What makes a stone skippable? A curvy bottom

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2023-01-04 11:01

International

How can you choose the perfect stone for skimming? International researchers used computer simulations to assess how an object’s weight and shape determine its skimming success. One insight for heavier stones was that a curvier bottom helps achieve a successful skim. Smoothness and relative thinness were also important factors. These results are great for some fun summer stone-throwing, but the team says other practical uses for their findings include icing-impact applications on aircraft surfaces, bouncing of meteors and aeroplanes landing on water.

Media release

From: The Royal Society

The role of body shape and mass in skimming on water

Over many years, there has been great interest in how objects skim on water. From the playfulness of stone skipping to more serious applications in aircraft safety, the topic of skimming has fascinated scientists, engineers, and mathematicians alike. In this paper, we consider the vital role of the object's weight and shape in determining its skimming success (completed skip) or failure (sinking). We find an intriguing balance between weight and shape that enables heavier-than-expected objects to complete skims successfully, presenting new playful goals (e.g. attempts to skim unlikely stones on water) and practical dangers (e.g. previously unconsidered dynamics in aircraft icing).

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Journal/
conference: Proceedings of the Royal Society A

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: University of Bristol, UK

Funder: This work was supported by EPSRC (grant no. EP/R511638/1) with matched funding and support from AeroTex UK LLP.

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