves heart rate compared to exercising in the city or indoors. This is shown by new research from the University of Copenhagen. The study provides new insights that can be used

University of Copenhagen

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Exercising in green surroundings improves mood, reduces stress levels, and improves heart rate compared to exercising in the city or indoors. This is shown by new research from the University of Copenhagen. The study provides new insights that can be used to improve public health.

An hour of brisk walking in the forest, on the beach, or in a green park reduces stress hormones, improves mood, and makes exercise easier to enjoy. This is shown by a new study from researchers at the University of Copenhagen and the University of Verona.

Twenty-five young men participated in the experiment, in which they had to walk at the same pace in three different environments: a natural area, an urban route, and an indoor fitness environment. After each walk, their mood, stress levels, and physical exertion were measured—and the results were clear.

“The participants felt significantly more relaxed and had lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol after walking in nature. At the same time, they reported greater joy and less fatigue,” says Associate Professor Stefano De Dominicis from the Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports at the University of Copenhagen.

The study is among the first to combine physiological measurements with the participants' own experiences in green, urban, and indoor environments and examine the connection between the two.

“It is not new or surprising that nature is good for our health. But there has been a lack of research examining both the mental and physical effects of exercise in nature compared to the gym and the city. Our study shows that nature is superior to the other two environments in several areas,” says Associate Professor Stefano De Dominicis.

Our brain loves nature

The study clearly shows that exercise in nature provides far greater mental benefits than both urban and indoor environments. Participants rated nature as clearly the most recharging, and they experienced more positive emotions—such as joy, satisfaction, and optimism—than in both urban and indoor environments.

At the same time, negative emotions such as anxiety, irritation, and boredom were significantly lower in nature. For example, feelings of boredom increased after a walk indoors, while they decreased in nature. The experience of calm was also highest in nature, while it decreased most indoors.

“Humans were born in nature and we have undergone most of our evolution in it. Therefore, it is not surprising that we feel good when we are in it,” says Stefano De Dominicis.

Finally, the participants had a significantly greater desire to repeat the activity in nature, where the intention to continue was at a completely different level than in the city and indoors.

“The figures show that nature not only gives a short-term boost to mood—it also reduces negative feelings and increases motivation to continue being physically active,” says the researcher.

Use nature once a week

The physiological measurements supported the participants' experience of exercising in nature. Among other things, the researchers measured that the participants' heart rates dropped more quickly after a walk in nature.

At the same time, heart rate variability, which shows how well the body activates the parasympathetic nervous system that promotes calm and recovery, was 20-30 percent higher than during the indoor walk. 

However, the researcher emphasizes that there are also many benefits to exercising indoors. For example, the social element of playing a team sport or small talk at the gym. However, he believes that it makes sense to incorporate outdoor exercise into your weekly exercise program.

“The mental and physical benefits seem to be significantly greater when exercising in nature, so people can benefit greatly from replacing just one of their weekly indoor workouts with 30 minutes of exercise in green surroundings,” he says.

May benefit public health more than we thought

The study also points out that the surroundings play a greater role in our motivation and recovery than previously assumed, as the participants' experience of exercise in the three environments is now backed up by physical measurements. This provides important new insights that the researchers hope will benefit both public health and future urban planning.

“We see great potential in using nature as a driving force for physical activity—especially for those who find it difficult to get started,” says Stefano De Dominicis from the University of Copenhagen.

The researchers recommend that municipalities and health professionals give greater consideration to green spaces in public health strategies and exercise programs for, for example, overweight people and people with mental health issues.

FACT BOX: Nature as a gym

The study "Evaluating the benefits of green exercise: A randomized controlled trial in natural and

built environments assessed for their restorative properties" was published in:

Psychology of Sport and Exercise, September 2025 [LINK]

Research design: Randomized crossover study with 25 young men

Environments studied: Natural environment (forest park), urban area (urban walking environment), indoors

(laboratory with treadmill)

 

Activity: 1 hour of walking at a moderate pace (6 km/h) in each environment

Measurements included: Psychological: stress, mood, joy, intention to repeat exercise

Physiological: heart rate, heart rate variability (HRV), cortisol level in saliva

Main results:

The natural environment provided the greatest sense of relaxation and well-being

Cortisol and heart rate decreased most in nature

Participants enjoyed exercise most in green spaces and felt less exhausted

Nature increased motivation to exercise again

Behind the research:

