Ellis Oswalt's Blog

Why is 369 the Key to the Universe? 

Nikola Tesla was the inventor of modern electrical distribution as well as wireless communication and remote control. Combined, these inventions make the foundations of the modern world. 

The internet is filled with articles on numerology and the “secret code” to Tesla's genius method. These topics are popular, but do not relate to anything actually said by the inventor.
(See also: Will the Real Nikola Tesla Please Stand Up?)

We have transcripts of his speeches and lectures. He was interviewed frequently by American magazines and newspapers for decades, and today we have access to many of his handwritten letters. Combined, these all account for a large body of Tesla’s recorded thoughts. Many of the things he is documented to have said contradict the internet version of Nikola Tesla.

HERE ARE SOME OF HIS BEST QUOTES: 

Source: 
Electrical Experimenter [magazine]; Feb 1919; "Famous Scientific Illusions" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

Source: 
Electrical Experimenter [magazine]; Feb 1919; "My Inventions: Part I" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

Galviston Daily News; March 13, 1932; "Great Scientific Discovery Impends"; an interview with Nikola Tesla by Harry Goldberg
(Read it here)

Galviston Daily News; March 13, 1932; "Great Scientific Discovery Impends"; an interview with Nikola Tesla by Harry Goldberg
(Read it here)

Source: 
Century Magazine; June 1900; "The Problem of Increasing Human Energy" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

Source:
New York Press; March 2, 1913; "Nikola Tesla Talks of the Future of the Greatest Problems Now Confronting the Scientific World" by E. Leslie Gilliams
(Read it here)

Source: 
Electrical Experimenter (magazine); October 1919; "My Inventions; Pt 6" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

Source:
Lecture for the IEE, London, Feb 1892; "Experiments with Alternating Current of High Potential and High Frequency" by Nikola Tesla 
(Read it here)

Source:
Galviston Daily News; March 13, 1932; "Great Scientific Discovery Impends"; an interview with Nikola Tesla by Harry Goldberg
(Read it here)

  TESLA ON WAR AND PEACE

& Government

 

Source: 
Century Magazine; June 1900; "The Problem of Increasing Human Energy" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

Source: 
Century Magazine; June 1900; "The Problem of Increasing Human Energy" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

Source: 
Electrical Experimenter (magazine); October 1919; "My Inventions; Pt 6" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

(Read it here)

  Tesla on Edison

Source:
Electrical Review; Jan 27, 1897; "On Electricity" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

Source:
New York Herald; May 24, 1896; "Tesla's Bright Light" by Henry Tyrell
(Read it here)

  is tesla serbian or croatian?

For sources and additional references, see also Is Nikola Tesla Serbian or Croatian?

tesla on religion

Source: 
Century Magazine; June 1900; "The Problem of Increasing Human Energy" by Nikola Tesla
(Read it here)

In the same document, Tesla says “For ages this idea has been proclaimed in the consummately wise teachings of religion, probably not alone as a means of insuring peace and harmony among men, but as a deeply founded truth. The Buddhist expresses it in one way, the Christian in another, but both say the same: We are all one.”

(See also: Will the Real Nikola Tesla Please Stand Up?)

  Tesla’s undiagnosed neurological condition

Source:
Electrical Experimenter (magazine); Feb, 1919; "My Inventions: Part 1" by Nikola Tesla 
(Read it here)

Source:
Electrical Experimenter (magazine); Feb, 1919; "My Inventions: Part 1" by Nikola Tesla 
(Read it here)

Notice the above quote is written in the present tense, and it is not “When I CLOSED my eyes” but rather “When I CLOSE my eyes.” If Tesla’s condition is ever acknowledge at all, it is usually said to be a small problem only in his childhood, but a multitude of his quotes tell us he suffered from this condition well into his old age. Highlighting this aspect of Tesla’s personal life is the inspiration behind Tesla’s Words by Ellis Oswalt.

“None of the students of psychology or physiology whom I have consulted could ever explain satisfactorily these phenomena.”

"A startling peek into the mind of a true genius."
—Kirkus Reviews

5/5 stars
"TESLA’S WORDS is a short book… yet readers will learn as much about Tesla from this as they might from a scholarly 600-page biography."
—IndieReader

buy book

By Ellis Oswalt
December, 21, 2023

The Australian Associated Press contacted me for my opinion about a supposed quote from Nikola Tesla. The quote received about 90,000 views on Facebook, and in it, Tesla explains when we die we turn into light and live for all eternity as a beam of light. I knew instantly that the quote was fake, and other experts agreed. 

(Read the full AAP article: Nikola Tesla Death and Light Quote Dims Under Scrutiny).

It is hard to explain the avalanche of fake history surrounding this important scientist, who built the foundations for remote control, wireless communication, and modern electrical grids. Depending on who you ask, there are many different versions of Nikola Tesla. 

YouTube videos with 10-million views claim that Tesla’s inspiration came from forgotten Egyptian knowledge shared by those who built the pyramids, but Tesla never spoke about anything related to this. Memes exaggerate Tesla's relationship with Hindu mystic, Swami Vivekananda. There is a genre of Tesla as a new-age guru and another genre of Tesla conspiracy.

