Scientists Want To Collect Whale Boogers Using Flying Drones

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Testing the flying drone Snotbot with Snotshot, a whale blow robot mimic. Ocean Alliance.

Engineering students in Massachusetts have teamed up with a whale conservation charity – with a little help from Sir Patrick Stewart – to better collect whale blow with flying drones.

What is whale blow? Well, contrary to popular opinion, it’s not water that whales spray out of their blowholes. It is a delightful mucal composite of snot, water and tissue that whales eject when near to the surface of the water, usually visible as a spray.