Can humans stop locust plagues? Can they stop these devastating swarms of insects from taking out entire years crop yields in minutes. Devastating thousands of square miles of fertile agriculture lands in only a few days? Is there a way? Do we call in an air strike? Is there an easier method, as these locust swarms can by over 5 miles across and they are not such an easy target to stop? One online think tank recently brought up this issue. Locust Plague researcher Warren Powers has some thoughts on how the locusts use physics to accomplish their mission and believes that this may hold the key to stopping them once and for all. Warren states; I suspect the movement of air associated with the swarm could be identified. I suspect the downdraft could be verified and measured if it exists. If there is a local downdraft, then a bunched swarm must be creating a toroidal or donut shaped air flow local to the swarm. If this donut shaped air motion accompanies the swarm, then a simple disruption of that air flow may also be used to disrupt the swarm, possibly a fire ball shot within the swarm would be efficiently distributed to each wing-set of each member of the swarm. There are petroleum products that will burn for extended periods of time, napalm, for instance. I digress; hatred can lead to overkill. A film on the Lake in Advance of the swarm may help. If we sent out sound waves to disrupt their flight and then had an additional film on the lake that they were crossing this might be the double whammy needed to help us defeat the locust plague once and for all. Consider all this in 2006. |
