Honorable Mention: Scales of a Scarlet Kingsnake

Photo by Arwen Paredes, undergraduate student, FAU High School

Image of Scarlet kingsnake (Lampropeltis elapsoides) scales taken by student by placing shed snakeskin under a scanning electron microscope for use in her Palm Beach County Science Fair project. The goal of the project was to evaluate the effectiveness of varying snakeskin structures in reducing rolling friction. This image was used by the researcher to create the 3D-printed models of snakeskin tires used in this experiment. The ventral scale texture shown ended up producing the most friction, as they were tested on a smooth surface and therefore unable to grip the terrain. However, the greater applications of this experiment includes the use of these wheel structures in devices made to traverse the terrain of other planets, specifically in Mars rovers. This project won third in the category of environmental engineering. Image taken at FAU High School Owls Imaging Lab.