How otter pelts are revolutionizing wetsuit technology

The sunny beaches of summer are already losing their popularity, as increasingly chilly waters drive vacationers to less frigid pursuits. Cold water has long challenged humans, who have no natural defenses against a wintry marine environment. Beavers and sea otters, on the other hand, thrive in cold water, despite lacking the insulating blubber that protects other marine mammals. The secret is in their fur, where warm air is trapped among the hairs in their thick pelts, keeping them warm even as they dodge ice floes. Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, inspired by this evolutionary strategy, have created synthetic pelts modeled after the mechanism through which beavers warm themselves.