All around the world, people celebrate a fake Tesla.

The person in the image is not
Nikola Tesla.

These images are used in fake patents attributed to Tesla which have gone viral online.

People often ask me what is my process to determine if a Tesla quote is fake, and it is surprisingly simple.

After researching this topic for years to create my drama, Tesla’s Words, I keep several digital catalogs of his newspaper interviews, articles authored by his pen, personal letters, speech transcripts, and other writings. In the recent past, a person would need to scan all the documents with their eyeballs for hours, but now I can just press (Cont + F) to search for words on the page. 

But I can usually remember where a quote is from without much digging. 

This is his most popular quote.

After about two years of researching for Tesla’s Words, I realized this quote never appeared in any of Tesla’s writing, interviews, or personal letters. It seemed to be fake. So I reached out to my friend Tim who was the producer of the groundbreaking show Tesla Files for his opinion, to which he replied “One of the sketch ones, for sure.” 

He put me in touch with a top expert, Dr. Marc Seifer, who agreed he could not pin a source for this quote. But speculation didn’t end there, Seifer reached across the world to another expert, Dr. Branimir Jovanović. Our final expert said not only is there no documentation, but the quote sounds counter to things Tesla would actually say.

This is how a quote is authenticated, by both scanning the entire written works of Tesla, and by expert consensus. Here is another popular quote you might have seen: 

I knew this quote had no source, so I double checked with another expert, Dr. Oliver Subotić, who speaks Tesla’s native tongue. This is important because Tesla’s letters to family and certain friends were not in English. Subotić also has access to the private archives at Belgrade's Nikola Tesla Museum, which contain plenty of Tesla’s personal documents which aren’t available to myself or the public. 

Now two experts agree the quote is a fake. 

Tesla’s Words art by Jelena Gradimir © copyright 2022.

When AAP FactCheck contacted me, I didn’t realize this would be the first of many times I would go public to reveal the real Tesla.


Non-profit groups around the globe existing to preserve Tesla’s broken legacy, one in Philidelphia and another in Perth, began to send me words of encouragement. A late draft of my book received blockbuster reviews from indie reviewers Kirkus Reviews, Writer’s Digest competitions, and others. 


So I published Tesla’s Words and went on a speaking tour of Serbia, the nation of Tesla’s heritage, where on every TV station I spoke about shocking and forgotten details which had been hiding in plain sight:

A quote from The Autobiography of Nikola Telsa.
Follow @teslaswords for more quotes with source.

Here, at the age of 62, Tesla describes what he sees from the back of his eyelids when trying to sleep on a nightly basis. He tells us the “affliction” was much worse in his childhood, but it never completely went away. His experience of flashing lights, in particular, re-occurred throughout his life:

A quote from The Autobiography of Nikola Tesla.
Follow @teslaswords for more quotes with source.

When he was young, the barrage of symptoms was most severe, and he described visions so powerful that he lived inside cities within his mind. He claimed to meet people and maintain friendships in a complex dream world.

Here is another category of the visions he describes: 

A quote from The Autobiography of Nikola Tesla.
Follow @teslaswords for more quotes with source.

Here Tesla describes seeing a hallucination in his waking, sober hours, and trying to touch it, only to realize it is not there.


What does any of this mean? Nobody knows. This aspect of Tesla’s life is oddly glossed over in every film and biography, despite coming directly from Tesla’s autobiography. No one has asked a medical expert for their opinion. The topic has simply been overlooked.

One of the biggest reasons why this information might have remained hidden for so long is because Tesla’s memoirs are admittedly dry and hard to read at first glance. In them, he tells a magical story of biblical proportions about his path to becoming history's greatest engineer. But he goes on tangents, often struggling to stick to one idea at a time:

One moment he is 6 and in the next sentence he is in his 30s. 
In the next sentence, he talks about his childhood again, then his 60s, then again his 30s. The document is hard to follow, and there is evidence that the publication was rushed while the editors were frustrated with Tesla’s inability to meet deadlines. (Tesla’s autobiography is free to access: read it here.)

In my masterpiece drama, Tesla’s Words, I preserve his original quotes, but weave them into a story that provides all the context.

As one of the world’s last classically trained actors of the Russian Stanislovsky method, I spent years collecting dramaturgical research of the time period while methodically analyzing Tesla’s life, his viewpoints, his favorite literature, his childhood and other experiences, his relationships, his motivations, and his written works.

I brought him back to life. 

