Saving the Planet One Whale at a Time: View Photos from Alumnus Chris Zadra's Research

Chris Zadra '16 '17G flies drones that collect data on whales as part of a critical mission to protect the giants of the ocean from environmental and human threats.

He uses a drone called SnotBot® in a groundbreaking project to capture whale blow for biological analysis. And he may be the only person in the world using drones to drop data tags onto the backs of whales to gather unprecedented insight into how whales live.

Zadra turned his engineering acumen, entrepreneurial spirit and longtime interest in drones into a life-changing career as program manager for the Drones for Whale Research program of Ocean Alliance, a Massachusetts-based nonprofit whose motto is "Save the Whales, Save the Oceans, Save Ourselves."

See pictures of the process he uses to conduct his research.