Apparently, the folks over at Harvard University have decided that bees may indeed know a little something about flight. According to an article from the BBC, Dr. Sridhar Ravi and his research team are looking at how bees can maintain stable flight even in adverse weather conditions. I’ve always said that bees flight abilities and the way the handle turbulence should be a baseline study for all aeronautical engineers.
Here’s a bit on bees from The Shark’s Paintbrush:
It’s been the common wisdom that fluid dynamics equations “prove” a bumblebee can’t fly. But fly they do, with tremendous accuracy and navigational abilities. This impossible ability is the subject of several research programs, including that of Nissan Motors. If humans can duplicate a bee’s flying efficiency and maneuverability, aircraft design will take a huge leap forward. Bees also have two- part wings, which zip together for flight and unzip to fold up when landed. If airplanes had wings as maneuverable and foldable as those of bees, then planes would be easier to land and store. This would be particularly useful on aircraft carriers or in airports located in increasingly dense urban areas.
Copyright, Jay Harman. All rights reserved.
