Researchers from Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) have introduced a new type of amphibious vehicle called Nezha-SeaDart, which can hover like a drone, perform winged flight like an airplane, and then dive underwater at high speed like nothing else.
The name Nezha refers to a deity common in Chinese Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and other folk religions. He was renowned for his great strength, courage, and skill with magical weapons, and was revered as a protector of the innocent against evil. He also emerged from his mother's womb as a fully-grown child, but let's not get into that.
Named after this god character and classified as a HAUV (hybrid air underwater vehicle), the Nezha-SeaDart is a tail-mounted, electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) vehicle. However, this Only eVTOL. It can fly and land on its tail on land or in water. It can also dive nose first at high speeds – like a Kingfisher – to become a fully submersible vehicle capable of completing missions underwater, then emerge again and transition to winged flight without pausing.
Although the world has seen numerous examples of seaplanes and helicopters that have landed and taken off from water, none of them have been able to dive underwater and continue their flight.
The Nezha-SeaDart appears to have taken some of its styling cues from the US Navy’s 1950s prototype, the Covair Sea Dart – the only seaplane to fly supersonically before suffering a ‘rapid unplanned dismantling’ in flight and being scrapped. The SeaDart has the unique feature of having four propellers and eight underwater thrusters for aerial flight. It uses a combination of aerial propellers and thrusters for autonomous underwater navigation.
Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Nezha-SeaDart was recently tested in a ten-day test at Thousand Islands Lake in Zhejiang Province, China. The aim of the test was to prove its ability to seamlessly transition between land, sea and air.
Its delta-wing configuration generates enough lift that it can fly like a fixed-wing aircraft. Watching the video, it's hard not to think it resembles a UAP/UFO with the way it flies in seemingly impossible ways.
Possible uses for an unmanned HAUV like the Nezha-SeaDart could include marine surveys, search and rescue, or just plain marine exploration. And of course, secretly blowing things up. Watch it in action in the clip below.
Nezha-SeaDart: Amphibious drone flies, hovers and dives underwater
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen China’s “land, sea, and air” capabilities. Before the SeaDart, there was the Nezha-IV. It could operate at depths of up to 164 ft (50 meters) in harsh sea conditions, hover for 15 minutes, and had a range of 4.35 miles (7 km) when flying at 22.4 mph (36 km/h).
And of course, cheap consumer sites like Alibaba and Temu are filled with dozens of radio-controlled toy airplane models capable of aero and underwater flight for less than $40, but none have the full autonomy and underwater capability that the Nezha-SeaDart is said to have.
Chinese drone technology has proven to be among the best in the world. DJI has completely dominated the emerging drone market over the past decade with tightly integrated, well-thought-out products like the Mavic and Inspire.
As is often the case with Chinese innovations, it is difficult to establish all the facts here – and therefore it is difficult to say whether the SeaDart is destined for military or commercial use, or whether it is Temu with a decal kit on it. Either way, very cool!
Source: Wiley Online Library