“A startling peek into the mind of a true genius.”
—Kirkus Reviews


“Ellis is an extraordinary talent. His communication skills are fascinating.”
—Dr. Branimir Jovanović
Nikola Tesla expert, author, & aerospace engineer

“…Reading of this book was a spiritual experience.”
—Dr. Vujo Knezević
Neurosurgeon;
Tesla Forum of Western Australia

5/5 stars
"TESLA’S WORDS is a short book… yet readers will learn as much about Tesla from this as they might from a scholarly 600-page biography."
—IndieReader


“Tesla in his own words. Great read by Ellis Oswalt.”
—John Nosta
WHO Roster of Experts; Google Health Advisory Board;
former Chief Creative Officer & Chief Strategic Officer of Ogilvy CommonHealth

Tap the images to buy Tesla’s Words

FREE TESLA LIBRARY

Tap to read:

- 3 Best Nikola Tesla Books

- The Problem of Increasing Human Energy by Nikola Tesla

- A Speech Delivered by Nikola Tesla

- An Interview of Nikola Tesla by Curtis Brown 

- An Interview of Nikola Tesla by Arthur Brisbane

- 100 Year Old Secret of Nikola Tesla Revealed

Tap here to buy the book

Where was Tesla from? Is Nikola Tesla Albanian?

Confusion about Tesla’s Origin for Over 100 Years:

The New York Times once printed that he was “a young Austro-Hungarian” (July 9, 1891) and because Tesla’s religion was described as “Greek Orthodox” in the earliest biography, readers might wonder if Tesla was Greek (John O’Neill).

With time, the facts have become clear.
CNN, MSNBC, FOX, and PBS have published recent articles about the forgotten inventor, who can best be described as Serbian-American. Tesla was a first-generation immigrant who lived half of his life in the United States after becoming a citizen.

Trust in mainstream media is at an all-time low, but when FOX and CNN agree on something, it’s worth noting:

CNN, 2019: Nikola Tesla Inventions that Should have Made the Inventor Famous… by Lauren Kent

FOX, 2023: On this Day in History…Nikola Tesla…
by Christine Rousselle

NBC News, 2014: Nikola Tesla vs Thomas Edison: Who was the Better Inventor? by Tia Ghose

But Wasn’t Tesla Born in Croatia?

There has long been tragic friction between neighboring Serbia and Croatia, and more words of wisdom from Tesla proclaim “We are all one.”
(Source of quote: The Problem of Increasing Human Energy by Nikola Tesla.)

When Tesla was alive, he was interviewed countless times in American newspapers and magazines. One profile by Arthur Brisbane in 1894 details Tesla’s Serbian heritage as one of the main themes of the interview, and in another interview Tesla was asked directly about his nationality, to which he replied:

“I am Serbian—not from the Kingdom of Serbia, but from the outskirts. Near Montenegro…"

—Nikola Tesla

Source:

The Criterion (Magazine), November 19, 1898
Tesla Talks and Confirms His Astounding Story
An Interview of Nikola Tesla by H.W. Phillips

In ancient times, the land north of Greece was under the Roman Empire and then the Byzantine Empire. This land was such an essential part of ancient Rome, that dozens of emperors were born and lived here.

This became the kingdom of Serbia in the late medieval period. Medieval Serbia touched virtually all land immediately north of Greece, and was the most influential power of the region for over a hundred years before succumbing to Ottoman conquest for a long stretch of time.

When Tesla was born in the small village of Smiljan in 1856, this was land that fell at the edges between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the still-present Ottomans, and had been left unsettled by the Hungarians. Serbian people gathered along this narrow fringe in the aftermath of centuries of brutal wars and subjection by the Ottomans.

At this time, Croatia did not exist as an independent state, and it would not become one until much later in 1941 and then again in 1991. Croatia’s origins as a distinct culture point to their own medieval kingdom, smaller but pre-dating the Medieval Serbian Kingdom. Linguists, however, will walk a political tightrope when they carefully explain that Croatian and Serbian are separate dialects of the same shared language.

The Medieval Croatian Kingdom was a land that submitted to the Bishop of Rome, whereas Catholicism never fully arrived in Serbia. Religion is an important detail because there is an overwhelming amount of evidence that both sides of Tesla’s family were clergy of the Serbian Orthodox faith, as Tesla himself was in line to be a priest.

Austria, Hungary, and Slovenia all laid claim to land that is now Croatia in a tug of war as the Ottomans waned and the Yugoslav state then emerged. Now, in the aftermath of bitter Yugoslav Wars, a distinct Croatian culture is here to stay.

All this creates the paradoxical situation that it is both accurate and inaccurate to say that “Tesla was born in Croatia." So while we give our Croatian friends flexibility to claim him, we should not forget to ask Tesla for his answer:

Montenegro and Serbia share close political and cultural heritage.
Here a pre-2006 map of the Balkan region reflects coastal Montenegro as still part of the Serbian-Yugoslav Union.

Story continued further down page…

FREE TESLA LIBRARY

MENU:

- The Problem of Increasing Human Energy by Nikola Tesla

- A Speech Delivered by Nikola Tesla

- An Interview of Nikola Tesla by Curtis Brown 

- An Interview of Nikola Tesla by Arthur Brisbane

- 3 Best Nikola Tesla Books

- 100 Year Old Secret of Nikola Tesla Revealed

Follow @teslaswords for your daily dose of Tesla ⚡️

Ellis Oswalt is an American writer and producer in New York City, and the author of Tesla’s Words. He has been used as a source by the Australian Associated Press to help determine the validity of fake Tesla quotes going viral online. Tap here to find out more .

