Whale Flippers Make Better Airplane Wings

phreakmonkey writes "The bumpy, ridged surface on humpback whale flippers provide more lift, less drag, and exhibit better stall characteristics than traditional aircraft wing designs, according to Duke University, West Chester University, and the U.S. Naval Academy. This could help improve the design of airfoils used on everything from aircraft wings to underwater vehicles. The results were published in the May 2004 issue of Physics of Fluids and reported on Innovations Report."

Comments

Re:bumps

[ajax0187]

I would imagine it's just from a practical standpoint. An airplane wing can cause different effects depending on its airspeed (i.e. the most efficient airfoil shape at 150 knots is different than the most efficient shape at 1150 knots). Even though the dimples might create more lift at low airspeed, once you start approaching subsonic/supersonic conditions, the drag they produce would be more trouble then it's worth. And how exactly can you get rid of them? You can't (at least not at our present level of technology), and so we stick with more conventional flaps and spoilers.