Scientists are developing compact “handheld” nuclear reactors in an attempt to attract aliens to Earth, according to an expert. Kevin Knuth, a Physics Professor at the University at Albany in the United States, claims that this experimental concept is already under construction as scientists intensify their efforts to bring extraterrestrial beings to our planet.

In a plan that seems foolproof, the Professor informed an audience that patents are already being filed for these mini handheld nuclear devices. He stated: “We were trying to figure out how we can lure UFOs and work out how to make contact

“We settled on the fact that UFOs have an interest in, and an ability to detect nuclear weapons some of them underground, some of them in bunkers or in storage depots. How do they do this?, reports the Daily Star.

“Are they using neutrinos, which are really hard to detect, or gamma rays? We don’t know. But my colleague has developed a new technology which is basically a handheld lithium-powered nuclear-fission reactor, which he is now patenting.

“The idea is to go out and power our UFO-observing equipment with the nuclear reaction, and maybe these guys will detect it and come down and find out what ‘those crazy monkeys’ are up to this time. And we can get some imagery or some data. That’s our plan.”

The video clip of the claim was recorded at the Sol Foundation in California earlier this year, but the expert didn’t elaborate further. It seems the comment was made offhand at the end of his talk, starting with ‘just one quick thing’. The concept of using nuclear material to search for aliens isn’t entirely new. Notably, renowned expert Avi Loeb used it in his quest to find UFOs during last year’s Galileo Project.

However, he has yet to discover any extraterrestrial life, and there’s been no news on alien discoveries from the University of Albany either.

This story appeared on MSN