Researchers are studying the unique swimming techniques of a simply designed yet highly maneuverable jellyfish-like creature in order to inspire designs for underwater vehicles of the future.
Dubbed Nanomia bijuga, it's a member of the siphonophores, a group of gelatinous planktonic creatures that are related to jellyfish, anemones and coral. Similar to coral, the two-inch Nanomia is colonial: It sports a gelatinous body that's motored about by a nectosome made of genetically identical but separate components known as swimming bells (nectophores). Each of these act as mini turbo jets that shoot out streams of water, propelling the creature through the ocean.
Nature Communications - Multi-jet propulsion organized by clonal development in a colonial siphonophore
Read more »
