Investigation of the Wing Design and Performance of a Gliding Flying Fish

글라이딩하는 날치의 날개형상 및 성능에 관한 연구

Various flyers in nature have attracted great interests with a recent need for developing versatile and small-size flight vehicles. In the present study, we focus on the flying fish which has been observed to glide a long distance just above a seawater surface. Since previous studies have depended on the field observation or measurement of the physical parameters only, quantitative data of the flying fish flight has not been provided so far. Therefore, we evaluate the wing performance of the flying fish in gliding flight by directly measuring the lift, drag and pitching moment on real flying fish models (Cypselurus hiraii) in a wind tunnel. In addition, we investigate the roles of wing morphology like the enlarged pectoral and pelvic fins, and lateral dihedral angle of pectoral fins. With both the pectoral and pelvic fins spread, the lift-to-drag ratio is larger and the longitudinal static stability is enhanced than those with the pelvic fins folded. From the glide polar, we find that the wing performance of flying fish is equivalent to those of medium-size birds like the petrel, hawk and wood duck. Finally, we examine the effect of water surface underneath the flying fish and find that the water surface reduces the drag and increases the lift-to-drag ratio.