How High Can Ants Survive a Fall?
WouterUnlike humans, ants can survive a fall of great heights. They can survive falls of over three feet, which is the equivalent of a human being falling to the ground from the Empire State Building.
Ants can also survive falling out of a plane. The ant has a skeleton on the outside of its body, and a coat of strengthening material on the inside. This outer layer is similar to keratin, a substance found in hair and nails, which is similar to the tough substance called chitin found in insect skeletons.
If the ant was balled up, it would have a higher terminal velocity, but its resistance to falling would be greater. It would accelerate to the ground at 9.8 meters per second if there was no atmosphere.
The ant’s terminal velocity also depends on the size, shape, and projected shape of the object. Larger objects have higher terminal velocities, and smaller objects have lower terminal velocities.
The ant’s terminal velocity is a lot smaller than that of a man, but the ant’s’moment’ of flight’, or the time it takes to reach terminal velocities, is a lot longer. The ant’s’moment’ might not be so pronounced, however, if the ant were to be sucked into a vacuum.
If an ant were to fall from the Empire State Building, its terminal velocity would be less than that of the smallest human, and its’moment of flight’ would be smaller. It would also be less than the ant’s’smallest’ gyration, which is the smallest amount of motion an ant can achieve in a single moment.