 

Follow @teslaswords for your daily dose of Tesla ⚡️

Kansas City Journal-Post; September 10, 1933
Tremendous New Power Soon to Be Unleashed; An Interview by Carol Bird.

Experiments with Alternating Currents of Very High Frequency, and their Methods of Artificial Illumination; May 20, 1891
A Speech for the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, Columbia University; By Nikola Tesla

Electrical Experimenter; Feb, 1919
My Inventions: Part I; by Nikola Tesla

Continued:

After the New York Times called Tesla a “young Austro-Hungarian” in 1891, the newspaper later shifted to describe him as Serbian in a 1974 article titled Yugoslav Honors for Nike Tesla (April 14, 1974, Page 12).

In the 1920s and 30s, Tesla did his part to encourage unity in the newly formed state of Yugoslavia. In telegram communications with Croat political leader Vladko Maček, Tesla supposedly said:

“I am equally proud of my Serb origin and my Croat homeland.”

(A transcript of this telegram could not be found to share, and the communication was most likely not in English.)

An elderly Tesla was visited by King Peter II of Yugoslavia in his final year of life. According to King Peter’s 1954 memoirs, A King’s Heritage, Tesla urged him to stay focused in preserving the Yugoslav state, instructing the the King: “I am proud to be a Serbian and a Yugoslav… Preserve the unity of all Yugoslavs—the Serbs, the Croats, and Slovenes.”

Was Nikola Tesla’s Mother Albanian?

Internet sources sometimes claim that Tesla’s mother was Croatian or Albanian, but again, we can let Tesla himself put these rumors to rest. In a private letter sent to journalist George Mungas who was writing an article about Tesla’s ethnic background in 1921, Tesla said:

“Of course you know that I am Serbian, coming from the oldest stock inasmuch as my mother’s name can be traced almost as far back as any other in our race.”

Tap the image to read an interview with Ellis Oswalt by Serbian news Red Portal.

"A startling peek into the mind of a true genius."
—Kirkus Reviews

5/5 stars
"TESLA’S WORDS is a short book… yet readers will learn as much about Tesla from this as they might from a scholarly 600-page biography."
—IndieReader


”…Reading of this book was a spiritual experience.”
—Dr. Vujo Knezevic
Neurosurgeon;
Tesla Forum of Western Australia

“Tesla in his own words. Great read by Ellis Oswalt.”
—John Nosta
WHO Roster of Experts; Google Health Advisory Board;
former Chief Creative Officer & Chief Strategic Officer of Ogilvy CommonHealth

BACK TO TOP

TESLA’S WORDS
by Ellis Oswalt

This award-winning volume uses direct quotes from Nikola Tesla to tell the reader the story of his life, and to reveal a layer of mystery that is still unexplained. This skinny book is a drama that displays the complex personality of a super-genius, giving the reader deep insights into his thought process, wisdom, and his sense of humor. Tesla also tells us with his own words about his strange battle with hallucinations, visions, and uncontrollable flashing lights he experienced all throughout his life. 

Link to BUY Tesla’s Words by Ellis Oswalt 

WIZARD
by Marc Seifer Phd 

This traditional biography from the 1990s is the reason that Tesla’s forgotten name has survived.

Seifer holds a PhD in handwriting analysis, and his years of historical research gave fruit to a very thick and entertaining biography. Wizard: The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla was published independently, and its success swayed so many people that PBS quickly produced the first mainstream American documentary about the scientist and inventor in 2000 (For reference, Tesla died in 1943). PBS invited Seifer to be involved in their second Tesla film in 2018.

Link to BUY Wizard by Marc Seifer

WIRELESS by Branimir Jovanović Phd 

His name is not so famous in the United States, but Branimir helps preserve and make best use of the massive archives at the Nikola Tesla Museum in Belgrade, where even Tesla’s ashes are maintained. Branimir holds degrees in aerospace engineering and is considered a top world expert on Tesla, and he has produced the finest glossary-style textbook ever made on probably any subject. Filled with amazing photographs and illustrations, this huge book is broken up into small, thematic sections. 

Link to BUY Wireless by Branimir Jovanović

IF YOU WANT TO KNOW THE SECRETS OF THE UNIVERSE, GRAB ALL THREE! 

Not ready to buy? Take advantage of these FREE resources.

MENU: 

-The Problem of Increasing Human Energy by Nikola Tesla

-A Speech Delivered by Nikola Tesla

-An Interview of Nikola Tesla by Curtis Brown 

-An Interview of Nikola Tesla by Arthur Brisbane

-100 Year Old Secret of Nikola Tesla Revealed

And follow @teslaswords for your daily dose of Tesla ⚡️

 

Ellis Oswalt is a writer and producer in New York City, and the author of Tesla’s Words. Tap here to find out more.

 

Follow @teslaswords

[image error]

Talking with the Planets
Collier's Weekly, February 19, 1901.

