microrobert
06-07-2012, 12:45 PM
Mosquitoes don't let the rain get them down
High-speed video reveals how flying pests remain airborne when raindrops strike.
Less is more, the saying goes. But for a mosquito in flight dodging a barrage of raindrops up to fifty times its own body weight, less is best.
According to a study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences1 a mosquito's key defence when struck by a plummeting drop is its tiny mass. Researchers say the findings could one day help to improve the durability of ‘micro-airborne vehicles’, insect-sized flying robots developed for applications such as surveillance or rescue operations.
http://www.nature.com/news/mosquitoes-don-t-let-the-rain-get-them-down-1.10775
High-speed video reveals how flying pests remain airborne when raindrops strike.
Less is more, the saying goes. But for a mosquito in flight dodging a barrage of raindrops up to fifty times its own body weight, less is best.
According to a study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences1 a mosquito's key defence when struck by a plummeting drop is its tiny mass. Researchers say the findings could one day help to improve the durability of ‘micro-airborne vehicles’, insect-sized flying robots developed for applications such as surveillance or rescue operations.
http://www.nature.com/news/mosquitoes-don-t-let-the-rain-get-them-down-1.10775