Teslas first experiments

[boguslaw]

Just read Tesla lectures (those which are available on-line) There are other I cannot get but are published as a rare books compiled by Leland Anderson. Those contains probably even more marvellous and simple explanations or radiant energy effects.I wish I could buy one but the cost of deliver across ocean is big.

For example read this : The Project Gutenberg eBook of Experiments with Alternate Currents of High Potential and High Frequency, by Nikola Tesla

This is also related to Imhotep search for efficient light source.

[lighty]

I've read all of the Tesla lectures as well as the Leland Anderson's books. In fact Gary Peterson, the publisher who owns Twenty First Century books also shared some interesting info in private conversation. The thing is- I don't remember seeing anywhere that anyone was able to put one's hand through discharges and end up without some injuries. That's why I asked about your source- I might have missed something.

[dmonarch]

Tesla HV

I have to admit reading teslas work is very inspiring. I love the sense of adventure and discovery that was everywhere during those times. Everything was open for discussion and nothing was impossible. It was considered entertainment to visit science shows and discuss such phenomenon. It is just not like that any more. Most people today prefer it simple and predigested even if incorrect
Anyhow I have to wonder if we are looking at this wrong. Maybe if we attack this right from the start using all the gear that was around at that time there might be better success. Starting with a HV generator etc.
If i recall correctly there is a book out with telsa patents in it including his hv generators and capacitors etc. In developing this we may better understand the testatika and gray matarial. It really is annoying that something which appears so simple still thwarts us. grrrr.

[broli]

@Lighty,

"Experiments with Alternate Currents of High Potential and High Frequency" by Nikola Tesla

That one talks alot about this mysterious white light/fire. He talks about how higher he makes the pulsing frequency the less sparking occurs and the more prominent this white fire gets. At some point he could approach the terminals very closely with a conductor without a spark jumping over.

I believe we have to replicate this phenomena before anything else. I don't understand everything in that lecture as some drawings are not very clear to me. But I believe with some more time I can understand it better. Unlike scientific papers Tesla really wasn't concerned with the math which shows what physics truly is...experimenting. Instead of fully understanding it he fully harnessed it instead . He's very clear on what to built and to do in order to replicate his findings.

[Aromaz]

Fellows, I would like to join in this forum since Tesla is one of my favorite teachers. I agree that research should look at what he had available, what was the sequence to Tesla's experiences. Though it is all like a giant puzzle, spanning 70 years, 7 countries and two world wars.

THAT is going to take a huge number of decoding.

A mistake many people make is to only look at his work as Americana. Many of his successful works were actually published else where i.e. Germany, France and Russia.

Yes, I believe he did leave us enough to be able to find what he wants to reveal at the right time. The best place to hide a secret is in pain sight. I have done a few experiments which are publicly released, but I also have done some that are not publicized. One thing I learned is that sometimes answers are in the easiest simplest possible solution, but our nature expects it to be extremely complicated; therefore we do not accept the simple. So simple, people refuse to accept it can be possible.

Further, I do agree that many things today latched onto the work of Tesla are all but. For now I wil be quite busy, thus I will have to sit on the side – but will follow you with keen eyes.

[Aromaz]

....I love the sense of adventure and discovery that was everywhere during those times. Everything was open for discussion and nothing was impossible.

For a fact, today we are in a much better position that Tesla could even dream of to become. Believe me, we are on the brink of major discoveries and break throughs; things that will make the work of the 10th century look like bleak and boring.

As for openness - it is up to you, me and other to decide that; no one else. I find on the Imhothep pages that there are many 'hangers' but also a good number of people who are complete in sharing. The internet is such a powerfull tool available today - and we can use it all to make joint research, work together and share our experiences, results - to success and failures.

[boguslaw]

Exactly.

I must confess that I didn't read all Tesla articles,lectures and patents, however much of them.But I have read a few many times and still I find wondrous clues in them.

