The Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang featured a massive drone display over the night sky. In the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2018 Olympics, the drones took center stage. Intel dazzled the crowd with LED drones lighting up the sky. It was so successful in fact that other events like Coachella and several concerts started looking into these drone displays.
This drone presentation is a modern take on the ancient firework displays. In fact, you may soon see these events replacing fireworks completely. For one, drones do not make a lot of noise. A lot of the noise from fireworks are a pain to the senses. Drones also do not come with unhealthy smoke that accompanies firecracker combustion. Lastly, these drone presentations last longer in the sky. Compared to fireworks that only light up the night for a few seconds at a time, drones can show a display for as long as you want.
In China, a drone display shattered the record for most drones used, previously owned by Intel at the Olympics. The company Ehang, another drone manufacturing entity, was behind this display. They made headlines last year for their ongoing project for a fully sized taxi drone.
Ehang Drone Display:
The drone display Ehang created for a Labor Day Show at the city of Xi’an involved 1,374 drones. A remarkable feat beating the previous record by Intel of 1,218. The show lasted about 13 minutes in front of an onlooking audience.
The drone presentation did not have a perfect show, however. It seemed that glitches occurred in various parts of the show, making the patterns look chaotic. The record, however, was for most drones used, and not about the patterns created.
For the most part, it seems the competition is on. The current record of 1,374 drones seem reachable enough, if the venue is large enough. Surely sooner rather than later, this record would be broken again.
