If the average person was asked to think of ways that future airplanes could be improved, “making them more fish-like” probably isn’t going to be among the top suggestions. But if researchers from City, University of London are correct, this could be one of the best decisions aircraft manufacturers could make.
In a new study, involving researchers from City and Germany’s University of Stuttgart, investigators set out to explore how fish-inspired scales could be used to improve the aerodynamics of aircraft by reducing drag. This, in turn, would mean faster aircraft speeds and less fuel consumption.
“We investigated how the surface of fish, with patterns of overlapping scales, [are used as] a means of reducing the drag of the fish body,” Professor Christoph Bruecker, City’s Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair in Nature-Inspired Sensing and Flow Control for Sustainable Transport, told Digital Trends. “The scales seemingly reduce the friction drag, proven by detailed flow measurements [taken using] biomimetic scales.”
Experiments carried out by the researchers involved a special laminar water tunnel at the University of Stuttgart that was used to test the City hypothesis by comparing the drag on both a smooth flat plate and a flat plate covered in fake scales. (Such experiments would, Bruecker pointed out, be difficult to perform using real fish.) The idea is that the fish-scale array produces a zigzag motion of fluid in overlapping regions of the animal’s surface, which reduces skin friction drag by upward of 25 percent.
Unless something has gone slightly wrong, planes aren’t usually traveling in water, of course. But similar effects — involving the “physical principle of streaky flow generation” through overlapping scales — could also make the wings of aircraft more aerodynamic in flight. It may also have possible application in the design of future wind turbines.
Bruecker said that the technology to produce such biomimetic scales, perhaps using microlaser patterning, is already in existence. He said that the researchers next plan to investigate how large these scales might need to be in order to create the appropriate beneficial effect.
If you’re hoping for future airplanes that look like giant fish, you might be a bit disappointed. Bruecker suggested that the overlapping scales could be so small that they would barely be visible with the naked eye.
As to whether this research will be taken up by manufacturers, it was sponsored in part by BAE Systems, the defense and aerospace company that has previously supported some innovative projects such as energy-scattering deflector shields and military drones “grown” using chemicals.
“There is clearly interest in using such microstructured surfaces in aerodynamic applications, especially in the recent developments or laminar aerofoil technologies,” Bruecker said.
Other researchers on the project included City’s Muthukumar Muthuramalingam and Dominik Puckert, and Ulrich Rist from the University of Stuttgart.
A paper describing the work was recently published in the journal Scientific Reports.
Recently, we've entered an exciting collaboration with Maple Media, creating a bundle of 17 apps worth having on your phone. From relaxed fun to serious productivity boosts, these apps cover all your bases and provide a fun boost to your phone. Normally, the bundle is $9.99 per month (far lower than the cost of using the apps individually), but for your first 7 days you can get access to the bundle for free. View the full Digital Trends App Bundle for a complete list of the apps, or read on for a summarized take.
What's happened? This week, China's Quality Certification Center released information about a battery (EB-BS04898ABY) with a maximum capacity of 4,855mAh. That's the same capacity as was previously seen in the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, and fans have taken this certification to mean the Galaxy S26 Ultra will not see a capacity increase after all.
The Samsung Galaxy Ultra models have had the same battery capacity for the last five years.
What's happened? Samsung has officially announced the Galaxy Tab S10 Lite, a budget-friendly alternative to the Galaxy Tab S10. The device has been rumored for months, but this is the first time Samsung has officially acknowledged its existence.
The Galaxy Tab S10 Lite will have a 10.9-inch display and a peak brightness of 600 nits — a bit on the lower side, versus the iPad Pro's maximum brightness of 1,600 nits.