"About fifteen, years ago, Prof. Rowland demonstrated a most interesting
and important fact; namely, that a static charge carried around produces
the effects of an electric current. Leaving out of consideration the
precise nature of the mechanism, which produces the attraction and
repulsion of currents, and conceiving the electrostatically charged
molecules in motion, this experimental fact gives us a fair idea of
magnetism. We can conceive lines or tubes of force which physically
exist, being formed of rows of directed moving molecules; we can see
that these lines must be closed, that they must tend to shorten and
expand, etc. It likewise explains in a reasonable way, the most puzzling
phenomenon. of all, permanent magnetism, and, in general, has all the
beauties of the Ampere theory without possessing the vital defect of the
same, namely, the assumption of molecular currents. Without enlarging
further upon the subject, I would say, that I look upon all electrostatic,
current and magnetic phenomena as being due to electrostatic molecular
forces."
(...)

"In operating an induction coil with very rapidly alternating currents,
among the first luminous phenomena noticed are naturally those,
presented by the high-tension discharge. As the number of alternations
per second is increased, or as—the number being high—the current
through the primary is varied, the discharge gradually changes in
appearance. It would be difficult to describe the minor changes which
occur, and the conditions which bring them about, but one may note five distinct forms of the discharge."

EXPERIMENTS WITH ALTERNATE CURRENTS OF VERY
HIGH FREQUENCY AND THEIR APPLICATION TO
METHODS OF ARTIFICIAL ILLUMINATION
by Nikola Tesla1
Delivered before the American Institute of Electrical Engineers,
Columbia College, N.Y., May 20, 1891.

FIVE DISTINCT FORMS !

I have seen only three of them so far :
- "sensitive discharge in the form of a thin,feeble-colored thread"
- "a white flaming arc (...) often as thick as one's finger, and striking across the whole coil" - which generates a lot of heat also
- sometimes this white arc is divided internally into tiny streams but that kind is hard to obtain,I saw them however

Well here Tesla states that at this stage : "one
may observe the beautiful phenomenon of the
streaming discharge (...), which may be
produced across the whole length of the coil. At
that stage streams begin to issue freely from all
points and projections."

So, it looks like his discharge is something more "evolved".

He also explained the possible reason why we didn't see it on youtube videos

"When the potential is excessively high they will
always appear; even if the frequency be low,
and even if the primary be surrounded by as
much as an inch of wax, hard rubber, glass, or
any other insulating substance. This limits
greatly the output of the coil, but I will later
show how I have been able to overcome to a considerable extent this
disadvantage in the ordinary coil."
(...)
"The existence of these streams shows the importance of constructing an
expensive coil so as to permit of one's seeing through the tube
surrounding the primary, and the latter should be easily exchangeable;
or else the space between the primary and secondary should be
completely filled up with insulating material so as to exclude all air."

Two other discharge phenomena are :
- "a veritable spray of small silver-white sparks, or a bunch of excessively thin silvery threads (...) amidst a powerful brush"
- "The tendency to stream out and dissipate is then so great that when the brush is produced at one terminal no sparking occurs; even if, as I have repeatedly tried, the hand, or any conducting object, is held within the stream; and what is mere singular, the luminous stream is not at all easily deflected by the approach of a conducting body." - this is probably pure potential misty white stream


Please read the rest yourself.

[boguslaw]

Oops, I forgot to cite why ordinary coil is incapable of showing 3 last kinds of discharge. It's simple - sparking occurs from secondary to primary and coil is damaged

Looks like our commercial coils are specially constructed to avoid such kind of discharges

[broli]

Yep I love when he talks about these white streams. Tesla has done really a tremendous amount of experiments with this. As he shows and says in his lectures. Everything demonstration he showed to the IEE at that time was very clear.

He used many method to eliminate the electric sparks between the two terminals. For instance using a strong permanent magnet or even atmospheric pressure. I don't know how he exactly did this but it reminds me of just a hard blow of air or some gas to extinguish the electric spark.

The best solution he found was using carbon for the sparking spheres, and pretty much any other place that was made out of copper. This according to him showed the most purest white fire/aetheric current/ white streams. The point was to eliminate current completely and preferable have an adjustable frequency/voltage that can reach the mega range.

[Guest]

Has anyone here attempted any replication of Tesla's experiements, if so, what were your results?