Bright Onyx Sensor Designed for UAV Homeland Security Missions Published Dec. 4, 2006 By Sensors Directorate AFRL/SN WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio -- AFRL scientists are tailoring a Bright Onyx sensor, an active multispectral chemical, to be in sync with unmanned air vehicle (UAV) performance standards (such as weight, size, and power requirements). The sensor's design enables remote detection of chemicals associated with weapons of mass destruction. The sensor's associated durability thresholds will also enable it to perform at UAV-equivalent speeds and ranges. The Bright Onyx sensor platform's primary task will be homeland security missions, with the sensor specifically serving as an added component of the UAVs responsible for patrolling the skies above US shipping ports. While scientists are grooming Bright Onyx as a UAV-specific sensor, its actual implementation platform has yet to be determined. The long-loiter capabilities of UAVs make them ideal vehicles for achieving the sensor's overall mission. In addition to fulfilling homeland security duties, the sensor could see use during combat operations; Bright Onyx-equipped UAVs operating above the combat zone could alert US forces if chemical or biological weapons were deployed.