Forget aircrafts. It’s the age of spider-crafts!
Who said you need wings to fly? Silk threads is what you need to try! Confused?
Some species of small spiders such as arachnids and erigone have the ability called ballooning1 that allows them to fly and even control the direction they move in. They weave silk threads that remain attached to their bodies and use them to travel fairly long distances.
Flying spiders were first sighted in 1832 by Charles Darwin on his voyage while being 60 miles away from the shore. He documented the incident that the spiders would “elevate its abdomen, send forth a thread, and then sail away horizontally, but with a rapidity which was quite unaccountable."2
Scientists proposed two theories that allowed spiders make this unbelievable move. As per the first, the spiders use thermal energy caused due to the constantly changing temperature. The second one suggests that the electrostatic effect created by the mingling of spider threads’ electrical charges with that of the earth causes the lift.
In support of the second theory, researchers Charbel Habchi, former Associate Professor, mechanical engineering, Notre Dame University-Louaize, Lebanon; and Mohammad Khalil Jawed, Assistant Professor, University of California, Los Angeles recreated the working of the flying spiders3 by replacing spiders with tiny spheres and tying them to multiple closely placed threads.
They analyzed how changing the number of threads affected their flight, and if there were any changes in pattern on evenly distributing electrical charge throughout the thread as opposed to focusing the charge on the threads’ tips. They merged this experiment with another one to understand how spiders could lift up in the air. Through the experiments, they could conclude that the lift is the outcome of electrostatic energy.
Also, since the threads had similar charges, they repelled each other, thus, preventing the threads from braiding and tangling. The spiders were able to control the speed and altitude at which they were flying via change in the number and length of the threads.
What it could mean for aerospace science
Currently, aerial technologies and devices are used for several purposes. However, they can only be used in limited ways due to several factors such as their constant speeds, fuel requirement, and inability to stay in the air for long durations. The researchers hope that understanding the mechanism could help formulate aerial devices with “carefully controlled speeds and altitudes”5.
Understanding and implementing the workings of this mechanism could open doors into new horizons of possibilities in atmospheric observation and we may be able to monitor factors related to weather, wind speed, and atmospheric composition with more accuracy. Stay tuned for more updates.
References:
1. Underwood, E. Watch a ‘ballooning' spider take flight. Science. https://www.science.org/content/article/watch-ballooning-spider-take-flight. (2 April, 2018).
2. Holy electric flying spiders! Great Moments In Science. https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/greatmomentsinscience/flying-spiders-gossamer-electrostatic/12030800#:~:text=Darwin%20recorded%20that%20the%20small,their%20fine%20threads%20of%20spiderweb. (10 March, 2020).
3. Habchi, C. Jawed, M. Ballooning in spiders using multiple silk threads. APS Physics. Phys. Rev. E 105, 034401. https://journals.aps.org/pre/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevE.105.034401. (4 March, 2022).
4. Berkowitz, R. Airborne Spiders Drift on Multiple Silk Threads. APS Physics. https://physics.aps.org/articles/v15/31. (4 March, 2022).
5. Jarman, S. Small ballooning spiders can fly along the Earth’s electrical field. Bigthink. https://bigthink.com/life/ballooning-spiders-atmospheric-science/. (5 April, 2022).
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