The Insectothopter was a miniature unmanned aerial vehicle developed by the United States Central Intelligence Agency's research and development office in the 1970s.[1] The Insectothopter was the size of a dragonfly, and was hand-painted to look like one. It was powered by a miniature fluidic oscillator to propel the wings up and down at the proper rate to provide both lift and thrust. A small amount of propellant produced gas to drive the oscillator, and extra thrust came from the excess gas vented out the rear.[2] The project was abandoned when the Insectothopter was found to be too difficult to control in crosswinds.[3] It was revealed to the public in December 2003 at the CIA Museum, and further details about the project were declassified in 2015 and 2020.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Insectothopter". International Spy Museum. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
- ^ "Insectothopter: The Bug-Carrying Bug — Central Intelligence Agency". Archived from the original on August 16, 2013.
- ^ Shrader, Katherine: New Agency IARPA Develops Spy Tools, The Washington Post, May 31, 2007.
- ^ "In the 1970s, the CIA Created a Robot Dragonfly Spy. Now We Know How It Works". Popular Mechanics. 2020-02-18. Retrieved 2024-01-24.
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