Webmaster’s note:  

On this page you will find virtually everything Nikola Tesla said in public while pondering life on other planets. 

Taken out of context, Tesla’s quotes about aliens might seem silly, and many people will think less of Tesla for approaching the topic at all. It is important to note that during the late 1800s/early 1900s, alien life was a trending topic just as our congressional hearings and news agencies in the 2020s are abuzz with stories about UFO or UAP activity. 

Thus, much of what Tesla says about aliens is merely his response to a trending topic. For the most part, his comments are philosophical and curious, rather than tinfoil hat material. And for someone who was known to be so serious… “Nikola Tesla is almost the tallest, almost the thinnest, and certainly the most serious man who goes to Delmonico’s regularly.”( The World, July 1894 ). When he wasn’t preoccupied with difficult engineering problems, he could just as often show us that it’s okay to have fun.

There is a more famous time when Tesla is said to have made a total mistake in this area. He was performing early experiments with radio in 1899, and believed he might have received an alien communication. As a prudent scientist, however, he was wise enough to distinguish this from an objective reality. He used language like “…I could not say with certainty…” and words like “probable" to describe the supposed alien encounter.

Some context about the trending talk of aliens in Tesla’s time will be provided below. A menu of each original newspaper article used as source material is also provided, but it is advised to finish reading the page before exploring. 

If you enjoy this, please follow @teslaswords or grab a copy of Tesla’s Words  by Ellis Oswalt.

Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla
Collier's Weekly, February 19, 1901.

Every quote is sourced from a real newspaper article, and you can read these vintage articles by navigating the menu below.

MENU:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

Signaling To Mars—A Problem Of Electrical Engineering By Nikola Tesla
The Harvard Illustrated Magazine, March 1907.

Would Talk With Mars By Pictures, an Interview by Garrett P. Serviss
THE NEW YORK POST, Jan 22, 1919.

Would Talk With Mars By Pictures, an Interview by Garrett P. Serviss
THE NEW YORK POST, Jan 22, 1919.

Would Talk With Mars By Pictures, an Interview by Garrett P. Serviss
THE NEW YORK POST, Jan 22, 1919.

Great Scientific Discovery Impends, an Interview by Harry Goldberg
Galveston Daily News, March 13, 1932.

Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla
Collier's Weekly, February 19, 1901.

Signaling To Mars—A Problem Of Electrical Engineering By Nikola Tesla
The Harvard Illustrated Magazine, March 1907.

Every quote here is sourced from a real newspaper article, and you can read these articles by navigating the menu below.

MENU:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

CONTEXT:

ASTRONOMY HISTORY - THE LOWELL OBSERVATORY

Tesla tells us his curiosity about aliens was provoked by the work of astronomer Percival Lowell, whose work led to the discovery of Pluto.

Lowell was influenced by the work of earlier Italian astronomer, Giovanni Shiaparelli, who studied the geography of Mars as the planet drew very close to Earth in 1877. In years that followed, Shiaparelli published maps of the planet Mars that showed natural landmarks of the empty pockets, or channels, where water had flowed in oceans before Mars was dry and frozen, as we know it today.

His map labeled these “channels” and in English it was mis-translated to “canals” which planted the idea in the English-speaking-world that these markings on the surface of Mars could indicate artificial structures built by a race of intelligent designers.

Telescope technology was weak, and very little was known about our solar system. American Percival Lowell was thrilled by the possibility of alien life on Mars, and erected an observatory in Arizona in 1894 to study the red planet. Lowell never found life on Mars, but other astronomers working at his observatory eventually discovered the mass of Pluto, and other features around the edge of our solar system. Today, the observatory still stands as a historic landmark.

There was much talk about the possibility of alien life, and this influenced H. G. Wells to publish his novel War of the Worlds in 1898, further fanning the flames of alien fever.

In 1909 French astronomer Eugéne Antoniadi used a newly advanced telescope to observe Mars, and found that there were absolutely no signs of any structures built on the planet’s surface. The “Martian Canal” idea was then put to rest.

Maps of Mars by Giovanni Shiaparelli

Signaling To Mars—A Problem Of Electrical Engineering By Nikola Tesla
The Harvard Illustrated Magazine, March 1907.

Signaling To Mars—A Problem Of Electrical Engineering By Nikola Tesla
The Harvard Illustrated Magazine, March 1907.

Would Talk With Mars By Pictures, an Interview by Garrett P. Serviss
THE NEW YORK POST, Jan 22, 1919.

Would Talk With Mars By Pictures, an Interview by Garrett P. Serviss
THE NEW YORK POST, Jan 22, 1919.

Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla
Collier's Weekly, February 19, 1901.

The Problem of Increasing Human Energy by Nikola Tesla
Century Magazine, June 1900.

Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla
Collier's Weekly, February 19, 1901.

Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla
Collier's Weekly, February 19, 1901.

Would Talk With Mars By Pictures, an Interview by Garrett P. Serviss
THE NEW YORK POST, Jan 22, 1919.

