Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) and Tethered Balloon Systems (TBS) are transforming atmospheric research by enabling safe, cost-effective observations in hazardous, remote environments. These platforms provide routine, long-duration measurements of the boundary layer and troposphere—regions critical to clouds, precipitation, radiation, and land–atmosphere exchange that govern water availability and energy exchange across myriad temporal and spatial scales. A key new advancement is the rapid emergence of AI-enabled tools that streamline spatial data collection: adaptive sampling, autonomous navigation, onboard quality control, and real-time feature detection (e.g., cloud edges, thermals, aerosol layers). By increasing coverage, targeting, and data fidelity, UAS/TBS observations better constrain cloud microphysics, thermodynamics, and radiative fluxes, thereby improving model initialization, parameterizations, and forecast skill for water and energy resources. This session invites abstracts on new platforms and instrumentation, AI/ML-enhanced operations, cloud physics/water cycle and radiative fluxes/energy research, weather prediction improvements, and data analysis from UAS and TBS field campaigns.

• EP - Earth and Planetary Surface Processes
• P - Planetary Sciences
• SY - Science and Society