Visual Illusions: Their Causes, Characteristics and ApplicationsLuckiesh, Matthew
Science
Visual Illusions: Their Causes, Characteristics and Applications
Luckiesh, Matthew
Optical illusions
A submerged submarine may be invisible for two reasons: (1) It may be deep
enough to be effectively veiled by the luminosity of the mass of water
above it (including the surface brightness) or, (2) It may be of the
proper brightness and color to simulate the brightness and color of the
water. It is obvious that if it were white it would have to attain
concealment by submerging deeply. If it were a fairly dark greenish-blue
it would be invisible at very small depths. In fact, it would be of very
low visibility just below the surface of the water. By the use of the
writer's data on hues and reflection-factors of earth and water areas it
would be easy to camouflage submarines effectively from enemies overhead.
The visibility of submarines is well exemplified by viewing large fish
such as sharks from airships at low altitudes. They appear as miniature
submarines dark gray or almost black amid greenish-blue surroundings.
Incidentally, the color of water varies considerably from the dirty
yellowish-green of shallow inland waters containing much suspended matter
to the greenish-blue of deep clear ocean waters. The latter as viewed
vertically are about one-half the brightness of the former under the same
conditions and are decidedly bluer.
_The Visibility of Airplanes._--In the Great War the airplane made its
début in warfare and in a short time made a wonderful record, yet when
hostilities ceased aerial camouflage had not been put on a scientific
basis. No nation had developed this general aspect of camouflage
systematically or to an extent comparable with the developments on land
and sea. One of the chief difficulties was that scientific data which were
applicable were lacking. During the author's activities as Chairman of the
Committee on Camouflage of the National Research Council he completed an
extensive investigation[12] of the fundamentals upon which the attainment
of low visibility for airplanes must be based. Solutions of the problems
encountered in rendering airplanes of low visibility resulted and various
recommendations were made, but the experiences and data will be drawn upon
here only in a general way. In this general review details would consume
too much space, for the intention has been to present a broad view of the
subject of camouflage.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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