Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1952-08-06
Researcher Stages
Demonstration at
BeIvoir Laboratory
BY w. H. Shippen
copyrieht, 1852, by The Evening Star
Newspaper Co.


copyrisht, 1852. by The Evening Star
Newspaper Co.
Army Engineers are making
their own flying saucers" at Fort
Belvoir, Va, and are launching
them with a wave of the hand.
These airborne objects are Gre
ated in the best-known shapes
and colors. They can speed up,
hover indefinitely, or disappear
and reappear in a flash.
The man-made "Saucers" occa-
sionally fly in formation. More
over, they are believed to have
substance enough to show up on
the screen of a radar designed to
track them.
Such a radar Gar from one
powerful enough to bounce its
beams against the noon would
need only to scan a segment of
space within an 18-inch vacuum
bell jar less than three feet tall.
Two Forces Reproduced.
Inside this tiny working-model
of the shakespeare are reproduced
two forces-very low air pressure,
which is balanced against static
electricity in a way to give off
light. Experimenters in the Re-
search and Development Labora-
tories at Fort Belvoir believe these
two are the primary factors re-
sponsible for saucer sightings by
competent observers.
Physicist Noel w. Scott, who is
an amateur astronomer, was work.
ing with the vacuum bell on some
mirror-coating experiments when
he noticed the behavior of the
lights. To him they appeared to be
flying saucers in miniature.
Recent sightings by radar at
National Airport and by trained
airmen prompted Mr.. Scott to do
some research on the side.
Yesterday 1t. Gen. Lewis A..
Pick, chief Of Army engineers, and
Maj. Gen. Stanley L. Scott, COM
of Fort Belvoir, and sew
eral members Of their stats wit
messed a demonstration at the
laboratory.
Mr.. Scott produced a near
vacuum within the bell lar.
roughly corresponding to pressure
believed to exist at an altitude of
200 miles above the earth. Very
thin air within the bell was ion
lied through exposure to static
electricity fed into a metal circle
at the base of the bell.
Air Produces Light.
When minute quantities Of air
were let into the glass container, a
oubble-shaped glow of orange light
began to rise from the center of
the base. The light expanded into
the shape of a small electric globe.
Here it remained poised, or could
be induced to detach itself from
the base. or float off against the
glass wall.
When the light floated free. q
faint purplish glow developed at
its base. as if the object was pro-
PEELED or sustained in position by
a jet exhaust. To some observers,
it resembled a glowing orange
balloon emitting a purplish gas
or flame; to others, a new model
for a space ship.
The motion Of the objects de-
veloping within the bell could bel
controlled to some extent from
the outside. The lights tended to
follow small electric magnet
drawn along the glass, or even
the wave of a mans hand. This
occurred when the mans body
contained enough static electricity
to influence the lights.
AT times, small orange lights
about the size of marbles rolled
across the base and made minute
flashes on the glass. Mr.. Scott
said these lights sometimes float
in formation. He believes they
(See SAUCERS, Page A-5.)