Bug Smashing

Can anyone explain bug smashing?

I can drive my car around for a month, often at 80 mph on the freeways and
maybe get two or three bugs on the windshield.

Yet an airplane has every leading edge covered in layer of dried bug in a
matter of days.

Wouldn't you think there wouldn't be any bugs up there at 3,000+ feet. If
they are up there, why are they there? All the food is down here on the
surface.


--
Dallas

Can anyone explain bug smashing?

I can drive my car around for a month, often at 80 mph on the freeways and
maybe get two or three bugs on the windshield.

Yet an airplane has every leading edge covered in layer of dried bug in a
matter of days.

Wouldn't you think there wouldn't be any bugs up there at 3,000+ feet. If
they are up there, why are they there? All the food is down here on the
surface.

Could it be that your plane is nearly always going much faster than
your car and the probability of a bug smash is proportional to the
square of velocity?

Cheers

On Fri, 7 Dec 2007 14:08:53 -0800 (PST), WingFlaps wrote:

Could it be that your plane is nearly always going much faster than
your car and the probability of a bug smash is proportional to the
square of velocity?

It could be, but I've been up there in the buck fifty and seen cars down
there going faster.



--
Dallas

Dallas wrote:
Can anyone explain bug smashing?

I think it's a sport of some sort. Kind of like pumpkin or watermelon
smashing.

I can drive my car around for a month, often at 80 mph on the freeways
and maybe get two or three bugs on the windshield.

Where do you live that you can drive 80 mph and not exceed the speed limit
- or run into very many bugs!?

Yet an airplane has every leading edge covered in layer of dried bug
in a matter of days.

Hmmm. Maybe if you fly down the freeway at 5 ft AGL you can reduce the bug
spatter on the wings? I mean if your car gets so few bugs at near that
altitude and along those routes....

Wouldn't you think there wouldn't be any bugs up there at 3,000+ feet.
If they are up there, why are they there? All the food is down here
on the surface.

The bugs are clearly getting high.

Or maybe they are trying to stay clear of frogs.

On Fri, 07 Dec 2007 22:20:06 -0000, Jim Logajan wrote:

I think it's a sport of some sort. Kind of like pumpkin or watermelon
smashing.

No, that's a rock group...

Surely this group has an entomologist that can enlighten us on the altitude
preferences of the various flying insects.


--
Dallas

Dallas wrote:
On Fri, 07 Dec 2007 22:20:06 -0000, Jim Logajan wrote:


I think it's a sport of some sort. Kind of like pumpkin or watermelon
smashing.


No, that's a rock group...

Surely this group has an entomologist that can enlighten us on the altitude
preferences of the various flying insects.




We're lucky, we happen to have one of the world's leading entomologists
(etymologist, gynecologist, numismaticist, and psychologist) reading
every thread. He's sure to weigh in shortly.

As for the bugs, most people don't realize how depressing it is to be a
bug. It is a form of mass suicide.

KC

"Dallas" wrote in message
...

Can anyone explain bug smashing?

I can drive my car around for a month, often at 80 mph on the freeways and
maybe get two or three bugs on the windshield.

Yet an airplane has every leading edge covered in layer of dried bug in a
matter of days.

Wouldn't you think there wouldn't be any bugs up there at 3,000+ feet. If
they are up there, why are they there? All the food is down here on the
surface.


--
Dallas

I think the bugs hear you and are attracted. They sort of fly over to
you to see what's go..Splat.

Al G

"Al G" wrote

I think the bugs hear you and are attracted. They sort of fly over to
you to see what's go..Splat.
Ya' know the last thing that goes though his mind, don't you?

His butt!

Really, could it be the aerodynamic difference between airplanes and cars?

Cars are designed to make air go up and over them, to reduce drag.

Airplanes _must_ make air go over and under the wing to make them fly.
(according to some theories of lift that have been widely debated here, but
I'll save you all of that g)

Since so much more air (with lots of bugs in it) goes past on top and on the
bottom, more must impact the wing's leading edge, right?

I-dunno, but it's an idea. :-)
--
Jim in NC

"Morgans" wrote in message
...

"Al G" wrote

I think the bugs hear you and are attracted. They sort of fly over to
you to see what's go..Splat.
Ya' know the last thing that goes though his mind, don't you?

His butt!

Really, could it be the aerodynamic difference between airplanes and cars?


More likely it's the 10,000 cars, trucks and busses that are just in front
of you on the highway that "cleaned out" all the bugs before you got there.

--
Geoff
The Sea Hawk at Wow Way d0t Com
remove spaces and make the obvious substitutions to reply by mail
When immigration is outlawed, only outlaws will immigrate.

Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe The Sea Hawk at wow way d0t com wrote:
"Morgans" wrote in message
...

"Al G" wrote

I think the bugs hear you and are attracted. They sort of fly over to
you to see what's go..Splat.
Ya' know the last thing that goes though his mind, don't you?

His butt!

Really, could it be the aerodynamic difference between airplanes and cars?


More likely it's the 10,000 cars, trucks and busses that are just in front
of you on the highway that "cleaned out" all the bugs before you got there.

This is the most obvious answer.

About the only time I ever get any significant bugs on the windshield
of the car is when driving rural roads with little traffic, which
would support that theory.


--
Jim Pennino

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