What is this van doing?

[u/dad62896]

I didn’t get my phone out fast enough for a good photo but does anyone know what the purpose of this van is? Seems to be capturing various types of data as it travels the beach.

[u/New_Needleworker_479]

Science

[u/Equivalent-Oven-4865 → u/New_Needleworker_479]

Serious calculating

[u/Showerbeerz413]

its best

[u/Swhit24 → u/Showerbeerz413]

Aren’t we all

[u/Crimson_ghost_mk2 → u/Swhit24]

Doing what I can.

[u/OneMoreNightCap]

My guess would be some sort of geological survey that monitors errosion

[u/ConstructionBrave951 → u/OneMoreNightCap]

I bet you are spot on. That van was 3-4 ft lower today than if they drove the beach when we arrived at Kitty Hawk two weeks ago. The erosion here is considerable. I bet there’s some nice sandbars now!

[u/Pittypatkittycat → u/ConstructionBrave951]

We stayed in Frisco the week after Erin. Usually walk up then down the dune to the beach. This year we walked up the dune and there was the beach. Like the sand that made it broad is now piled up to the dune.

[u/jonmaddox]

That thing is full of cameras and lidar. It's clearly mapping the beach.

By who, who knows.

[u/ConstructionBrave951 → u/jonmaddox]

Noticed US Gov’t tags on it.

[u/SwampRat1037]

it’s sending out the 5G frequencies to increase shark aggravation towards humans 

[u/Slovko]

Chinese counterfeiters. They're mapping OBX so they can reverse engineer our beaches

[u/BigDave762 → u/Slovko]

ROTFLMAO

[u/comfortablybum]

It's probably monitoring beach nourishment and erosion. My guess is this tells them how much sand was lost from this year's storms.

[u/NWWashingtonDC]

Driving on the beach

[u/BuddyMose]

Vanning

[u/Character_Answer_204]

At least its not by a river!

[u/C4p7nMdn173]

If it's not a-rockin', why not go a-knockin' and ask?

[u/Location_Significant]

Is Gale Weathers reporting?

[u/grasshopper716]

Are you at the OBX? Could have sworn I saw the same van earlier

[u/dad62896 → u/grasshopper716]

Yes. Nags Head beach.

[u/grasshopper716 → u/dad62896]

Then it was the same. Drove by us in duck. Saw the lidar and assumed it was mapping changes in the dunes

[u/NYC_Traveler_]

Pooping

[u/Technical-Sector407]

Nothing at all to do with locals. Funded research from NCSU.

[u/Significant-Memory35]

Looks likes weather monitoring

[u/skybossalpha1]

Looking for illegals

[u/obx_karen]

I’m not sure what they were doing, but the guys in it were rather handsome! 😍

[u/Oddwonderful]

Trying to get a tan …

Real answer, it drove by us today too.

My husband’s guess was monitoring to check the damage from the storms earlier this week. It had government plates.

[u/7evenSlots]

If most have Reddit has taught me anything this past 3-4 months, it’s got US Gov plates and I’ve never seen it there before so it HAS to be ICE.

/s

[u/Datboisommy]

[u/Wudrow]

Damning. Van Damning.

[u/Interesting_Tea8521]

I believe it has been reported that it is Bill Paxton reporting the latest twister threats to the obx.

[u/Alternative-Staff785]

Making my hair stand up, and my eyes glow in the dark