Skip to main content

Scientists want to blanket the Earth in sensors. Their secret weapon? Moths

Researchers want to study every square inch of planet Earth. But not every square inch of planet Earth is easy to study. Some areas are challenging for humans to get to in order to monitor. What’s the answer? According to investigators from the University of Washington, the solution is staring us right in the face: Why not use flying insects, such as moths, to place sensors in locations that would ordinarily be difficult to reach?

OK, “placing” sensors may not be entirely accurate. The idea, instead, is to use insects as a flying platform for carrying tiny, lightweight sensors, weighing less than one hundredth of an ounce. This insect-borne sensor can be strapped in place using a small magnetic pin, surrounded by a thin coil of wire. When the insect is in the right location, the researchers remotely trigger the coil to create a magnetic field by generating a current that runs through it. This causes the magnetic pin to pop out of place, and the sensor to safely plunge from a height of up to 72 feet without breaking. It’s the equivalent of a drone delivery or a military supply drop — but, you know, with really small living bugs.

University of Washington researchers have created a 98-milligram sensor system — about one tenth the weight of a jellybean — that can ride on the back of a moth. Shown here is a Manduca sexta moth with the sensor on its back. Mark Stone/University of Washington

“Dropping things from the air is a great way to get things into hard-to-reach places,” Vikram Iyer, a doctoral student in electrical and computer engineering at the University of Washington, told Digital Trends. “This is a strategy people use in disaster scenarios to deliver food and medical supplies, and is usually done with large planes or helicopters. That got us thinking, can we use this same idea with much smaller drones, or even live insects, to release sensors across a large area?”

Recommended Videos

For the most part, dropping a piece of high-tech equipment the equivalent of six floors is bad news. But by making their sensors weigh about the same as a toothpick, even without a parachute they’re light enough that they don’t get damaged in the fall. Iyer likened it to how an ant could survive a fall from the top of the Empire State Building.

Once on the ground, the sensors can then be used to record information such as temperature or humidity (and, in the future, maybe more).

Insects: The platform of the future

Perhaps surprisingly, the University of Washington isn’t the only place interested in repurposing bugs for high-tech uses. Far from it, in fact. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has flown rhinoceros beetles around like miniature RC helicopters. Other research labs have expanded on the notion of remote-controlling insects to create cyborg beetles. They control the signals transmitted to them so that the creatures speed up, slow down, take longer or shorter strides, and even change up their gait according to commands.

Then there are backpack-wearing, bomb-sniffing cyborg grasshoppers developed at Washington University in Missouri, previously described to Digital Trends as a “bridge between neuroscience and engineering.” That work has most recently received funding from the Office of Naval Research.

Mark Stone/University of Washington

It’s hard not to think that spy sensor-dropping armies of moths could have potential military applications. It’s difficult to imagine a more stealthy delivery platform for deploying surveillance sensors than a few harmless moths quietly fluttering through the sky. At present, though, it sounds like the applications are a bit more rooted in fundamental research.

While it’s early days for the project, the brilliance of the central idea is that it could be customized according to requirements — and the development of the necessary sensing technology to record whatever information you’re looking for.

How will it be used?

The researchers on the project believe that, using their unusual technique, it would be possible to effectively carpet bomb large areas with tiny sensors for monitoring data such as the conditions in a large area of forest. The sensing devices can transmit data at ranges up to 1 kilometer (0.6 miles), and consumes so little power that it has the potential to run for years on a single battery.

Dropping Sensors From Live Moths

“Environmental research like maybe detecting the spread of forest fires or monitoring emissions over a large area are potential applications,” Maruchi Kim, another doctoral student who worked on the project, told Digital Trends. “Smart farms could also benefit from being able to quickly deploy things over a large area, as well as in spaces like industrial plants where you might have hard-to-reach places where you need to put a sensor. Another potential area is studying small animals or invasive species; you could attach this to something like a small bird or insect and use the onboard temperature sensor to release it when it gets to a nest, likely indicated by a temperature spike.”

Kim said the researchers are currently working with the Washington State Department of Agriculture to help track the invasive Asian giant hornet. “At the moment, we’re just using the wireless sensor part with the goal of following a live hornet back to a colony,” he said. “But in the future, we could add the release mechanism and drop the device once it reaches a nest.”

A paper describing the work, titled “Airdropping sensor networks from drones and insects,” was recently presented at the MobiCom 2020 conference.