Everything Nikola Tesla Said About Aliens

MENU:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

Tesla’s rival, Guglielmo Marconi, also believed he witnessed alien communication via radio.

Follow @teslaswords

Brought to you by Tesla’s Words .

Tesla Signals Mars By Radio
The New York American
Jan 21, 1919

TESLA SIGNALS MARS BY RADIO

SEE ALSO:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

Follow @teslaswords

Brought to you by Tesla’s Words .

Would Talk With Mars By Pictures
By Garrett P. Serviss
THE NEW YORK POST
Jan 22, 1919

SEE ALSO:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

Follow @teslaswords

Brought to you by Tesla’s Words .

Signaling To Mars—A Problem Of Electrical Engineering By Nikola Tesla
The Harvard Illustrated Magazine, March 1907.

SEE ALSO:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

Follow @teslaswords

Brought to you by Tesla’s Words .

Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla
Collier's Weekly, February 19, 1901, page 4-5

EDITOR’S NOTE.--Mr. Nikola Tesla has accomplished some marvelous results in electrical discoveries. Now, with the dawn of the new century, he announces an achievement which will amaze the entire universe, and which eclipses the wildest dream of the most visionary scientist. He has received communication, he asserts, from out the great void of space: a call from the inhabitants of Mars, or Venus, or some other sister planet! And, furthermore, noted scientists like Sir Norman Lockyer are disposed to agree with Mr. Tesla in his startling deductions.
    Mr. Tesla has not only discovered many important principles, but most of his inventions are in practical use: notably in the harnessing of the Titanic forces of Niagara Falls, and the discovery of a new light by means of a vacuum tube. He has, he declares, solved the problem of telegraphing without wires or artificial conductors of any sort, using the earth as his medium. By means of this principle he expects to be able to send messages under the ocean, and to any distance on the earth's surface. Interplanetary communication has interested him for years, and he sees no reason why we should not soon be within talking distance of Mars or of all worlds in the solar system that may be tenanted by intelligent beings.
    At the request of COLLIER'S  WEEKLY Mr. Tesla presents herewith a frank statement of what he expects to accomplish and how he hopes to establish communication with the planets.

THE IDEA of communicating with the inhabitants of other worlds is an old one. But for ages it has been regarded merely as a poet's dream, forever unrealizable. And with the invention and perfection of the telescope and the ever-widening knowledge of the heavens, its hold upon our imaginations has been increased, and the scientific achievements during the latter part of the nineteenth century, together with the development of the tendency toward the nature ideal of Goethe, have intensified it to such a degree that it seems as if it were destined to become the dominating idea of the century that has just begun. The desire to know something of our neighbors in the immense depths of space does not spring from idle curiosity nor from thirst for knowledge, but from a deeper cause, and it is a feeling firmly rooted in the heart of every human being capable of thinking at all

 

Whence, then, does it come? Who knows? Who can assign limits to the subtlety of nature's influences? Perhaps, if we could clearly perceive all the intricate mechanism of the glorious spectacle that is continually unfolding before us, and could, also, trace this desire to its distant origin, we might find it in the sorrowful vibrations of the earth which began when it parted from its celestial parent.

 

But in this age of reason it is not astonishing to find persons who scoff at the very thought of effecting communication with a planet. First of all, the argument is made that there is only a small probability of other planets being inhabited at all. This argument has never appealed to me. In the solar system, there seem to be only two planets--Venus and Mars--capable of sustaining life such as ours: but this does not mean that there might not be on all of them some other forms of life. Chemical processes may be maintained without the aid of oxygen, and it is still a question whether chemical processes are absolutely necessary for the sustenance of organized beings. My idea is that the development of life must lead to forms of existence that will be possible without nourishment and which will not be shackled by consequent limitations. Why should a living being not be able to obtain all the energy it needs for the performance of its life functions from the environment, instead of through consumption of food, and transforming, by a complicated process, the energy of chemical combinations into life-sustaining energy?

 

If there were such beings on one of the planets we should know next to nothing about them. Nor is it necessary to go so far in our assumptions, for we can readily conceive that, in the same degree as the atmosphere diminishes in density, moisture disappears and the planet freezes up, organic life might also undergo corresponding modifications, leading finally to forms which, according to our present ideas of life, are impossible. I will readily admit, of course, that if there should be a sudden catastrophe of any kind all life processes might be arrested; but if the change, no matter how great, should be gradual, and occupied ages, so that the ultimate results could be intelligently foreseen, I cannot but think that reasoning beings would still find means of existence. They would adapt themselves to their constantly changing environment. So I think it quite possible that in a frozen planet, such as our moon is supposed to be, intelligent beings may still dwell, in its interior, if not on its surface.

 

SIGNALLING AT 100,000,000 MILES!