A collaboration between researchers from the University of Verona and the University of Copenhagen, among others

Funding: Supported by the EU's NextGenerationEU program and the iNEST initiative

Journal

Psychology of Sport and Exercise

DOI

10.1016/j.psychsport.2025.102883 

Article Title

Evaluating the benefits of green exercise: A randomized controlled trial in natural and built environments assessed for their restorative properties

Article Publication Date

17-Sep-2025

 

Young girls may be less responsive to food fullness cues than young boys

Study conducted in four- to six-year-old children found girls did not adjust meal size following a serving of fruit, while boys did

Penn State

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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Young boys ate less during a meal if they had already consumed a serving of fruit, but girls ate the same amount of the meal whether or not they had eaten fruit, researchers in the Penn State Department of Nutritional Sciences found in a recent study.

The researchers said this study, available online now and scheduled to publish in an upcoming issue of Appetite, indicates potential differences in how young children respond to their bodies’ hunger and fullness cues. The researchers suggested that young girls may be socialized to pay attention to external or environmental cues when deciding how much to eat, whereas boys may focus on listening to their bodies.

In another finding from the study, the researchers demonstrated that whether the pre-meal fruit was served whole, pureed or as juice did not influence how much the children consumed overall. This result was a departure from a finding in adults, according to a previous study by researchers at Penn State.  

“Boys in this study adjusted the total number of calories they consumed during the meal to accommodate their snack intake whereas girls consumed a similar amount at the meal regardless of whether they had a snack ,” said Kathleen Keller, professor and Helen A. Guthrie Chair of Nutritional Sciences at Penn State and senior author of this research study. “That boys adjusted for their snack is a good thing — it suggests that they are able to listen to their bodies. Girls, on the other hand, may have been eating based on other social or environmental cues around them, regardless of their hunger.” 

Carefully comparing food forms 

The researchers recruited 64 children — 32 boys and 32 girls — between the ages of four and six years old. Each child participated in the experiment five times with a one-week break between sessions. At each session, the child was offered a different pre-meal snack — apple slices, applesauce, apple juice, low-calorie apple juice or no snack. All snacks were the same number of calories, except for the low-calorie apple juice and the condition with no snack.   

The volume of a food can influence how full it makes people feel, according to prior research from Penn State. To account for this, the researchers used a box shaped like a large apple to disguise the volume of the snack.  

Speed of consumption also influences how full food makes people feel, with faster eating or drinking associated with lower feelings of fullness, according to Keller. To help control eating pace in this study, the researchers read the children an apple-themed story. When apples were mentioned, it was a cue for the child to reach into the box and get a portion of snack to eat — for example, a single apple slice or a spoonful of applesauce. Overall, children consumed 16 portions of the snack, which was approximately equal to a medium-sized apple. 

About eight minutes after the snack and story were finished, the researchers offered the children a full meal with macaroni and cheese, carrots, grapes, graham crackers, broccoli and a glass of water. Children were provided with additional portions of any food item if they requested it. Once the child was done eating, the researchers weighed the remaining portion of each food individually and calculated exactly how many calories the child consumed of each food. Children who did not consume the meal due to picky eating were excluded from the analysis.  

After analyzing the data, the researchers found the form of food had no effect on how much the children consumed. Taken together, the data revealed that children in the study reduced the number of calories consumed during the meal to account for the pre-meal snack. However, this result was driven by boys and did not hold true when the girls’ data were analyzed separately.  

Boys adjusted calorie intake to account for the snacks they ate and — regardless of food form — were better at regulating intake than girls. Girls, on the other hand, did not adjust the amount of the meal they consumed based on how much of the pre-meal snack they had eaten.  

Why girls ate more 

The exact reasons for the sex-based difference in eating behavior were not measured in this experiment, but Keller, a Penn State Social Science Research Institute co-funded faculty member, identified two factors that she said she believes are likely to contribute to the disparity.  

“The messaging around food differs for men and women in society, and this study suggests these messages start at a very young age,” said Keller, who is president of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior, an international research organization dedicated to advancing scientific research on food and fluid intake. “For women, thinness is highly valued, so it is possible that parents, caretakers and teachers are subtly sending the message to young girls that they should focus on what people say they should eat rather than on what their body is telling them. Girls are also known to be more socially compliant, making them more likely to pay attention to environmental cues when deciding how much or what to eat.”

