Americans want to develop a dragonfly rocket

American scientists are working to create an electronic "brain" that will be used in rockets. The new development will have to imitate the deadly attacks of dragonflies.

Only in fables is a dragonfly a harmless insect that has "been sung all summer". But in the world of his brethren, this is a predator. Of the 20 attacks on smaller insects, 19 are successful. Of course, the military could not pass by such a feature.

American scientists at Sandia National Laboratory want to know what makes a flying insect such a talented killer, hoping to someday improve missile guidance systems.

Such an insect as a dragonfly has lived on the earth for more than 300 million years. Her ancestors were one of the first insects to have wings. Obviously, for such a period they managed to hone their survival skills pretty well. No wonder dragonflies became the object of government research.

The reaction speed of this insect is 50 milliseconds. A dragonfly is hunted instinctively, it does not “think” how to react to prey. American scientists want to reproduce this principle of hunting using electronics and software. And after that, "put" it in rockets.

At this stage, researchers use neural network algorithms. So they can learn how dragonflies hunt. According to scientists, these creatures have a small brain, so everything that gives them the skill of hunters should be simple. If we succeed in adopting this, then the missiles will turn out to be cheaper, lighter and more deadly.

Studying insect brains is part of a broader program of army technology developers looking for time-tested ways to fight for survival in the animal and plant world.