Optimal control theory is applied as a method for determining the minimum
wind strength required for dynamic soaring of seabirds. Dynamic soaring is a
flight technique by which seabirds extract energy from shear wind existing in
an altitude layer close to the water surface. Mathematical models for
describing the soaring motion of a bird and for the shear wind are presented.
Optimality conditions are formulated using the minimum principle. Switching
conditions are introduced to deal with a state constraint. Numerical results of
high accuracy are generated using an efficient computational procedure based
on the method of the multiple shooting for an albatross as a representative for
seabirds performing dynamic soaring.