The other mechanism that Keller said probably contributed to this result is a component of the maturation process.

“There is evidence showing that all babies — boys and girls — are able to regulate how much they eat,” Keller said. “They eat when they are hungry and stop when they are full. But as they age, humans lose this natural ability as they learn to read social cues for how much they should eat.”

Prior research has demonstrated girls develop socially more rapidly than boys, and Keller said that it is possible the results between boys and girls may have been more similar if the children were older and the boys had time to learn the social cues the girls were attending to.

Relearning to listen to our bodies 

Keller said this attention to social cues can be useful. For example, children learn what foods are safe to eat and what foods should be avoided by observing the behaviors of family and peers.

For people living in a society with easy access to high calorie-density foods, however, Keller said this loss of connection between fullness and how much is eaten may contribute to problems like obesity or disordered eating.

“This result provides another reminder that we all need to be listening to our bodies. If we pay attention, our bodies provide cues that we have eaten enough. But external influences like advertising, packaging, portion size, and taste can heighten the pleasure of food and overwhelm our innate biological awareness of fullness.” If people can learn to listen for those cues again, we may be able to live healthier lifestyles.”

Beyond the general implications, Keller emphasized the importance of these findings for parents of young children.

“For as long as possible, parents should encourage children to focus on how they feel internally,” Keller said. “By necessity, kids frequently have regimented schedules and are given food at times when they are not hungry. It is important for kids to understand when they are eating for hunger and when they aren’t. All of us snack occasionally when we aren’t hungry, but when we do this repeatedly without checking in with our bodies, it can become problematic.”

Barbara Rolls, professor of nutritional sciences at Penn State, conducted the study of food forms in adults, which served as the model for this study. She contributed to this research as well.

Benjamin Baney, research coordinator in nutritional sciences at Penn State; Lori Francis, professor of biobehavioral health at Penn State; Kristin Buss, Tracy Winfree and Ted H. McCourtney Professor in Children, Work, and Families and professor of psychology and of human development and family studies at Penn State; John Hayes, professor of food science at Penn State; Nicole Reigh, Nutrition Systematic Review Analyst at the United States Department of Agriculture; Marion M. Hetherington, professor emerita in biopsychology at University of Leeds, United Kingdom; Kameron Moding, assistant professor of human development and family studies at Purdue University; and Samantha MR Kling, quantitative research scientist in the Evaluation Sciences Unit at Stanford University, also contributed to this research.

The Penn State Social Science Research Institute provided funding for this study.

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Journal

Appetite

DOI

10.1016/j.appet.2025.108269 

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Effects of apple form on satiety in 4–6 year-old children: possible evidence of sex differences

 

New research may help offshore energy be more bird-friendly

Cornell University

Ithaca, NY—A new study published today in the Journal of Applied Ecology revealed when, where, and how many birds migrate offshore over North American coastal waters. This offers a baseline to help wind energy managers reduce unintended yet fatal bird-wind turbine collisions in the coming years while generating sustainable energy.

The researchers utilized 10 years of weather radar data from 16 sites to find that offshore migration over the Atlantic coast and the Gulf of Mexico occurs in more concentrated pulses for a shorter time compared to terrestrial migration over land. The study also noted that more birds migrate in the fall than in the spring, including young birds making their first-ever journey south.

 

“Offshore migration takes place in fewer nights than terrestrial migration because birds may be more selective about when to migrate over water,” said Shannon Curley, the lead author of the study and a postdoctoral fellow at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. “Large bodies of water lack places to rest and refuel, so birds may wait for ideal weather conditions, such as favorable winds, before making an offshore crossing.”

 

This shorter yet critical window of time for the millions of birds migrating offshore each year may offer wind energy managers an opportunity to reduce collisions. Managers could pause wind turbine operation when migration is most intense—a practice that is currently more common in Europe than North America, according to Adriaan Dokter, a co-author of the study and a research associate at the Cornell Lab. He is also the leader of the BirdCast project, which uses weather radar data to monitor and predict bird migration in North America.

 

“These peak nights [of migration] tend to have fairly nice weather and calmer winds, and are therefore not the nights where wind operators have a huge energy harvest,” Dokter said. “So there might be a sweet spot where we can target these big migration nights and give these birds safe passage, with limited loss of energy.”

