Heat-Ray
Encyclopedia
The Heat-Ray is the primary offensive weapon used by the Martians
in H. G. Wells
' classic science fiction
novel The War of the Worlds
and its offshoots.
Within the context of the novel, the term "Heat-Ray" is more commonly applied to the destructive energy it projects and not the weapon itself. The weapon that fires the Heat-Ray is described as a box-like or camera-like case that generates the Heat-Ray. This weapon is carried by one of the metallic arms of the Martians' Tripod fighting-machines
. In the case of the cylinder, however, the Heat-Ray has a different generator. A tall rod with a spinning circular disk at the top was seen, followed by three puffs of green smoke, then a dome-like object would pop out and fire the Heat-Ray (seen as a flash of light). The cylinder's heat-ray was used in conjunction with a sort of searchlight to kill anyone attempting to investigate the Martian activity. It is also speculated that there is some sort of material used in its production.
The Heat-Ray is essentially a directed-energy weapon
that incinerates anything it comes into contact with. It instantly sets ablaze flesh, vegetation and anything else flammable. When the Heat-Ray hits water, it almost instantly turns it into steam. It is also capable of melting metal.
The novel explains:
The only visible element of the ray was a flash emitted from the chamber while the Heat-Ray is fired. It was described with considerable range, striking targets at distances of at least two miles.
If an actual energy weapon were to be constructed (such as a powerful CO2 Laser) which projected a beam of infrared light, it should appear much like the Heat-Ray, without any visible "energy bolts".
, even reciting near verbatim descriptions of how the device operates.
The Heat-Ray is described in Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
and depicted on the album artwork painted by Michael Trim
. The Heat-Ray emanates from a proboscis
in the cupola rather than shooting from a box or case carried by the tripod.
The Great Illustrated Classics
adaptation of The War of the Worlds portrays the Heat-Ray as a massive flamethrower
.
In Edison's Conquest of Mars
, as an answer to the Heat-Ray, Thomas Edison
designs a disintegrator ray
for use by human forces. This is the first appearance of such a device in science fiction.
In Sherlock Holmes's War of the Worlds, the Heat-Ray is described as being based on nuclear energy
, with it being projected from a pink-hued, multifaceted focusing
crystal.
In the spoof film Scary Movie 4
, the main storyline is that of War of the Worlds. The Heat-Ray's effects are given a comical treatment; the intersection scene shows a lady push another into the path of the Heat-Ray to get her clothes. In one scene, the President of the United States
, played by Leslie Nielsen
, announces to the United Nations
that America has managed to capture a Heat-Ray. Its effects have been reversed, comically destroying the clothes of everyone in the room, with the President barely aware.
, the Martians use a combination of three rays, one Heat-Ray on top of their machines which fire red sparks, and two disintegrator rays at the side, which are shown as green energy bolts. These two can only be pointed in the direction the ship is facing, while the one at the top can be pointed in any direction. Both types of the Heat-Ray have a less violent effect on its target as most of what they would hit would begin to glow and then vanish, sometimes leaving a stain or pile of ash as a remainder; the Heat-Ray differs from the disintegrators (also called "skeleton beam") as the former sets the surrounding environment ablaze as well as vaporizing the target within a few seconds. Although, often, the Heat-Ray does have a simple destructive effect on certain objects; other times, the ray would set objects ablaze or cause them to explode (as shown when the machines reach Los Angeles
). In one scene, General Mann states that it is likely the Martians generate radiation without using heavy screening to power their rays. The book's Black smoke
is replaced by the "skeleton beam". Doctor Clayton Forrester
explained how these skeleton beams worked as such:
TV series is rather notable. Aside from their employment in the first episode (its destruction replayed in the opening credit sequence in subsequent episodes of the season), the main Heat-Ray is put to more attention in an episode in which the aliens are unable to unearth a buried warship from a recon mission and are forced to remove the gooseneck device from the ship and strap it atop a hearse
. The aliens' mission in this episode is put to end when The Heat-Ray hits them after being reflected off a makeshift parabolic mirror, an ironic nod to how the Heat-Ray is explained to have worked in the novel and radio play.
