1990/06/08 by Jeffrey Dean, Daniel J. Aneshansley, Harold E. Edgerton +1 · 3 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Insect and Pesticide Research #Plant Surface Properties and Treatments #Entomological Studies and Ecology #Jet (fluid) #Explosive material #Pulse (music) #Intermittency #Mechanics #Physics #Optics #Archaeology #History #Turbulence
paper · doi:10.1126/science.2349480
openalex publication_date 1990/06/08 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/23
The defensive spray of the bombardier beetle Stenaptinus insignis is ejected in quick pulses (at about 500 pulses per second) rather than as a continuous stream. The pulsation may be a consequence of intermittency in the explosive chemical process that generates the spray. The ejection system of the beetle shows basic similarity to the pulse jet propulsion mechanism of the German V-1 "buzz" bomb of World War II.