The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has been using disposable and expendable unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) to track high-impact weather such as tropical cyclones and hurricanes. Because of their small size, UAS can also monitor marine sanctuaries and other protected ecosystems without human interference.

(Related: "Pictures: Drones Take on Hurricanes, Environment Work.")

"We want to get the cost as low as possible, so we use these instead of manned aircraft," said Robbie Hood, the UAS program director for NOAA. "We can put them in dangerous situations, so if we do lose them, we haven't lost human life."

Here are three disposable drones created to collect information in areas even the most daring storm chaser would not enter.

Humans aren't the only