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vimana
By
nessie
At the time the ionocraft drive mechanism was patented, the problem of the power supply had not yet been solved.
The Popular Mechanics article did, however, raise an intriguing possibility.
Power from Boiling Mercury. Sunflower -- a code name for another project aimed at deriving electric power
directly from sunlight. It employs an umbrella-like reflector that focuses the sun's heat to boil mercury, which expands through
a turbine and drives an electric generator. (Solar power supplies would be back-stopped by other kinds of power generators to
take over whenever no sunlight is available.)
The concept of using mercury to power a flying machine is nothing new. Consider the
vimanas described in great
detail in ancient works such as the Rg Veda, the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, and the, Puranas.
They have many features very reminiscent of UFOs. There were at least four different types of vimanas. Some were saucer
shaped -- others were shaped like long cylinders. One is described as deriving its motive force from the "power latent
in mercury".
Coincidence? Perhaps.
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