ADIAT Helps Italian SAR Team

Automated Drone Image Analysis Tool – ADIAT, is an open-source, desktop-based software application developed by volunteers and sponsored by TEXSAR (Texas Search and Rescue) to help search and rescue (SAR) teams and other organizations analyze drone imagery quickly and efficiently, even in remote areas with no internet connectivity.
 
When drones collect thousands of images across large, rugged terrain, reviewing them manually can take days or even weeks. ADIAT dramatically shortens that process by using a combination of AI models and image-processing algorithms to scan photos and automatically flag areas of interest.
 
In July 2025, Italy’s National Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico – CNSAS successfully located the remains of Dr. Nicola Ivaldo, who had been missing since September 2024, on the steep north face of Monviso. In a single five-hour drone flight, the team gathered roughly 2,600 images across a 183-hectare area. The use of AI-powered analysis tools, including ADIAT, enabled rescuers to detect subtle visual anomalies, such as distinct red pixels corresponding to the hiker’s helmet, that would have been easy to overlook with the human eye.
 
According to CNSAS drone pilot Saverio Isola, “It was the AI software that identified some pixels of a different color in the images taken on Tuesday.” That clue led directly to discovery and recovery on July 31.
 
ADIAT is available free of charge to public safety agencies and organizations and can be downloaded at texsar.org/adiat.
Learn more about CNSAS: https://www.cnsas.it/en/