Surprising findings on the physics of water entry could lead to smarter design of ships

Countless times a day, seabirds dive-catch prey from the ocean, boats enter the water from dry land, and seaplanes touch down gently amid the waves. The phenomenon of objects entering water is commonplace, yet a full understanding of the physics of water entry remains elusive, especially as it pertains to instances where a solid object enters a body of water that contains other solid objects, such as a gull diving into a rocky patch of sea.