Newsmakers

Holland Michel, Bard alumnus and codirector of Bard's Drone Center, unfolds the little-known history of the rise of unmanned aircraft in the American military.

With the holiday season approaching, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) estimates that up to one million new drones will be entering U.S. airspace, creating potentially dangerous situations for unmanned and manned aircraft. A new study released today by The Center for the Study of the Drone at Bard College offers a comprehensive examination of incidents involving drones and manned aircraft in the national airspace over the past two years. Using data from the FAA and Department of Interior, the report, “Drone Sightings and Close Encounters: An Analysis,” explores 921 incidents in the national airspace from December 2013 to September 2015. Coauthors Dan Gettinger and Arthur Holland Michel identified 327 close encounters in which drones presented some level of hazard to manned aircraft, 90 of which involved commercial multiengine jets, and 594 sightings, in which drones were spotted near or within manned aircraft flight paths but did not pose immediate danger of collision.

A study by two researchers at the Center for the Study of the Drone, at Bard College, provides a comprehensive overview of the risks posed to manned aircraft by unmanned aircraft.

Bard senior Antoinette Kane has been honored with the 2015 Spirit Award, which recognizes a young person in foster care who is succeeding in college. The award carries a $10,000 scholarship.

She may feel more comfortable as a supporting player, but Blythe Danner proves she can hold her own as a lead in the new film I’ll See You in My Dreams.

Hudson Valley Magazine interviewed Bard alumna and La Voz editor Mariel Fiori for their December Women in Business issue.