Related papers: Dragonflies Utilize Flapping Wings Phasing and Spa…
Birds employ rapid pitch-up motions for different purposes: perching birds use this motion to decelerate and come to a complete stop while hunting birds, like bald eagles, employ it to catch prey and swiftly fly away. Motivated by these…
This research investigates the three-dimensional effects of flow around a pair of flapping wings undergoing clap-and-fling interactions through harmonic in-plane motions combining pitching, heaving, and deviation. Both wings mirror each…
We investigate how localized inhomogeneity affects the geometry and stability of migratory bird formations. We use a lifting-line model with a horseshoe-vortex representation to describe the longitudinal dynamics of aerodynamic…
Tip leakage flow in turbomachinery inherently generates intense unsteady features, named self-excited unsteadiness, which has not been well understood. A Zonalised LES (ZLES) is employed around a linear cascade, with wall-modelled Large…
Turbulent winds and gusts fluctuate on a wide range of timescales from milliseconds to minutes and longer, a range that overlaps the timescales of avian flight behavior, yet the importance of turbulence to avian behavior is unclear. By…
We perform direct numerical simulations (DNS) of actively controlled laminar separated wakes around low-aspect-ratio wings with two primary goals: (i) reducing the size of the separation bubble and (ii) attenuating the wing tip vortex.…
In this work, high-resolution, high-speed videos of a Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) in take-off flight were obtained using a photogrammetry system. Using a 3D subdivision surface reconstruction methodology, the butterfly's body/wing…
Collective locomotion of swimming and flying animals is fascinating in terms of individual-level fluid mechanics and group-level structure and dynamics. Here we bridge and relate these scales through a model of formation flight that views…
In this paper, we present a full dynamical model of a four-winged micro ornithopter inspired by a dragonfly-type insect. The micro ornithopter is modeled as four articulated rigid body components (wings) connected to the main body via…
This study investigates the aerodynamic effects of low- and high-frequency synthetic jet control strategies on a National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) 0025 airfoil. Visualizations and measurements are employed to assess the…
Like a rocket being propelled into space, evolution has engineered flies to launch into adulthood via multiple stages. Flies develop and deploy two distinct bodies, linked by the transformative process of metamorphosis. The fly larva is a…
Spanwise wall forcing in the form of streamwise-travelling waves is applied to the suction side of a transonic airfoil with a shock wave to reduce aerodynamic drag. The study, conducted using direct numerical simulations, extends earlier…
Rotor blades of wind turbines in the atmospheric boundary layer regularly experience the aerodynamic phenomenon of dynamic stall consisting of a temporary overshoot of lift and detrimental fatigue loads. Particularly the formation of…
The aim of this work is to study the dynamics and stability of soft shape-morphing configurations and specifically the modes of interaction between the front and rear airfoil segments. Initially we present several steady-state solutions,…
Avian-informed drones feature morphing wing and tail surfaces, enhancing agility and adaptability in flight. Despite their large potential, realising their full capabilities remains challenging due to the lack of generalized control…
Despite significant analysis of bird flight, generative physics models for flight dynamics do not currently exist. Yet the underlying mechanisms responsible for various flight manoeuvres are important for understanding how agile flight can…
Unlike a helicopter, an insect can, in theory, use both lift and drag to stay aloft. Here we show that a dragonfly uses mostly drag to hover by employing asymmetric up and down strokes. Computations of a family of strokes further show that…
The wings of Lepidoptera contain a matrix of living cells whose function requires appropriate temperatures. However, given their small thermal capacity, wings can overheat rapidly in the sun. Here we analyze butterfly wings across a wide…
The transonic flight regime is often dominated by transonic buffet, a highly unsteady and complex shock-wave/boundary-layer interaction involving major parts of the flow field. The phenomenon is associated with a large-amplitude periodic…
The propulsion of a flapping wing or foil is emblematic of bird flight and fish swimming. Previous studies have identified hallmarks of the propulsive dynamics that have been attributed to unsteady effects such as the formation and shedding…