Category: Focus: Waterways
-
Pilot View: Flying Over a Proposed Data Center in Montana
Taking off from his home airport in Bozeman, Montana, LightHawk Northern Rockies Program Manager and Volunteer Pilot Chris Boyer pointed his plane east toward the small rural community of Broadview. With the stiff tailwind, the flight took just over an hour. Chris was flying over Broadview to collect imagery of the location of a proposed…
-
Aerial Insight into a Proposed Montana Data Center
When LightHawk volunteer pilot and staff member Chris Boyer took off earlier this month, his destination was a small agricultural town in central Montana. Broadview is home to about 150 people – farmers mostly. Their small town is attracting a lot of attention these days. A proposed 5,000-acre AI data center has raised concerns among…
-
Documenting Critical Habitat for Sandhill Cranes
Sandhill Cranes are one of the oldest living bird species, with a fossil record stretching back millions of years. Today, however, their continued success faces growing challenges as urban expansion and climate change reshape the landscapes they depend on. As cities push into rural areas, vital crane habitat disappears—along with the agricultural lands and wetlands…
-
Pilot View: Two Days. Hundreds of Miles. Flying the Colorado River.
The Colorado River is a majestic and essential waterway, flowing from the mountains of Colorado through several western states and into Mexico. Once, it reached the Pacific Ocean; today, the water rarely makes it that far. Water use along the Colorado is a complicated and often controversial topic, especially as millions of people, businesses, and…
-
On The Wing News – Fall 2025
Protecting Waterways With the Aerial Perspective Fresh water. Most of the time, we take it for granted. We turn on the tap, and what is really a precious resource just flows out. We shower, wash the dishes, and water the lawn without thinking much about the shrinking availability of this life-sustaining liquid. But that is…