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in 1952 .]] Flying saucer is the name given to a type of Unidentified Flying Object with a Disc or Saucer shaped body, usually silver and covered with Running Lights , moving rapidly either alone or in tight formations with other similar craft. Although disc-shaped flying objects have been reported occasionally since the Middle Ages , the first publicised sighting by Kenneth Arnold in 1947 led to thousands of similar sightings across the world. Such sightings were once very common, to such an extent that flying saucer became a synonym for UFO, but recently, the flying saucer has been largely supplanted by other Alleged Vehicles such as the Black Triangle .1 Many of the alleged flying saucer photographs of the era are now believed to be Hoax es, and the concept is no longer taken seriously among the wider media and general public; the flying saucer is now considered largely a Camp Retrofuturist icon of the 1950s and of B-movies in particular, and is a popular subject in Comic Science Fiction .2 SIGHTINGS Perhaps the oldest recording of a saucer shaped object is from it across water", leading to the term "flying saucer" and the popular misconception that the craft he saw were saucer shaped. Immediately following the report, hundreds of sightings of saucer-like objects were reported across the United States. These sightings continued throughout the 1950s and 1960s, with such well known Ufologists as George Adamski and Billy Meier reporting sightings and producing photographic evidence. However, sightings began to decline in the 1970s, and flying saucers began to be supplanted by other craft such as black triangles and amorphous shapes; despite the increase in portable Camera s, photographs dwindled as Cold War and Space Race interest decreased and a number of notable images were exposed as fakes. EXPLANATIONS In addition to the Extraterrestrial Hypothesis , a variety of possible explanations for flying saucers have been put forward. One of the most common states that most were hoaxes; cylindrical metal objects such as pie tins, Hubcap s and Dustbin lids were easy to obtain, and the poor focus seen in UFO images makes the true scale of the object difficult to ascertain. Another theory states that most are natural phenomenon such as Lenticular Cloud s and Balloons , which appear disc-like in some lighting conditions.4 A third theory puts all saucer sightings down to a form of Mass Hysteria ; Arnold described the craft he saw as saucers, and even though he later clarified that they were not saucer-shaped, the image was fixed in the public consciousness. As the use of the flying saucer in popular culture decreased, so to did sightings.5 EARTH-BASED EXAMPLES See Also: military flying saucers , a one-man flying saucer-based vehicle.]] Attempts have been made, with limited success, to produce manned vehicles based on the flying saucer design. While some, such as the Avrocar and M200G Volantor have been produced in limited numbers, most fail to leave the drawing board. The Avrocar, with Vertical Takeoff And Landing , was originally intended to replace both the Jeep and the Helicopter in combat situations, but proved to be inadequate for both.6 Unmanned saucers have had more success; the Sikorsky Cypher is a saucer-like UAV which uses the disc-shaped shroud to protect rotor blades. , a proposed saucer-like spacecraft.]] FLYING SAUCERS IN CULTURE ''.]] The flying saucer quickly became a symbol of both extraterrestrials and Science Fiction , and features in many films of mid-20th century science fiction, including '' The Day The Earth Stood Still '', '' Plan 9 From Outer Space '' and '' Earth Vs. The Flying Saucers ''. As the flying saucer was surpassed by other designs and concepts, it fell out of favour with straight science-fiction movie makers, but continued to be used ironically in comedy movies, especially in reference to the low budget B Movie s which often featured saucer-shaped alien craft. The sleek, silver flying saucer in particular is seen as a symbol of 1950s culture; the motif is common is Googie Architecture and in Atomic Age décor.8 The image is often invoked Retrofuturistically to produce a Nostalgic feel in period works, especially in Comic Science Fiction ; both '' Mars Attacks! ''9 and '' Destroy All Humans! ''10 draw on the flying saucer as part of the larger satire of 1950s B movie tropes. REFERENCES |
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