 

Then it is contended that it is beyond human power and ingenuity to convey signals to the almost inconceivable distances of fifty million or one hundred million miles. This might have been a valid argument formerly. It is not so now. Most of those who are enthusiastic upon the subject of interplanetary communication have reposed their faith in the light-ray as the best possible medium of such communication. True, waves of light, owing to their immense rapidity of succession, can penetrate space more readily than waves less rapid, but a simple consideration will show that by their means an exchange of signals between this earth and its companions in the solar system is, at least now, impossible. By way of illustration, let us suppose that a square mile of the earth's surface--the smallest area that might possibly be within reach of the best telescopic vision of other worlds--were covered with incandescent lamps, packed closely together so as to form, when illuminated, a continuous sheet of light. It would require not less than one hundred million horse-power to light this area of lamps, and this is many times the amount of motive power now in the service of man throughout the world.

 

But with the novel means, proposed by myself, I can readily demonstrate that, with an expenditure not exceeding two thousand horse-power, signals can be transmitted to a planet such as Mars with as much exactness and certitude as we now send messages by wire from New York to Philadelphia. These means are the result of long-continued experiment and gradual improvement.

 

Some ten years ago, I recognized the fact that to convey electric currents to a distance it was not at all necessary to employ a return wire, but that any amount of energy might be transmitted by using a single wire. I illustrated this principle by numerous experiments, which, at that time, excited considerable attention among scientific men.

 

This being practically demonstrated, my next step was to use the earth itself as the medium for conducting the currents, thus dispensing with wires and all other artificial conductors. So I was led to the development of a system of energy transmission and of telegraphy without the use of wires, which I described in 1893. The difficulties I encountered at first in the transmission of currents through the earth were very great. At that time I had at hand only ordinary apparatus, which I found to be ineffective, and I concentrated my attention immediately upon perfecting machines for this special purpose. This work consumed a number of years, but I finally vanquished all difficulties and succeeded in producing a machine which, to explain its operation in plain language, resembled a pump in its action, drawing electricity from the earth and driving it back into the same at an enormous rate, thus creating ripples or disturbances which, spreading through the earth as through a wire, could be detected at great distances by carefully attuned receiving circuits. In this manner I was able to transmit to a distance, not only feeble effects for the purposes of signalling, but considerable amounts of energy, and later discoveries I made convinced me that I shall ultimately succeed in conveying power without wires, for industrial purposes, with high economy, and to any distance, however great.

 

 

EXPERIMENTS IN COLORADO

 

To develop these inventions further, I went to Colorado in where I continued my investigations along these and other lines, one of which in particular I now consider of even greater importance than the transmission of power without wires. I constructed a laboratory in the neighborhood of Pike's Peak. The conditions in the pure air of the Colorado Mountains proved extremely favorable for my experiments, and the results were most gratifying to me. I found that I could not only accomplish more work, physically and mentally, than I could in New York, but that electrical effects and changes were more readily and distinctly perceived. A few years ago it was virtually impossible to produce electrical sparks twenty or thirty foot long; but I produced some more than one hundred feet in length, and this without difficulty. The rates of electrical movement involved in strong induction apparatus had measured but a few hundred horse-power, and I produced electrical movements of rates of one hundred and ten thousand horse-power. Prior to this, only insignificant electrical pressures were obtained, while I have reached fifty million volts.

 

The accompanying illustrations, with their descriptive titles, taken from an article I wrote for the "Century Magazine," may serve to convey an idea of the results I obtained in the directions indicated.

 

Many persons in my own profession have wondered at them and have asked what I am trying to do. But the time is not far away now when the practical results of my labors will be placed before the world and their influence felt everywhere. One of the immediate consequences will be the transmission of messages without wires, over sea or land, to an immense distance. I have already demonstrated, by crucial tests, the practicability of signalling by my system from one to any other point of the globe, no matter how remote, and I shall soon convert the disbelievers.

 

I have every reason for congratulating myself that throughout these experiments, many of which were exceedingly delicate and hazardous, neither myself nor any of my assistants received any injury. When working with these powerful electrical oscillations the most extraordinary phenomena take place at times. Owing to some interference of the oscillations, veritable balls of fire are apt to leap out to a great distance, and if any one were within or near their paths, he would be instantly destroyed. A machine such as I have used could easily kill, in an instant, three hundred thousand persons. I observed that the strain upon my assistants was telling, and some of them could not endure the extreme tension of the nerves. But these perils are now entirely overcome, and the operation of such apparatus, however powerful, involves no risk whatever.

 

As I was improving my machines for the production of intense electrical actions, I was also perfecting the means for observing feeble effects. One of the most interesting results, and also one of great practical importance, was the development of certain contrivances for indicating at a distance of many hundred miles an approaching storm, its direction, speed and distance travelled. These appliances are likely to be valuable in future meteorological observations and surveying, and will lend themselves particularly to many naval uses.

 

It was in carrying on this work that for the first time I discovered those mysterious effects which have elicited such unusual interest. I had perfected the apparatus referred to so far that from my laboratory in the Colorado mountains I could feel the pulse of the globe, as it were, noting every electrical change that occurred within a radius of eleven hundred miles.