 

The study also found that birds migrating offshore fly at lower altitudes than those migrating over land. Offshore migrants fly about 13 to 20% lower than their terrestrial counterparts, potentially putting them at greater risk of wind turbine collisions. 

 

Offshore migration is common on both coastlines the researchers examined, with hundreds of millions of birds involved. However, the researchers found that more birds cross the western portion of the Gulf of Mexico in the spring and the eastern portion in the fall. This information may allow wind energy managers to adjust operations seasonally to reduce potential fatalities. 

 

The number of bird fatalities at offshore sites is unknown because of the difficulty in finding carcasses before they wash away, hence using radar technology to identify high-risk areas is key. At terrestrial turbine sites, the number of bird fatalities reported ranges from 140,000 to 327,000 in the U.S. annually according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Another study in 2015 estimated that terrestrial turbines accounted for less than .02% of mortality from all human-caused hazards with outdoors cats and window strikes accounting for far more fatalities. 

 

With one-third of all American bird species rapidly declining according to the U.S. State of the Birds report, data-driven decisions about turbine siting and operations can point the way to sustainable energy while also saving birds, the researchers said.

 

 “Our hope is that this work will help identify high-risk, high-use areas for birds and work towards positive green energy solutions,” Curley said. 

 

The research team included scientists from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and the University of Amsterdam. The funding for this study came from the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

Curley, S.R., Farnsworth A., White T., Shamoun-Baranes J.Z., and Dokter A.M. (2025). Differences between terrestrial and offshore bird migration: implications for offshore wind energy. Journal of Applied Ecology DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.70158

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Journal

Journal of Applied Ecology

 

Foster care study calls for better training, support

Research shows caregivers want ongoing, trauma-informed education and stronger peer networks

University of Cincinnati

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A new pilot study by University of Cincinnati researchers finds that foster caregivers across the U.S. need more accessible, ongoing and community-driven training.

Government data shows that from 2014-23, the average number of kids in foster care in the U.S. was 407,576, about half of whom were placed in licensed foster homes. The remainder of foster kids often live in what is known as kinship care, meaning with a relative or close family member.

While the number of foster care homes has been steadily declining, those who already foster say they need more education, training and social support, according to UC researchers.          

The study, published in the Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, was led by Catelyn Smeyne, who earned her doctorate in psychology at UC while conducting this research. “Foster and kinship caregivers take on one of the most vital and demanding roles in our society, yet too often they are asked to do it without the tools they need,” Smeyne says.

The research revealed that caregivers seek sustainable learning, consistent support and meaningful connection with peers and experts.

“Foster and kinship caregivers reported that this meaningful caretaking role is typically done in a vacuum,” says Smeyne. “They craved social support, both from [others] with similar experiences and from child welfare staff and experts in the field.”

Smeyne added that training efforts for caregivers of vulnerable children should be “meaningful, ongoing and supplemented with follow-up support.”

“It was clear that caregivers who participated in this research desired more than a one-time training opportunity,” Smeyne says. “They wanted access to ongoing sources of knowledge and a sustainable community to continually support them in their demanding roles.”

Accessibility

Co-author Carlie Trott, PhD, UC assistant professor of psychology, emphasized the importance of accessibility in translating research findings into practice.

“When empirical research generates insight into trauma-informed best practices, foster and kinship caregivers should be first in line to receive this information in an accessible way,” Trott says.

Accessibility, Trott adds, means not only ensuring that research findings are understood by caregivers, but also that the information is delivered in an accessible manner that fits into caregivers’ busy lives. “Virtual training can improve accessibility.”

Community collaboration

The study, both say, also underscores the importance of community-engaged, strengths-based research that draws directly from the lived experiences of caregivers and youth within the child welfare system.

“Real change begins when research is done with communities, not to them,” Smeyne says. “By honoring the wisdom of caregivers and youth, and translating that knowledge into clear, practical tools, we can create authentic, effective solutions that empower caregivers to provide the kind of support that helps children heal and flourish.”

Community collaboration was essential to this work, said Julie Cooper, president of Trauma Free World, a nonprofit organization equipping adults with skills to transform lives, workplaces and communities. Cooper was one of the study’s partners, and Smeyne now serves the organization as the research director.

Smeyne emphasized that being able to conduct additional research while at UC during her graduate studies was beneficial to her professional development. “It gave me the confidence I needed to successfully pursue independent research in a community [or] nonprofit setting, allowing me to learn invaluable lessons that the thesis and dissertation requirements may not have taught me.”  

