Quetzalcoatlus
is the largest flying animal ever discovered, with a wingspan of 10
metres (34 foot). But how does a creature this size get into the air,
with no cliffs around to jump off?
Apparently, very awkwardly. A
new computer model, developed by Sankar Chatterjee (Texas Tech
University), suggests it used downward slopes such as river valleys or
edges of a lake as kind of runway. Starting on
all fours, as it increased speed it would switch to its back legs and
begin to flap its wings. Finally it would launch itself into the air at
the end of its "runway", using its large wings and updrafts to glide
through the air. Landing would have been the opposite, with back legs
hitting the ground first and slowing it down. Only using this lift-off
technique, Chatterjee and his team insist, could it have actually got
into the air and stayed there.
How Quetzalcoatlus got airborne
has inspired a lot of debate. Previous researchers have suggested a
standing takeoff, but Chatterjee points out this would have impossible
for an animal this size. "Its enormous wings must have been difficult to
manage," Chatterjee said. "Each wing had at least a 16-foot span, so
during its full downstroke it would smash its wings resulting in crash
landing. A standing takeoff of flying of such a heavy animal violates
the laws of physics."
The difference in ideas stems partly from
not knowing how much Quetzalcoatlus weighed. While Chatterjee puts its
weight at 70kg (155 pounds) others have suggested this is far too low -
the skeleton alone, hollow though it is, weighs 20kg (44 pounds). But
70kg is pushing the upper bounds of what flesh and bone can support in
flight. So if it weighed much more than 70kg, flight would have been
impossible - so it seems this is the only way Quetzalcoatlus could get
itself into the air.
A video of Chatterjee's description is available here:
http://www.livescience.com/
Photo credit: Houston Museum of Natural Science.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/
http://www.livescience.com/
http://news.discovery.com/
https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/
Quetzalcoatlus
is the largest flying animal ever discovered, with a wingspan of 10
metres (34 foot). But how does a creature this size get into the air,
with no cliffs around to jump off?
Apparently, very awkwardly. A new computer model, developed by Sankar Chatterjee (Texas Tech University), suggests it used downward slopes such as river valleys or edges of a lake as kind of runway. Starting on
Apparently, very awkwardly. A new computer model, developed by Sankar Chatterjee (Texas Tech University), suggests it used downward slopes such as river valleys or edges of a lake as kind of runway. Starting on
all fours, as it increased speed it would switch to its back legs and
begin to flap its wings. Finally it would launch itself into the air at
the end of its "runway", using its large wings and updrafts to glide
through the air. Landing would have been the opposite, with back legs
hitting the ground first and slowing it down. Only using this lift-off
technique, Chatterjee and his team insist, could it have actually got
into the air and stayed there.
How Quetzalcoatlus got airborne has inspired a lot of debate. Previous researchers have suggested a standing takeoff, but Chatterjee points out this would have impossible for an animal this size. "Its enormous wings must have been difficult to manage," Chatterjee said. "Each wing had at least a 16-foot span, so during its full downstroke it would smash its wings resulting in crash landing. A standing takeoff of flying of such a heavy animal violates the laws of physics."
The difference in ideas stems partly from not knowing how much Quetzalcoatlus weighed. While Chatterjee puts its weight at 70kg (155 pounds) others have suggested this is far too low - the skeleton alone, hollow though it is, weighs 20kg (44 pounds). But 70kg is pushing the upper bounds of what flesh and bone can support in flight. So if it weighed much more than 70kg, flight would have been impossible - so it seems this is the only way Quetzalcoatlus could get itself into the air.
A video of Chatterjee's description is available here:
http://www.livescience.com/
Photo credit: Houston Museum of Natural Science.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/
http://www.livescience.com/
http://news.discovery.com/
https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/
How Quetzalcoatlus got airborne has inspired a lot of debate. Previous researchers have suggested a standing takeoff, but Chatterjee points out this would have impossible for an animal this size. "Its enormous wings must have been difficult to manage," Chatterjee said. "Each wing had at least a 16-foot span, so during its full downstroke it would smash its wings resulting in crash landing. A standing takeoff of flying of such a heavy animal violates the laws of physics."
The difference in ideas stems partly from not knowing how much Quetzalcoatlus weighed. While Chatterjee puts its weight at 70kg (155 pounds) others have suggested this is far too low - the skeleton alone, hollow though it is, weighs 20kg (44 pounds). But 70kg is pushing the upper bounds of what flesh and bone can support in flight. So if it weighed much more than 70kg, flight would have been impossible - so it seems this is the only way Quetzalcoatlus could get itself into the air.
A video of Chatterjee's description is available here:
http://www.livescience.com/
Photo credit: Houston Museum of Natural Science.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/
http://www.livescience.com/
http://news.discovery.com/
https://gsa.confex.com/gsa/
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