We’ve all seen that crazy footage from the 60s where the military is testing out various flying saucer prototypes–some which crash, some which can hover a whole three feet in the air–but now someone has actually developed a potentially viable flying saucer. And it uses plasma, not giant fans.
A patent coming out of the University of Florida, the design is for a 6-inch (but scalable) wingless electromagnetic air vehicle (WEAV). Powered by magnetohydrodynamics (the force generated by passing current/magnetic fields through liquid), the saucer is covered with electrodes that ionize the surrounding air, turning it into plasma. A current is then passed through this plasma (creating that magnetohydrodynamic effect) and presto, lift (and the aliens will finally think we’re cool enough to hang out with for non-butt-probing recreational activities). [WEAV via gizmag]