The research was made possible, Cooper says, “because our community came together  through a collaboration between UC, Trauma Free World, local foster care agencies and financial support from the James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Foundation.”  

That kind of collaboration, she says, “is how real change happens for children and families.” 

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Journal

Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal

Method of Research

Survey

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Trauma Competent Caregiving: A Pilot Examination of a Virtual Trauma-Informed Caregiver Training for Foster and Kinship Parents

 

How meat alternatives ended up on Sweden’s supermarket shelves

Uppsala University

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image: 

Thomas Lennerfors, Professor of Industrial Engineering at the Department of Civil and Industrial Engineering at Uppsala University

And

Helena Fornstedt, postdoc at the Department of Civil and Industrial Engineering at Uppsala University.

view more 

Credit: Mikael Wallerstedt, Uppsala University

Twenty years ago, vegetarian options in Swedish supermarkets were few and far between. Today there is a broad selection of products available including vegetarian sausages and fillets, and veggie balls, the vegetarian version of meatballs. New research from Uppsala University shows how a range of actors have managed to drive this change, despite the fact that interest from politicians has been lukewarm at best.

A Swedish meat producer launches veggie balls – how did that come about? In a new study published in Technological Forecasting and Social Change, researchers describe how plant-based meat alternatives were able to gain ground in supermarkets.

“In the study, we show that a transition to more sustainable foods can be driven by businesses, consumers and civil society, even where there is little policy support – but that the focus then ends up on certain types of food products and not on others. More active policy is needed to steer this development, for example through dietary guidelines, research funding, taxation or subsidies,” says Thomas Lennerfors, one of the authors of the study.

Meat alternative rather than lentil soup

This development might not have happened without certain advantages that meat alternatives have, which the researchers call pragmatic legitimacy. They have been accepted because they are easy to prepare, available at a reasonable price to consumers, and are profitable for producers.

Since this development has mainly entailed creating new, easy-to-prepare products that companies can sell, the focus has been on alternatives that mimic meat.

“Some of these products have some problems with their nutritional content. For the ordinary consumer, it might be cheaper and healthier to learn how to prepare tasty vegetarian food, such as a lentil casserole, instead of choosing a veggie burger with a lot of salad dressing. But there is no particular focus on changing food habits in that direction. Instead, the emphasis has been on introducing new vegetarian products that mimic meat, targeting people who otherwise eat a lot of meat,” says Helena Fornstedt, the study’s lead author.

Based on interviews, newspaper articles, and reports

The study is based on interviews with 41 people who have worked with plant-based food in Sweden in various capacities. The researchers talked to entrepreneurs, product developers, chefs, farmers, researchers, buyers, journalists, and people in the public sector. In addition, they reviewed newspaper articles, reports, and scientific studies.

In the study, the researchers identify four events that were particularly important for this change:

In 2006, the UN released the report Livestock’s Long Shadow, which highlights the environmental impact of meat production. That same year, the issue of climate change gained widespread attention through American Democrat Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth, and the Stern report from the UK, which showed that ignoring global warming is far more expensive than taking steps to curb it. This mobilised many people in Sweden to begin working to reduce meat consumption.

In 2012, the Swedish National Food Agency began including sustainability aspects in its evidence-based nutrition recommendations. This included recommending consuming no more than 500 grams of red meat per week.

In 2015, Oumph! – the first plant-based product with a texture reminiscent of meat – was launched in Sweden. The launch increases interest in meat alternatives and attracts private investors. In the same year, food industry management consultants Macklean published their protein shift report. The report stimulated a series of articles in national daily newspaper Svenska Dagbladet, which in turn led to the word proteinskifte (Swedish for protein shift) entering the Swedish vocabulary in 2016.

In 2016, a Swedish Food Strategy was adopted. For the first time since Sweden’s accession to the EU, the spotlight turned once again onto Swedish food production. The Strategy also meant that public funding for research and innovation in the area of plant-based foods became more readily available.

How various companies were inspired to change becomes clear in the researchers’ interviews. According to a representative of a hamburger chain, the documentary An Inconvenient Truth was the catalyst for them to become more dedicated to their work for sustainability. A meat company began to take an interest in vegetarian food after the Macklean consultancy firm released their report on the protein shift.

