The Practicality of Skipping for Animals and Astronauts

In a lofty episode of SciShow, host Rose Bear Don’t Walk explains the practicality of skipping for many land animals, astronauts, and small children but not necessarily for most adult humans.

As we age most of us stop skipping. It takes a lot of energy and it’s just not a practical way to get around. But across the animal kingdom there are other animals that skip and not just when they’re young and developing. They show us that skipping isn’t always impractical sometimes this whimsical movement is a pretty decent way to get around.

The moon’s low gravity makes skipping the most practical way for astronauts to get around.

When Apollo Astronauts walked on the Moon their stride often naturally turned to a skip. It’s easier to skip in low gravity and NASA scientists hypothesize that astronauts may have preferred this type of movement because of the stability it offered here.