Slow-motion butterfly ornithoptering

Today is already absolutely maggoty with robot insects, so forgive me if I carry the meme, but I find these slow-motion-videos of butterfly ornithopters just hypnotically beautiful, like the ethereal fluttering of cyberpunk faeries.

1. [strider_mt2k]

   I work at a Radio Schmack, and during the holidays my favorite thing is displaying the toys, especially the fliers!

   Ornithopters are really cool because they are (of course) neither airplane NOR helicopter.
   Their unique flying characteristics do give them the ability to recover from situations that would ground either of the others.

   Very very cool.

2. [kiltreiser]

   “butterfly ornithopters just hypnotically beautiful, like the ethereal fluttering of cyberpunk faeries”

   And that, in turn, is the most hypnotically beautiful phrase I’ve read all day…

3. [NoahApples]

   If, say, I felt a primal urge to make one of these after watching that video, how would one recommend I go about starting to do that?

4. [airshowfan]

   Ah, good. Paul MacCready’s spirit lives on