When classified plane were being built in Area 51 , the Soviet Union ’s undercover agent satellite made out their shapes the same way citizenry can tell if a car has been park in a certain distance on a spicy day .
Regardless of what else has been housed at Area 51 , the OXCART project found a home there in the late 1950s . OXCART ’s squad was building a spy plane that would succeed the U2 . During these tests , scientist rolled prototype planes along stretch of mineral pitch and checked to see if they could duck radio detection and ranging . Those that showed up on radio detection and ranging were scrapped , and the innovation that went by unseen were fine-tune .
Unfortunately , the lack of tree concealment made OXCART easy pickings for Soviet surveillance . Soviet planes and satellite went over Area 51 regularly . American intelligence find out the Soviet ’s surveillance schedule , so they built minuscule shed that they could quickly roll the planes into . This physical process of rushing the prototype under screen was known as “ hoot and scoot . ”
The USSR did get an outline of an OXCART paradigm , but not because the red cent - and - scooters were caught off - safeguard . See , the OXCART planes sit down on the baking mineral pitch all day , lug the rays of the sunshine . As the pavement around them inflame , it gave off infrared light . When the satellites passed overhead , the expanse where the planes had blocked the sun stood out as a moody pickle in a glowing Earth’s surface . It was even possible to discover where the engine were on the airplane .
Americans pose word of honor of the succeeder of infrared scans and responded by make up model planes . These sat on the rails , blocking the light and creating decoy disconsolate patches . Sometimes , when they really went all out , the researchers put hummer under the lure to make it look like the plane had just landed and heated the background under it . It seems as though this scheme worked . The Archangel-12 came as a surprisal ( as far as anyone can say ) to everyone except those had build it . Score one for laid dressing .
[ ViaNational Geographic . Photo via Roadrunners Internationale via Pangloss Films . ]
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