The series also offered perhaps the most distinctive take on the established weapon, not employed by a war machine, but rather as a personal weapon
. "The Second Seal" episode deals with the discovery of archives that contain remnants of the 1953 invasion. Among the material found is a boomerang-shaped weapon that fires Heat-Rays. These rays are the kind of green blobs fired from the tips of their warships, and are similarly shot from the ends of the object.
The Heat-Rays featured in the series mirror the same power of the film it is based on. This includes the variation between their ability to visibly destroy something as well as simply making a target disappear. Although the word "Heat-Ray" is never applied in the series as it is in the 1953 or updated 2005 film, the term used in one episode is "Death-Ray".
's War of the Worlds
adaptation of Wells' novel, the Heat-Ray is portrayed as two bluish-white rays that appear to have a desiccating
effect on living objects, such as animals, and a 'disruptive' effect on other objects. For example, when humans are hit by the ray, they are disintegrated into a cloud of gray powder (possibly ash), while their clothes remain somehow unaffected. However, a bridge
in one scene is thrown from its pylons when hit by the ray, as if physically struck, and in an earlier scene, brick-and-wood buildings are either destroyed or catch fire when hit by the Heat-Ray. Later in the movie, a video of an army of tripods destroying a city is shown, with Heat-Rays collapsing targeted buildings in a similar fashion to the destruction of the bridge. Curiously, human clothing does not seem to be affected by the Heat-Rays, which is used to effect in one of the film's scenes when the clothes are floating along a river.
's 2005 film H.G Wells' War of the Worlds
(also entitled Invasion), the Heat Ray is seen as a blueish-green light and is built inside the "walkers", which are not tripods, but six-legged machines resembling crabs
. The ray fires from the walker's single "eye". When the ray hits a human, they are instantly burned right down to the bone. The ray can also be used to destroy buildings. The ray is never described in any detail due to the nature of the film. A character named Pvt. Kerry Williams compares the ray's effect on a human to a fly zapper's effect on a fly.
In the film's sequel, War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave
, a kind of Heat-ray can be seen firing from the squid-walkers, a living race of flying cybernetic tripods
. However, the effects of this weapon are largely unknown, as the ray itself is used very infrequently through the film. It is most notably used to devastate London
and Paris
. Another kind of ray is also attached to the machines, but it is made to transport living humans into the mothership.
, the generator is held by a small arm that extends from atop the hood of the machine (not one of the many visible arms they use to take humans). Three metallic fingers hold a type of disc that spins rapidly, generating the Heat-Ray and when it touches flesh their body begins to have an orange flame until it turns green turning the victim to nothing other than bones. This film version of the Heat-Ray is the closest in similarity to that of the novel.
Martian (War of the Worlds)
The Martians, also known as the Invaders, are the fictional race of extraterrestrials from the H.G. Wells novel The War of the Worlds. They are the antagonists of the novel, and their efforts to exterminate the populace of Earth and claim the planet for themselves drive the plot and present...
in H. G. Wells
H. G. Wells
Herbert George Wells was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing text books and rules for war games...
' classic science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel The War of the Worlds
The War of the Worlds
The War of the Worlds is an 1898 science fiction novel written by H. G. Wells.The War of the Worlds may also refer to:- Radio broadcasts :* The War of the Worlds , the 1938 radio broadcast by Orson Welles...
and its offshoots.
In the novel
Tripod (The War of the Worlds)
Tripods or fighting-machines are a type of fictional three-legged walker from the H. G. Wells' classic science fiction novel The War of the Worlds, used by Martians to invade Earth.-Novel:...
. In the case of the cylinder, however, the Heat-Ray has a different generator. A tall rod with a spinning circular disk at the top was seen, followed by three puffs of green smoke, then a dome-like object would pop out and fire the Heat-Ray (seen as a flash of light). The cylinder's heat-ray was used in conjunction with a sort of searchlight to kill anyone attempting to investigate the Martian activity. It is also speculated that there is some sort of material used in its production.
The Heat-Ray is essentially a directed-energy weapon
Directed-energy weapon
A directed-energy weapon emits energy in an aimed direction without the means of a projectile. It transfers energy to a target for a desired effect. Intended effects may be non-lethal or lethal...
that incinerates anything it comes into contact with. It instantly sets ablaze flesh, vegetation and anything else flammable. When the Heat-Ray hits water, it almost instantly turns it into steam. It is also capable of melting metal.
