REEs are a series of chemical elements found in the Earth’s crust that are essential components of many technologies, including electronics, computer and communication systems, transportation, health care, and national defense. Rare Earths Elements (REE) are incorporated into many sophisticated technologies with both commercial and defense applications including smartphones and …

Large UAVs, such as  Global Hawk,  General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper, and predecessor MQ-1 Predator have already become indispensable to modern militaries in providing intelligence, near-real-time reconnaissance and surveillance to commanders, and offering warfighters greater battlespace awareness. They have proven effective in electronic combat support, battle damage assessment, and even in …