Operation Polar Eye: Think Like a Drone (virtual event)

Operation Polar Eye is an environmental tech initiative that allows the San Diego National Zoo and Northrop Grumman to collaborate to help track polar bear activity in a non-invasive manner. Polar bears can only start hunting with the formation of ice. As it takes longer for the formation to begin and earlier to melt, polar bears are put into a precarious position of an extremely shortened hunting season. Northrop Grumman’s drone can survive the harsh environment of the arctic and allows scientists to study the formation of ice and the movement of polar bears as they navigate through their shortened season. Students will work in groups to create a process that maximizes the area surveyed by a drone; then follow another group’s process to calculate the area covered. Through this process, students gain an understanding of how computational thinking skills apply to a real-world problem-solving scenario such as Northrop Grumman’s environmental tech initiative, Operation Polar Eye.

Part of the Northrop Grumman Back to School STEM series. Learn more >

Guest Speakers: Joseph Wilkerson, Education Director, Learning Undefeated; James Hong, Instructional Designer, Learning Undefeated

Northrop Grumman STEM Core Capabilities Covered: computer science and engineering

Intended Audience: high school students, parents and educators