Sharkskin Actually Increases Drag
Tuesday, March 15, 2016 - 11:30
in Earth & Climate
To clarify sharkskin's ability to reduce hydrodynamic drag (academically contested for the past 30 years), researchers at Stony Brook University and the University of Minnesota recently conducted simulations on the ability of the small, tooth-like denticles that make up sharkskin to modify hydrodynamic flow with an unprecedented level of resolution. Far from easing the glide through the water, they found, the structures can actually increase drag by up to 50 percent.