Luke Dormehl
Former Digital Trends Contributor
I'm a UK-based tech writer covering Cool Tech at Digital Trends. I've also written for Fast Company, Wired, the Guardian…
Nissan launches charging network, gives Ariya access to Tesla SuperChargers
nissan charging ariya superchargers at station

Nissan just launched a charging network that gives owners of its EVs access to 90,000 charging stations on the Electrify America, Shell Recharge, ChargePoint and EVgo networks, all via the MyNissan app.It doesn’t stop there: Later this year, Nissan Ariya vehicles will be getting a North American Charging Standard (NACS) adapter, also known as the Tesla plug. And in 2025, Nissan will be offering electric vehicles (EVs) with a NACS port, giving access to Tesla’s SuperCharger network in the U.S. and Canada.Starting in November, Nissan EV drivers can use their MyNissan app to find charging stations, see charger availability in real time, and pay for charging with a payment method set up in the app.The Nissan Leaf, however, won’t have access to the functionality since the EV’s charging connector is not compatible. Leaf owners can still find charging stations through the NissanConnectEV and Services app.Meanwhile, the Nissan Ariya, and most EVs sold in the U.S., have a Combined Charging System Combo 1 (CCS1) port, which allows access to the Tesla SuperCharger network via an adapter.Nissan is joining the ever-growing list of automakers to adopt NACS. With adapters, EVs made by General Motors, Ford, Rivian, Honda and Volvo can already access the SuperCharger network. Kia, Hyundai, Toyota, BMW, Volkswagen, and Jaguar have also signed agreements to allow access in 2025.
Nissan has not revealed whether the adapter for the Ariya will be free or come at a cost. Some companies, such as Ford, Rivian and Kia, have provided adapters for free.
With its new Nissan Energy Charge Network and access to NACS, Nissan is pretty much covering all the bases for its EV drivers in need of charging up. ChargePoint has the largest EV charging network in the U.S., with over 38,500 stations and 70,000 charging ports at the end of July. Tesla's charging network is the second largest, though not all of its charging stations are part of the SuperCharger network.

Read more
Juiced Bikes sold at auction for $1.2 million, report says
The Juiced Bikes Scorpion X2 adds more power, upgraded tires, and an improved battery to the popular moped style e-bike.

Juiced Bikes, the San Diego-based maker of e-bikes, has been sold on an auction website for $1,225,000, according to a report from Electrek.Digital Trends recently reported how the company was showing signs of being on the brink of bankruptcy. The company and its executives had remained silent, while customer inquiries went unanswered and its website showed all products were out of stock. In addition, there were numerous reports of layoffs at the company.Yet, the most convincing sign was that the company’s assets appeared as listed for sale on an auction website used by companies that go out of business.Now, it appears that Juiced Bikes’ assets, including a dozen patents, multiple URLs, and the company’s inventory in both the U.S. and China, have been sold at auction, according to the report. It is likely that the buyer, who remains unknown, can capitalize on the brand and the overall value of the 15-year old company. Founded in 2009 by Tora Harris, a U.S. high-jump Olympian, Juiced Bikes was one of the early pioneers of the direct-to-consumer e-bike brands in the U.S. market.
The company had quickly built a reputation for the versatility of its e-bikes and the durability of their batteries. Over the years, the popularity of models such as the CrossCurrent, HyperScrambler, and RipCurrent only bolstered the brand’s status.Last year, Digital Trends named the Juiced Bikes Scorpion X2 as the best moped-style e-bike for 2023, citing its versatility, rich feature set, and performance.Juiced Bikes’ getting sold quickly might be a sign of what consulting firm Houlihan Lokey says is a recovery in the North American e-bike market.
The industry has had a roller-coaster ride during and after the COVID-19 pandemic: A huge spike in demand for e-bikes had combined with disrupted supply chains to create a supply/demand mismatch of “historic proportions," Houlihan Lokey said.

Read more
Rivian gets Knight Rider spooky for Halloween
Michael Knight sitting on the hood of his car KITT in a scene from Knight Rider.

Rivian vehicles are known for giving drivers the chance to take the party on the road, whether it’s stowing a travel kitchen onboard or using its elaborate software systems to spice things up.With Halloween just around the corner, the automaker based in Plymouth, Michigan, is pulling out some treats from its bag of tricks: Rivian owners are getting a number of options to turn their vehicles into traditional spooky or full-on sci-fi entertainment hubs.A software update available on the Rivian Mobile App until November 4 provides Car Costumes, which take over the vehicle’s screen, lighting, and sound systems while in park to transform it into three different cars.Nostalgic fans of the Knight Rider TV series will be pleased with the option to turn their Rivians into the famous K.I.T.T. crime-fighting car. After choosing the option on the app, the car’s interior display system features K.I.T.T.’s diagnostics on screen while playing the original show intro music. Here's an extra treat for Rivian Gen 2 owners: The exterior light bar will feature K.I.T.T.’s iconic beaming red light while playing its scanner sound effect.No-less nostalgic fans of Back to the Future movies will also get their treat with a chance to turn their vehicle into the DeLorean Time Machine. With this option, the screen turns into the classic time-traveling interface while the audio system plays the movie’s music and acceleration sound effects. Once again, Rivian Gen 2 owners get an extra treat. Hitting the key 88 mph button will engage the car’s lighting and sound effects in the front and back of the car to whizz you through the sound barrier.For a more traditional spooky time, you can opt for the Haunted Rivian car costume, featuring eight different sound effects and three different color themes. Static and ghosts will take over your interior display.Rivian Gen 1 owners get a green animation on the outside of the vehicle. Gen 2 owners can turn the exterior light bar into whichever color option they find most frightful.

Read more