This development could have happened faster

The study shows that many small acts can together change an entire system. It also points out that it is possible to build different forms of legitimation for more sustainable food. The researchers also argue that the development of sustainable vegetarian alternatives could be significantly faster if policy took a more active role.

“More supportive policy that aims to drive change along with clearer initiatives from government agencies could accelerate and steer this development in multiple ways. These efforts could include recommendations from government agencies, similar to the National Food Agency’s dietary guidelines, or research funding that creates better opportunities for the development of delicious and nutritious products. Development can also be promoted through legislation, taxation and subsidies – for example a tax on meat or support for plant-based alternatives,” says Helena Fornstedt.

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Journal

Technological Forecasting and Social Change

DOI

10.1016/j.techfore.2025.124283 

Article Title

How configurations of legitimacy shape directionality in technological innovation systems: The case of plant-based meat alternatives in Sweden

 

Researchers will develop spectrum technologies for safer, more reliable communication for drones and air taxis

University of Kansas

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LAWRENCE — In a few short years, your retail orders and even medical care may arrive via drone delivery. You might hop aboard an air taxi to glide to an important business meeting. Meanwhile, a drone-delivered defibrillator might save a neighbor’s life because it came before the ambulance.

But all these drones will need excellent communication to operate safely and dependably.

Now, with a $760,000 research grant from the National Science Foundation, investigators at the University of Kansas will develop “intelligent spectrum management frameworks” to enable reliable communication for drones as they become more ubiquitous. To this end, they’ll test a slice of interference-protected, aviation-grade electromagnetic spectrum now being assessed for drone use by the Federal Communications Commission.

“The FCC has proposed repurposing the 5030–5091 MHz ‘C-band’ for drone use cases. Our goal is to study how to use this spectrum band efficiently,” said Morteza Hashemi, associate professor of electrical engineering & computer science at KU, who will direct the work planned under the NSF award. “They’re looking to allocate this spectrum band to the UAVs so that they’d have interference-protected communication links for reliable data transfer between a UAV and a ground control station."

Hashemi and his KU colleagues — Shawn Keshmiri, the Charles E. & Mary Jane Spahr Professor in Aerospace Engineering, and Tarun Sabarwal, professor of economics and director of Center for Analytical Research in Economics — will develop a Dynamic Frequency Management System (DFMS) that coordinates spectrum access in this frequency band. Their project is dubbed “AeroSpec: An Adaptive Spectrum Framework for Autonomous Aerial Systems.”

“There’s only around 60 MHz available in the frequency band under consideration by the FCC, so efficient spectrum allocation and usage is very important to support more drone operators and improve spectrum utilization,” Hashemi said.

In considering technical challenges, Hashemi and his collaborators will develop spectrum coexistence algorithms, artificial intelligence-based spectrum sensing techniques and decentralized “advance-reservation” market systems.

The KU researcher said third-party service providers will enable dynamic, time- and location-based spectrum access for drone operators, creating a dynamic “pay-as-you-fly” market for drone operations.

According to Hashemi, a future with more drones in the skies would benefit Americans with quicker deliveries, faster personal transportation and more timely emergency response. In rural, tribal and agricultural areas, benefits could be even weightier.

“Time-sensitive deliveries, like medical supplies to remote communities or tribal nations, can take hours today,” Hashemi said. “Drones (UAVs) are especially valuable in rural areas, where long distances and limited infrastructure slow ground transport. And in disaster-affected regions, they can deliver supplies, extend communications and provide situational awareness for public safety teams.”

In addition to developing dynamic spectrum access algorithms, the team will conduct actual multi-UAV flight tests, taking place at KU’s Flight Research Lab and aerospace engineering department.

"Our objective is not only developing dynamic spectrum algorithms for UAVs but also testing and validating those algorithms using real systems,” Hashemi said. “We’re going to flight-test multiple UAVs sending and receiving data. We will examine the bandwidth and spectrum requirements by collecting measurements under various conditions. The flight test will involve multiple UAVs flying at the same time for extensive wireless channel measurements in this frequency band and to assess whether dynamic spectrum policy could meet safety and regulatory requirements.”

In addition to development of better technology for drone communications, the project aims to train the next generation of researchers in the field across several disciplines.

“Graduate and undergraduate students are the engine of our research,” Hashemi said. “This project is highly interdisciplinary, which will require the students to work across departments, from engineering to economics. This will better prepare the next generation of the U.S. workforce, as they can collaborate with other disciplines beyond their primary field of study.”