The novel explains:
"in some way they are able to generate an intense heat in a chamber of practically absolute non-conductivity. This intense heat they project in a parallel beam against any object they choose, by means of a polished parabolic mirrorParabolic reflectorA parabolic reflector is a reflective device used to collect or project energy such as light, sound, or radio waves. Its shape is that of a circular paraboloid, that is, the surface generated by a parabola revolving around its axis...
of unknown composition, much as the parabolic mirror of a lighthouseLighthouseA lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
projects a beam of light... it is certain that a beam of heat is the essence of the matter. Heat, and invisible, instead of visible, light. Whatever is combustible flashes into flame at its touch, lead runs like water, it softens iron, cracks and melts glass, and when it falls upon water, incontinently that explodes into steam.
The only visible element of the ray was a flash emitted from the chamber while the Heat-Ray is fired. It was described with considerable range, striking targets at distances of at least two miles.
If an actual energy weapon were to be constructed (such as a powerful CO2 Laser) which projected a beam of infrared light, it should appear much like the Heat-Ray, without any visible "energy bolts".
In other adaptations
The Heat-Ray is one of the most common features of virtually every adaptation of the story. Many adaptations adhere fairly well to the characteristics given in the novel, such as the radio adaptationThe War of the Worlds (radio)
The War of the Worlds was an episode of the American radio drama anthology series Mercury Theatre on the Air. It was performed as a Halloween episode of the series on October 30, 1938, and aired over the Columbia Broadcasting System radio network. Directed and narrated by actor and future filmmaker...
, even reciting near verbatim descriptions of how the device operates.
The Heat-Ray is described in Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds is a 1978 concept album by Jeff Wayne, retelling the story of The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. Its format is progressive rock and string orchestra, using narration and leitmotifs to carry the story via rhyming melodic lyrics that express...
and depicted on the album artwork painted by Michael Trim
Michael Trim
Michael Trim is an artist most famous for illustrating the cover of Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds, which depicts a Martian tripod striking down the heroic Thunder Child...
. The Heat-Ray emanates from a proboscis
Proboscis
A proboscis is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In simpler terms, a proboscis is the straw-like mouth found in several varieties of species.-Etymology:...
in the cupola rather than shooting from a box or case carried by the tripod.
The Great Illustrated Classics
Great Illustrated Classics
The Great Illustrated Classics series of books offers easy-to-read adaptations of well known classics, featuring large print and numerous illustrations. The series is targeted at children, but the writing style is suitable for adult readers as well. Currently there are 70 titles.The series is...
adaptation of The War of the Worlds portrays the Heat-Ray as a massive flamethrower
Flamethrower
A flamethrower is a mechanical device designed to project a long controllable stream of fire.Some flamethrowers project a stream of ignited flammable liquid; some project a long gas flame. Most military flamethrowers use liquids, but commercial flamethrowers tend to use high-pressure propane and...
.
In Edison's Conquest of Mars
Edison's Conquest of Mars
Edison's Conquest of Mars, by Garrett P. Serviss, is one of the many science fiction novels published in the 19th century. Although science fiction was not at the time thought of as a distinct literary genre, it was a very popular literary form, with almost every fiction magazine regularly...
, as an answer to the Heat-Ray, Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices that greatly influenced life around the world, including the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and a long-lasting, practical electric light bulb. In addition, he created the world’s first industrial...
designs a disintegrator ray
Disintegrator ray
In science fiction, a disintegrator ray is an energy beam that destroys an object by disintegrating it to its basic components, which usually disperse into the atmosphere. Ray gun is the generic term for the weapons that fire disintegrator beams...
for use by human forces. This is the first appearance of such a device in science fiction.
In Sherlock Holmes's War of the Worlds, the Heat-Ray is described as being based on nuclear energy
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
, with it being projected from a pink-hued, multifaceted focusing
Focus (optics)
In geometrical optics, a focus, also called an image point, is the point where light rays originating from a point on the object converge. Although the focus is conceptually a point, physically the focus has a spatial extent, called the blur circle. This non-ideal focusing may be caused by...
crystal.
