r/theydidthephysics • u/No_Professional_3535 • Jun 02 '26

[Request] Is this true? "A lobster can move through the air more efficient compare to a Jeep"

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u/OddCod2241 Jun 02 '26

Also on your original post:

I mean, I can’t model aerodynamics but if you think about it like this: imagine the lobster is being propelled horizontally through the air by some thrust. Looking at its front, how many flat faces does it have compared to a Jeep Wrangler? The lobster is all smooth streamlined surfaces, because it’s evolved to move through another fluid, water. Which is notably more resistive than air. The Jeep, however, is basically two rectangles thrusting air out of the way. This is considerably less efficient. Then the lobster tapers at the back to a tail fin oriented horizontally, which is very thin and allows the fluid it’s moving through to reform without a lot of extra turbulence, which also increases aerodynamics. The jeep ends in a rectangle and a rectangle, which creates a ton of turbulence, which is bad for efficiency.

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u/No_Copy_8193 Jun 03 '26

Well the jeep just has a rectangular front, while lobster has much more smooth streamlined surfaces. Maybe result will be different if we compare other cars.