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Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), have been used by the military since WWI for remote surveillance. In the last decade, farmers have begun using them to monitor their fields as well as aiding precision agriculture programs. There are estimates that 80 to 90% of the growth in the drone market in the next decade will come from agriculture. The ease of use and ability to specialize each system means there will be a UAV for every situation. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulation currently limits drone usage to recreational. Rules for commercial use are expected to come out in September of 2015. UAVs can monitor fields more often than satellites, take more detailed pictures, and are not obstructed by clouds. The different types of cameras can monitor data like photosynthesis rates or find where patches of weeds are in a field. As the technology gets better and the cost continues to decrease, drones will have wider use in today's farm fields.
Nikki J. Stehr (Fri,) studied this question.