Project X-Ray

[Gregory Matthews]

During WW II a dentist and friend of Eleanor Roosevelt proposed a plan to bomb Japan that as it developed became known as Project X-ray.

As conceived, it was simple and low cost:  The project  was funded with some $2,000,000.

This is how it developed:

*  Some 6,000 bats (the kind that fly around at night and eat insects), were collected.

*  Devices weighing up to 28 grams were developed that could be triggered to start a fire.

*  The bats were forced into hibernation.

*  The above devices were attached to a fold in skin on the bats that allowed them to fly.

*  While in a state of hibernation they were stuffed into mechanical containers that could be deployed from B-25 bombers.

*  At a pre-determined altitude the containers would open and released the now awakened bats.

*  The bats would fly down to the city below.  At night they would seek a place to spend the night, hopefully in the homes of the Japanese.

*  At a pre-determined time the devices attached to resting bats would ignite and the Japanese city would burn!

Well in actual practice as Project X-Ray developed, things did not go as well as planned.

*  One group of bats did their own thing, nested in brand-new Air Force hanger and burned it to the ground.   Along with the hanger, they burned the commanding officer's car. 

*  Some bats never woke up from hibernation.

*  Many bats did not cooperate and went their own way not accomplishing the mission.

*  All in all, some 30 different times the 6,000 bats participated in this experiment which was determined to be impractical.

NOTE one of the number of websites devoted to this is:

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bat_bomb

Some of what I wrote above came from an article by John Mooallem, in Wired. and titled: "My 7-Year-Old Took Pictures of My Naked 3-Year-Old and Almost Put Them on Facebook.  How do I Explain This Is a Bad Idea?"  Yes, that is actually the title.