CAREER: Gliding Flight in Snakes: How Wingless Gliders Produce Force, Maintain Stability, and Maneuver

飞蛇属的飞蛇没有其他动物能像它那样滑翔。没有附属物或膜作为产生升力的表面，飞行蛇从头到尾变平，用身体作为单一的“翅膀”滑翔。在空中，蛇在垂直平面上振荡的同时向身体发出行波，这种飞行行为不同于自然界或工程界发现的任何其他飞行行为。这个项目旨在了解飞行蛇独特飞行能力的机制。在活蛇身上滑翔将被记录下来，以确定它们详细的身体运动和截面形状，包括了解蛇如何在空中保持稳定和机动的实验。物理和计算模型将用于了解蛇的形状和不断变化的身体姿势如何有助于产生空气动力，以支持重量和稳定性。将开发更多的理论和物理模型来研究在空中产生蛇形运动的要求。这项研究的主题对于学生和更广泛的公众来说是一个令人兴奋的话题，并且拟议的研究还将成为将物理学、生物学和工程学整合到新的教育计划中的新举措的跳板。会飞的动物群体在生物界取得了巨大的成功，但目前还没有清晰的图像来解释动力飞行是如何从陆生物种进化而来的。特别是，我们缺乏对物种如何从静态滑翔过渡到主动扑翼飞行的理解。滑翔蛇的波动运动可以看作是一个不断变形的翅膀，呈现出从被动滑翔到动力飞行的桥梁特征。飞行蛇是一种主动的滑翔机，代表了从滑翔到拍打飞行的唯一功能中间。因此，了解蛇类滑翔飞行的机制将有助于了解一类物种如何成功地克服由身体上的移动力和旋转扭矩引起的生物力学挑战，这是与主动拍打飞行相关的类似问题。此外，在低雷诺数飞行的空气动力学已收到远少于关注的飞行动力学较大的工程飞行器，本项目将阐明如何与对称翼型形状的飞行器，但不对称和动态的身体姿势，可以在物理上有利。具体来说，蛇的意想不到的空气动力学性能可能源于它在自己的尾迹上“冲浪”的能力。在扰动和旋转试验期间肌肉活动模式的测定将为这种波动飞行所需的神经肌肉控制系统提供第一个证据。综上所述，了解蛇如何滑翔的拟议研究将提供跨学科的贡献，并可能导致新型微型飞行器的发展。蛇的滑翔飞行可能是自然界中最壮观的行为之一，并且有可能激发新一代学生对STEM领域的兴趣。这个项目利用这种动物的自然吸引力，为教师和公众开发新的教育内容。以飞蛇研究为基础，将启动两大协同行动。第一种是创建令人兴奋的基于网络的多媒体材料，可以很容易地被不同教育水平的教师改编和使用。新材料将包括与一位为国家地理频道制作节目有多年经验的专业电视制作人合作制作的信息视频。第二项努力将利用该项目的研究成果，在西弗吉尼亚州科学博物馆举办一个关于飞蛇的新博物馆展览，并得到一名公立学校教师的协助，将研究成果转化为教学法。这次展览将在世界各地的博物馆进行改编，包括与芝加哥菲尔德博物馆的生物力学新展览相结合。除了这些努力的全球影响外，飞行蛇的吸引力将被用作一种机制，通过有针对性的招聘和访问传统上学生人数不足的当地大学，招募代表性不足的学生参加本科和研究生水平的研究。

Flying snakes of the genus Chrysopelea glide like no other animal. Without appendages or membranes to use as lift-generating surfaces, flying snakes flatten from head to tail and glide using the body as a single "wing". In the air, the snakes simultaneously send traveling waves down the body while oscillating in the vertical plane, a flight behavior unlike any other found in the natural or engineering world. This project aims to understand the mechanisms that explain the unique flight abilities of flying snakes. Gliding in live snakes will be recorded to determine their detailed body movements and sectional shapes, including experiments to understand how snakes remain stable and maneuver in the air. Physical and computational models will be used to understand how the snake's shape and continuously changing body posture contribute to the production of aerodynamic forces for weight support and stability. Additional theoretical and physical models will be developed to investigate the requirements for producing snake-like locomotion in the air. The subject of this study is an exciting topic for students and the broader public, and the proposed research will additionally serve as a springboard for new initiatives that integrate physics, biology, and engineering into novel educational programming. Animal groups that fly have been tremendously successful in the biological world, and yet no clear picture has emerged to explain how powered flight has evolved from terrestrial species. In particular, we lack an understanding of how species have transitioned from static gliding to active flapping flight. The undulating movements of the gliding snake, which can be considered as a continuously morphing wing, present characteristics that bridge from passive gliding to powered flight. The flying snake is an active glider, representing the only functional intermediate across the spectrum of gliding to flapping flight. Understanding the mechanics of gliding flight in snakes will therefore lend insight into how one group of species has successfully overcome the biomechanical challenges resulting from shifting forces and rotational torques on the body, a similar problem associated with active flapping flight. Additionally, the aerodynamics of flight at low Reynolds number has received far less attention than the flight dynamics of larger engineered flyers, and this project will elucidate how a craft with symmetrical airfoil shape, but asymmetrical and dynamic body posture, can be physically advantageous. Specifically, the unexpected aerodynamic performance of the snake may originate in its ability to "surf" on its own wake. The determination of muscle activity patterns during perturbation and turning trials will provide the first evidence of the neuromuscular control system required for this type of undulating flyer. In combination, the proposed research to understand how snakes glide will provide contributions across disciplines and will potentially lead to the development of novel micro-air vehicles. Gliding flight in snakes is perhaps one of the most spectacular behaviors in the natural world, and has the potential to inspire new generations of students to take interest in STEM fields. This project taps into the natural appeal of this animal to develop new educational content for teachers and the public. Two major synergistic initiatives will be launched based on flying snake research. The first creates exciting, web-based multi-media material that can be easily adapted and used by teachers across educational levels. The new material will include informative video developed in collaboration with a professional television producer with years of experience creating programs for the National Geographic Channel. The second effort will use research in this project to create a new museum exhibit on flying snakes at the Science Museum of Western Virginia, with assistance from a public school teacher to help translate research into pedagogy. This exhibit will be offered for adaptation at museums worldwide, including the integration into a new exhibit on biomechanics at the Field Museum in Chicago. In addition to the global reach of these efforts, the appeal of flying snakes will be used as a mechanism to recruit underrepresented students into research at the undergraduate and graduate levels through targeted recruiting and visits to local universities with traditionally underserved student populations.