  Collisions with raindrops are one of many obstacles insects face during
flight. In this fluid dynamics video, we present a series of high-speed films
of impacts between mosquitoes and raindrops. We also present drop impacts upon
insect mimics, which are unsupported styrofoam balls of the same mass as
mosquitoes. High-speed videography and particle tracking during collision are
employed to determine the insect position versus time. We determine the
magnitude of acceleration by considering the momentum transfer and impact
duration. Experiments with live mosquitoes indicate a surprising ability to
quickly recover flight post-collision, despite accelerations of 30-300
gravities over durations of 1 ms.