In the spoof film Scary Movie 4
Scary Movie 4
Scary Movie 4 is the fourth film of the Scary Movie franchise, directed by David Zucker, written by Jim Abrahams, Craig Mazin and Pat Proft, and produced by Craig Mazin and Robert K. Weiss. It is distributed by The Weinstein Company via its Dimension Films unit in the U.S. and Television, and...
, the main storyline is that of War of the Worlds. The Heat-Ray's effects are given a comical treatment; the intersection scene shows a lady push another into the path of the Heat-Ray to get her clothes. In one scene, the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
, played by Leslie Nielsen
Leslie Nielsen
Leslie William Nielsen, OC was a Canadian and naturalized American actor and comedian. Nielsen appeared in more than one hundred films and 1,500 television programs over the span of his career, portraying more than 220 characters...
, announces to the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
that America has managed to capture a Heat-Ray. Its effects have been reversed, comically destroying the clothes of everyone in the room, with the President barely aware.
1953 film
For the 1953 film versionThe War of the Worlds (1953 film)
The War of the Worlds is a 1953 science fiction film starring Gene Barry and Ann Robinson. It was the first on-screen loose adaptation of the H. G. Wells classic novel of the same name...
, the Martians use a combination of three rays, one Heat-Ray on top of their machines which fire red sparks, and two disintegrator rays at the side, which are shown as green energy bolts. These two can only be pointed in the direction the ship is facing, while the one at the top can be pointed in any direction. Both types of the Heat-Ray have a less violent effect on its target as most of what they would hit would begin to glow and then vanish, sometimes leaving a stain or pile of ash as a remainder; the Heat-Ray differs from the disintegrators (also called "skeleton beam") as the former sets the surrounding environment ablaze as well as vaporizing the target within a few seconds. Although, often, the Heat-Ray does have a simple destructive effect on certain objects; other times, the ray would set objects ablaze or cause them to explode (as shown when the machines reach Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
). In one scene, General Mann states that it is likely the Martians generate radiation without using heavy screening to power their rays. The book's Black smoke
Black smoke
The black smoke, or black powder is a fictional poisonous gas in H. G. Wells' science fiction novel The War of the Worlds, used by the Martians to eliminate groups of humans remotely, especially artillery crews, before they could fire. The rockets from which they explode are fired from a "black...
is replaced by the "skeleton beam". Doctor Clayton Forrester
Doctor Clayton Forrester (War of the Worlds)
Doctor Clayton Forrester is a fictional character in the 1953 science fiction film The War of the Worlds, the first film adaptation of the H. G. Wells novel of the same name. The character is played by Gene Barry...
explained how these skeleton beams worked as such:
TV series
As a sequel to the 1953 film, the Heat-Ray's use in the War of the WorldsWar of the Worlds (TV series)
War of the Worlds is a television program that ran for two seasons, from 1988 to 1990. The series is an extension of the original 1953 film The War of the Worlds, using the same War Machine, often incorporating aspects from the film, radio adaptation, and original novel into its mythology.Though...
TV series is rather notable. Aside from their employment in the first episode (its destruction replayed in the opening credit sequence in subsequent episodes of the season), the main Heat-Ray is put to more attention in an episode in which the aliens are unable to unearth a buried warship from a recon mission and are forced to remove the gooseneck device from the ship and strap it atop a hearse
Hearse
A hearse is a funerary vehicle used to carry a coffin from a church or funeral home to a cemetery. In the funeral trade, hearses are often called funeral coaches.-History:...
. The aliens' mission in this episode is put to end when The Heat-Ray hits them after being reflected off a makeshift parabolic mirror, an ironic nod to how the Heat-Ray is explained to have worked in the novel and radio play.
The series also offered perhaps the most distinctive take on the established weapon, not employed by a war machine, but rather as a personal weapon
Personal weapon
A personal weapon or ordnance weapon is a weapon that is issued to an individualmember of a military or paramilitary unit, e.g. to individual infantry soldiers, but also side arms carried by officers or other personnel....
. "The Second Seal" episode deals with the discovery of archives that contain remnants of the 1953 invasion. Among the material found is a boomerang-shaped weapon that fires Heat-Rays. These rays are the kind of green blobs fired from the tips of their warships, and are similarly shot from the ends of the object.
