What to know about the ‘special drone detection technology’ requested for NJ and NY

Gotham has Batman, but New York wants Robin.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., said over the weekend that the Department of Homeland Security should send special drone detection technology made by Robin Radar Systems for New York and New Jersey after a series of mysterious sightings.

“If the technology exists for a drone to get into the sky, surely the technology exists to track the craft with precision and determine what the heck is going on,” Schumer told reporters Sunday.

Schumer said he is requesting Robin’s equipment in part because it uses “not a linear line of sight, but 360-degree technology that has a much better chance of detecting these drones.”

In recent years, Dutch-based Robin Radar Systems has become more prominent, although its hardware is not only used to track drones.

Robin is part of a consortium development of small radar satellites that can measure the water level, according to the Dutch space office. In February, the company too deployed four bird detection radars to support the creation of what has been designated as the world’s most ecological wind farm in the Dutch part of the North Sea.

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In early October 2023, Robin announced that it had joined a group of organizations working on the development of the world’s most advanced weather radarknown as PHARA. The group’s mission is to “develop a fully 3D weather radar that can accurately track the movement and growth process of cloud particles and large weather fronts.” “Detecting small objects is what we do, and it’s what we do best,” the company says on its website. “Bird, bat or drone, our 360° radar systems log thousands of observations and scans every second to track and classify with precision.”

Robin’s systems have also been used in at least one notable military context. In early August, the Dutch Ministry of Defense announced that it had purchased 51 drone radars from the company and planned to donate them to Ukraine as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s forces try to fend off Russian airstrikes.

In a press release announcing the acquisition, Robin explained that “traditional radar systems are typically stationary, mounted on fixed platforms such as buildings or racks.” But the Robin-produced radar systems have “on-the-move” functionality, allowing them to “perform even when mounted on mobile objects, such as vehicles or ships.”

“Robin’s 3D drone detection radars … are designed with the explicit purpose of detecting small, fast and evasive drones,” the company said.

The deployment of Robin technology may come as a relief to residents in the New York and New Jersey areas who have been rattled by the bright, unidentified flying objects hovering over their homes nearly every night for weeks.

The objects have appeared in the sky since at least November 18. It is still unclear who is operating the devices. The Pentagon has insisted that the objects are not owned by the military.

In an interview with NBC News on Monday, Robin Radar Systems general manager Kristian Brost said the company’s radars can detect a drone in the sky, but “we can’t tell you who’s flying it (or) what country it’s from.”

Schumer’s request to Homeland Security came two days after New York’s Stewart International Airport was shut down following multiple drone sightings nearby. The Democratic lawmaker told reporters it was “remarkable” that “we have more questions than answers” amid a growing number of mysterious sightings.

“Some of the drones are small. Some of the drones’ flight patterns are erratic,” Schumer said. “Multiple drones flying together can confuse a traditional radar system, which is why, again, this new technology can really give us the answers we need.”

Schumer said he was working to pass a bill that would give local law enforcement “more tools for drone detection.” Currently, only federal agencies have the legal authority to search for drones. The Democratic lawmaker’s office did not immediately respond to an email Monday requesting more information.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, meanwhile, said on X late Sunday that he had met with state police officials and radar technicians who are “monitoring the area for unmanned aircraft systems.”

“The public deserves clear answers — we will continue to press the federal government for more information and resources,” Murphy said.