An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) includes a housing forming a central body of the UAV and including an internal compartment, one or more electrical components disposed within the internal compartment and configured to affect operation of the UAV, and an inertial measurement unit (IMU) disposed in an external compartment external to the central body. The IMU is isolated from the internal compartment such that a barometric pressure in the external compartment is independent of a barometric pressure in the internal compartment.