They call “Philadelphia Experiment”. And it tells the story that, in 1940, the Navy of United States of America developed a warship that it was invisible and could disappear completely into the physical realm through the use of electromagnetic fields and teleportation experiments.
Some witnesses reported seeing the ship vanish in the bay, but others have assured that it is just an urban legend.
Second National Geographic , the experiment sought to create a ship that could evade enemy mines and torpedoes due to its invisibility and teleportation capabilities. Without embargosomething went wrong and the ship not only became invisible, but some of the crew would die in the process, while others would suffer side effects such as mental illness and disorientation.
There are several books and films that have talked about or have been inspired by the story of the “Philadelphia Experiment”, such as “The Philadelphia Experiment: Project Invisibility” by Charles Berlitz and William Moore (1979); MK Jessup’s “The Case for the UFO” (1955) and “The Myth of the American Sleepover” (2010).
The origin of the legend
According to the most popular version, the US Navy started the experiment with the help of Dr. Franklin Reno, an expatriate German scientist who claimed to have advanced knowledge of stealth technology. The military wanted to use this technology to prevent enemy vessels from detecting their vessels.
In 1940, Reno proposed a technique to the United States to make warships less detectable by enemy radar.
He worked for an electronics company called the Research Institute of America. He approached the US Navy’s Office of Research and Development with an idea that involved coating warships with a special material that could absorb radar waves.
According to the mediumThe Detector, the Navy evaluated the idea and, after some testing, found that there was some value in the Reno concept. Furthermore, the technique was further improved over several years and eventually, as the story goes, they wanted to use the technology in the Second World War .
The experiment, in two phases
The experiment would have consisted in rolling up the hull of the USS Eldridge ship with a series of electromagnetic wires, which would allow him to manipulate the electric and magnetic fields around him. Tests for the ship would be carried out at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on 22 July 1943, during World War II.
Second National Geographic, the USS Eldridge was equipped with a series of electromagnetic coils and generators designed to create a powerful magnetic field capable of bending light to create an illusion of invisibility. The plan called for the USS Eldridge to become invisible to enemy ships.
According to some accounts, the USS Eldridge would appear minutes later in the same position, but with some of her crew maimed, merged with the ship’s bridge, or missing entirely.
Other reports say so the ship would travel through timebeing teleported over 100 miles away in space-time.
After the disruption, a second trial was scheduled for 28 October 1943. It is said that in this case the crew of the USS Eldridge would have fled the ship when it disappeared and suddenly reappeared, and the crew would have suffered serious side effects, such as mental and physical illnesses, due to exposure to electromagnetic energy .
The person who started the myth
The legend appears to have been started by a man named Charles AllenWho he claimed to have worked on the project and later made several statements about what happened. In 1955, Allen told Jessup, author of “The Case for the UFO,” that he had worked on the project and had seen and experienced the effects of the experiment.
Later, in the 1970s, Allen, in an interview with an American outlet, again claimed that his story was true, but provided no proof or evidence to back up his claims.
Referring to the event, in 2000, the US Navy issued an official statement denying the existence of the alleged Philadelphia Experiment.
“The United States Navy has never conducted an invisibility or teleportation experiment involving the USS Eldridge or any other vessel. The Philadelphia Experiment urban legend is based in fiction and has no basis in fact,” he said.
Several films and books have been inspired by the legend of the “Philadelphia Experiment”, some of the most notable are: “The Philadelphia Experiment” (1984) and “The Philadelphia Experiment II” (1993).
The story told by Carl Allen remains a mystery to this day. While there is no proof or hard evidence that it actually happened, the urban legend has managed to stay present in popular culture for decades, inspiring movies and books.
Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.