Effects of night-time drone noise on sleep and annoyance

Kurzfassung

Compared to conventional traffic noise, noise from drone manoeuvres has a high potential for disturbance and annoyance as recently found in listening experiments. However, the physiological effects of drone noise, particularly in relation to sleep, have not yet been investigated. As there are hardly any restrictions on the use of drones at night, we investigated the effects of drone noise on sleep and annoyance in a laboratory study with 37 subjects aged 20 to 65 years (24 female, 13 male). In a crossover design, we exposed the subjects in a counterbalanced order during five consecutive nights to a) conventional aircraft noise, b) drone noise from over/passing flights, c) drone noise from take-offs, landings and hovering, d) road traffic noise and e) a control condition (no noise). During each noise night, 84 noises with maximum sound pressure levels of 35 to 60 dB(A) were presented via loud speakers. Sleep was measured via polysomnography. In addition, participants were asked about their perceived sleep quality as well as annoyance and disturbance due to the past night’s noise exposure. The study was double-blind and was announced as an investigation of the effects of environmental noise on sleep and annoyance. Neither the nature nor the timing of the noise events played during the night were known to the participants and experimenters. Univariate analyses showed higher rates of awakening during nights with drone scenarios compared to the quiet control condition (p < 0.001) and the other noise nights. These findings were confirmed in linear mixed-effects models with random intercepts to account for inter individual differences in baseline awakening rates. Self-assessed sleep quality was lower in nights with drone noise, while reported nocturnal annoyance and disturbance from noise was increased compared to the other modes of transport and the control condition. The current results highlight the increased potential for psychological and physiological adverse effects from drone noise and the need for early regulation of drone night-time operations to protect the public.