 

 

TERRIFIED BY SUCCESS

 

I can never forget the first sensations I experienced when it dawned upon me that I had observed something possibly of incalculable consequences to mankind. I felt as though I were present at the birth of a new knowledge or the revelation of a great truth. Even now, at times, I can vividly recall the incident, and see my apparatus as though it were actually before me. My first observations positively terrified me, as there was present in them something mysterious, not to say supernatural, and I was alone in my laboratory at night; but at that time the idea of these disturbances being intelligently controlled signals did not yet present itself to me.

 

The changes I noted were taking place periodically, and with such a clear suggestion of number and order that they were not traceable to any cause then known to me. I was familiar, of course, with such electrical disturbances as are produced by the sun, Aurora Borealis and earth currents, and I was as sure as I could be of any fact that these variations were due to none of these causes. The nature of my experiments precluded the possibility of the changes being produced by atmospheric disturbances, as has been rashly asserted by some. It was some time afterward when the thought flashed upon my mind that the disturbances I had observed might be due to an intelligent control. Although I could not decipher their meaning, it was impossible for me to think of them as having been entirely accidental. The feeling is constantly growing on me that I had been the first to hear the greeting of one planet to another. A purpose was behind these electrical signals; and it was with this conviction that I announced to the Red Cross Society, when it asked me to indicate one of the great possible achievements of the next hundred years, that it would probably be the confirmation and interpretation of this planetary challenge to us.

 

Since my return to New York more urgent work has consumed all my attention; but I have never ceased to think of those experiences and of the observations made in Colorado. I am constantly endeavoring to improve and perfect my apparatus, and just as soon as practicable I shall again take up the thread of my investigations at the point where I have been forced to lay it down for a time.

 

 

COMMUNICATING WITH THE MARTIANS

 

At the present stage of progress, there would be no insurmountable obstacle in constructing a machine capable of conveying a message to Mars, nor would there be any great difficulty in recording signals transmitted to us by the inhabitants of that planet, if they be skilled electricians. Communication once established, even in the simplest way, as by a mere interchange of numbers, the progress toward more intelligible communication would be rapid. Absolute certitude as to the receipt and interchange of messages would be reached as soon as we could respond with the number "four," say, in reply to the signal "one, two, three." The Martians, or the inhabitants of whatever planet had signalled to us, would understand at once that we had caught their message across the gulf of space and had sent back a response. To convey a knowledge of form by such means is, while very difficult, not impossible, and I have already found a way of doing it.

What a tremendous stir this would make in the world! How soon will it come? For that it will some time be accomplished must be clear to every thoughtful being.

 

Something, at least, science has gained. But I hope that it will also be demonstrated soon that in my experiments in the West I was not merely beholding a vision, but had caught sight of a great and profound truth.

SEE ALSO:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

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Believes We Can Communicate with the Far Off Planet Mars
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Page 2
Friday, January 4, 1901

BELIEVES WE CAN COMMUNICATE
WITH THE FAR-OFF PLANET MARS

Electric Wizard Nikola Tesla Makes an Astounding Discovery While Experimenting
With Feeble Electric Actions Trans-mitted Through the Earth

Great interest has been aroused over the article in The Inquirer of yesterday regarding the possibility of interplanetary communication. Nikola Tesla's recent discovery while conducting experiments in relation to wireless transmission of energy leads this eminent electrician to believe that it is within the range of probability to communicate with Mars.

Regarding his interesting experiments and the results obtained during a sojourn of two years in Colorado Mr. Tesla says:

"It was in investigating feeble electrical actions transmitted through the earth that I made some observations which are to me the most gratifying. Chief among these certain feeble electrical disturbances which I could barely note occurred, and which by their character unmistakably showed that they were neither of solar origin nor produced by any causes known to me on the globe. What could they be?

"I have incessantly thought of this for months, until I finally arrived at the conviction, amounting to almost knowledge, that they must be of planetary origin. As I think over it now it seems to me that only men absolutely stricken with blindness, insensible to the greatness of nature, can hold that this planet is the only one inhabited by intelligent beings.

"I have perfected my transmitting apparatus so far that I can undertake to construct a machine which will without the least doubt be fully competent to convey sufficient energy to the planet Mars to operate one of these delicate appliances which we are now using here, as, for instance, a very sensitive telephone instrument.

"With regard to my work in other lines which I have simultaneously carried on my progress has been most satisfactory, and I hope that soon electrical energy may be turned to the usages of man in a way and for purposes such as to surpass in importance all that we have ever done heretofore."

SEE ALSO:

I. EVERYTHING NIKOLA TESLA SAID ABOUT ALIENS
II. The Problem with Increasing Human Energy By Nikola Tesla (1900)
III. Tesla Believes We Can Communicate... (1901)
IV. Talking with the Planets by Nikola Tesla (1901)
V. Signaling to Mars by Nikola Tesla (1907)
VI. Would Talk with Mars by Pictures (1919)
VII. Tesla Signals Mars by Radio (1919)
VIII. Great Scientific Discovery Impends (1932)
[UNDER COPYRIGHT - AWAITING PERMISSIONS]

Follow @teslaswords

Brought to you by Tesla’s Words.