The Heat-Rays featured in the series mirror the same power of the film it is based on. This includes the variation between their ability to visibly destroy something as well as simply making a target disappear. Although the word "Heat-Ray" is never applied in the series as it is in the 1953 or updated 2005 film, the term used in one episode is "Death-Ray".
2005 film
In Steven SpielbergSteven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's War of the Worlds
War of the Worlds (2005 film)
War of the Worlds is a 2005 American science fiction film adaptation of H. G. Wells' novel of the same name, directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Josh Friedman and David Koepp. It is one of three film adaptations of War of the Worlds released that year, alongside The Asylum's version and...
adaptation of Wells' novel, the Heat-Ray is portrayed as two bluish-white rays that appear to have a desiccating
Desiccation
Desiccation is the state of extreme dryness, or the process of extreme drying. A desiccant is a hygroscopic substance that induces or sustains such a state in its local vicinity in a moderately sealed container.-Science:...
effect on living objects, such as animals, and a 'disruptive' effect on other objects. For example, when humans are hit by the ray, they are disintegrated into a cloud of gray powder (possibly ash), while their clothes remain somehow unaffected. However, a bridge
Bayonne Bridge
The Bayonne Bridge is the fourth longest steel arch bridge in the world, and was the longest in the world at the time of its completion. It connects Bayonne, New Jersey with Staten Island, New York, spanning the Kill Van Kull. Despite popular belief, it is not a national landmark.The bridge was...
in one scene is thrown from its pylons when hit by the ray, as if physically struck, and in an earlier scene, brick-and-wood buildings are either destroyed or catch fire when hit by the Heat-Ray. Later in the movie, a video of an army of tripods destroying a city is shown, with Heat-Rays collapsing targeted buildings in a similar fashion to the destruction of the bridge. Curiously, human clothing does not seem to be affected by the Heat-Rays, which is used to effect in one of the film's scenes when the clothes are floating along a river.
The Asylum films
In The AsylumThe Asylum
The Asylum is an American film studio and distributor which focuses on producing low-budget, usually direct-to-video productions. The studio has produced titles that capitalize on productions by major studios; these titles have been dubbed "mockbusters" by the press.-History:The Asylum was founded...
's 2005 film H.G Wells' War of the Worlds
H.G. Wells' War of the Worlds (2005 film)
H. G. Wells' War of the Worlds is a science fiction horror mockbuster by The Asylum. It is one of three 2005 film adaptations of H. G...
(also entitled Invasion), the Heat Ray is seen as a blueish-green light and is built inside the "walkers", which are not tripods, but six-legged machines resembling crabs
Crab
True crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" , or where the reduced abdomen is entirely hidden under the thorax...
. The ray fires from the walker's single "eye". When the ray hits a human, they are instantly burned right down to the bone. The ray can also be used to destroy buildings. The ray is never described in any detail due to the nature of the film. A character named Pvt. Kerry Williams compares the ray's effect on a human to a fly zapper's effect on a fly.
In the film's sequel, War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave
War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave
War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave is a 2008 direct-to-DVD science fiction film starring and directed by C. Thomas Howell....
, a kind of Heat-ray can be seen firing from the squid-walkers, a living race of flying cybernetic tripods
Tripod (The War of the Worlds)
Tripods or fighting-machines are a type of fictional three-legged walker from the H. G. Wells' classic science fiction novel The War of the Worlds, used by Martians to invade Earth.-Novel:...
. However, the effects of this weapon are largely unknown, as the ray itself is used very infrequently through the film. It is most notably used to devastate London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. Another kind of ray is also attached to the machines, but it is made to transport living humans into the mothership.
Pendragon Pictures film
In the lesser-known 2005 film adaptation from Pendragon Pictures, H.G. Wells' The War of the WorldsH.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds (2005 film)
H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds is one of three film adaptations of H. G. Wells' classic novel released in 2005, about a Martian invasion of Earth...
, the generator is held by a small arm that extends from atop the hood of the machine (not one of the many visible arms they use to take humans). Three metallic fingers hold a type of disc that spins rapidly, generating the Heat-Ray and when it touches flesh their body begins to have an orange flame until it turns green turning the victim to nothing other than bones. This film version of the Heat-Ray is the closest in similarity to that of the novel.