Trevor James Constable

Background

Trevor James Constable (1925–2016) was a New Zealand-born merchant marine officer who became one of UFOlogy's most unconventional theorists. He served 31 years at sea, including 26 years as a radio officer in the U.S. merchant marine, before dedicating himself to UFO research. Prior to his UFO focus, Constable authored multiple histories of World War II aerial combat alongside co-author Raymond Toliver.

The Sky Creatures Theory

During the 1960s, Constable developed his distinctive thesis: UFOs are not extraterrestrial or man-made vehicles, but rather enormous living organisms inhabiting Earth's atmosphere. Drawing inspiration from Wilhelm Reich's orgone energy and radionics research, Constable argued that these etheric creatures—which he termed "macrobacteria"—exist primarily in the infrared range of the electromagnetic spectrum. They could range in size from a coin to half a mile across, and are animated by the universal life force Reich described as orgone.

Constable rejected the extraterrestrial hypothesis entirely. Instead, his model positioned UFOs as native atmospheric fauna previously unknown to biology—a new evolutionary offshoot that had escaped human detection until technological advancement allowed photography in the ultraviolet and infrared ranges.

Photographic Evidence

Constable equipped himself with cameras fitted with ultraviolet lenses and high-speed infrared film to document his theory. The processed images displayed discoloration patterns that Constable interpreted as proof of living atmospheric organisms. Intriguingly, he reported that decades later, independent researchers in Italy and Romania—working without knowledge of his earlier work—obtained nearly identical infrared photographs of similar phenomena. In 1996, Constable cited NASA's use of ultraviolet-sensitive videotape, which allegedly captured swarms of invisible UFOs matching his photographic documentation.

Published Works

Constable articulated his theory across several influential books: The Cosmic Pulse of Life: The Revolutionary Biological Power Behind UFOs, They Live in the Sky: Invisible Incredible UFOs Around Us, and The Sky Creatures: Living UFOs. These works earned him a devoted following among researchers skeptical of conventional explanations and those interested in fringe biology.

Legacy

While Constable's central thesis remains outside mainstream science and lacks peer-reviewed support, his work influenced alternative UFO researchers and contributed to the field's conceptual diversity. His emphasis on infrared and UV spectroscopy as investigative tools anticipated modern technological approaches to anomalous phenomena. Modern reassessments of his work sometimes link his "sky creatures" to contemporary discussions of plasma phenomena and non-conventional craft propulsion.