>>7313947

Scanning the ground is exactly what it was doing.

The DC-8 N817NA is an airborne laboratory that is used for a wide variety of tests, trials, research, & experiments supporting federal, state, scientific agencies.

With the recent seismic activity it was monitoring the movement etc of the fault line, carrying out assessments of damage etc.

https://www.nasa.gov/centers/armstrong/news/FactSheets/FS-050-DFRC.html

>>7313947

>>7314098

Forgot the map cap.

Flight track for N817NA NASA flight 22-07-2019.

https://flight-data.adsbexchange.com/map?icao=AB248A&date=2019-07-22

>>7314206

It is a series of parallel tracks criss-crossing the fault line areas. This is a typical aerial mapping profile.

>>7314256

>>7314264

Roger.

Explaining helps the lurking clueless newfags & MSM dumfuks though.

>>7314288

>Check N-number in any flight data page (flighradar24, adsbexchange etc), and you'll see them flying these kind of patterns all the time.

Whole list of them here.

https://flight-data.adsbexchange.com/activity?inputSelect=registration&registration=n817na