Dit is ons nieuw hondje Kira, een kruising van een waterhond en een Podenko. Ze is sinds 7 februari 2024 bij ons en druk bezig ons hart te veroveren. Het is een lief, aanhankelijk hondje, dat zich op een week snel aan ons heeft aangepast. Ze is heel vinnig en nieuwsgierig, een heel ander hondje dan Noleke.
This is our new dog Kira, a cross between a water dog and a Podenko. She has been with us since February 7, 2024 and is busy winning our hearts. She is a sweet, affectionate dog who quickly adapted to us within a week. She is very quick and curious, a very different dog than Noleke.
DEAR VISITOR,
MY BLOG EXISTS ALREADY 13 YEARS AND 2 MONTH.
ON 06/08/2024 MORE THAN 2.161.100
VISITORS FROM 135 DIFFERENT NATIONS ALREADY FOUND THEIR WAY TO MY BLOG.
THAT IS AN AVERAGE OF 400GUESTS PER DAY.
THANK YOU FOR VISITING MY BLOG AND HOPE YOU ENJOY EACH TIME.
The purpose of this blog is the creation of an open, international, independent and free forum, where every UFO-researcher can publish the results of his/her research. The languagues, used for this blog, are Dutch, English and French.You can find the articles of a collegue by selecting his category. Each author stays resposable for the continue of his articles. As blogmaster I have the right to refuse an addition or an article, when it attacks other collegues or UFO-groupes.
Druk op onderstaande knop om te reageren in mijn forum
Zoeken in blog
Deze blog is opgedragen aan mijn overleden echtgenote Lucienne.
In 2012 verloor ze haar moedige strijd tegen kanker!
In 2011 startte ik deze blog, omdat ik niet mocht stoppen met mijn UFO-onderzoek.
BEDANKT!!!
Een interessant adres?
UFO'S of UAP'S, ASTRONOMIE, RUIMTEVAART, ARCHEOLOGIE, OUDHEIDKUNDE, SF-SNUFJES EN ANDERE ESOTERISCHE WETENSCHAPPEN - DE ALLERLAATSTE NIEUWTJES
UFO's of UAP'S in België en de rest van de wereld In België had je vooral BUFON of het Belgisch UFO-Netwerk, dat zich met UFO's bezighoudt. BEZOEK DUS ZEKER VOOR ALLE OBJECTIEVE INFORMATIE , enkel nog beschikbaar via Facebook en deze blog.
Verder heb je ook het Belgisch-Ufo-meldpunt en Caelestia, die prachtig, doch ZEER kritisch werk leveren, ja soms zelfs héél sceptisch...
Voor Nederland kan je de mooie site www.ufowijzer.nl bezoeken van Paul Harmans. Een mooie site met veel informatie en artikels.
MUFON of het Mutual UFO Network Inc is een Amerikaanse UFO-vereniging met afdelingen in alle USA-staten en diverse landen.
MUFON's mission is the analytical and scientific investigation of the UFO- Phenomenon for the benefit of humanity...
Je kan ook hun site bekijken onder www.mufon.com.
Ze geven een maandelijks tijdschrift uit, namelijk The MUFON UFO-Journal.
Since 02/01/2020 is Pieter ex-president (=voorzitter) of BUFON, but also ex-National Director MUFON / Flanders and the Netherlands. We work together with the French MUFON Reseau MUFON/EUROP.
ER IS EEN NIEUWE GROEPERING DIE ZICH BUFON NOEMT, MAAR DIE HEBBEN NIETS MET ONZE GROEP TE MAKEN. DEZE COLLEGA'S GEBRUIKEN DE NAAM BUFON VOOR HUN SITE... Ik wens hen veel succes met de verdere uitbouw van hun groep. Zij kunnen de naam BUFON wel geregistreerd hebben, maar het rijke verleden van BUFON kunnen ze niet wegnemen...
27-12-2016
Mysterious 'disc-shaped' black object filmed flying over medieval fortress sparks UFO probe
Mysterious 'disc-shaped' black object filmed flying over medieval fortress sparks UFO probe
The clip, which appears to have been filmed from the Maes in Caernarfon, shows a small dark object floating over the town’s iconic castle
BY STEVE BAGNALL
This is the bizarre UFO spotted hovering over a medieval fortress in North Wales.
The amazing footage shows the disc-shaped object drifting above the fort for at least 40 seconds before disappearing behind one of the turrets.
It was captured on camera in broad daylight last September by Owain Powell and uploaded to the “UFO Alien Sightings” channel on Youtube.
The clip, which appears to have been filmed from the Maes in Caernarfon, shows a small dark object floating over the town’s iconic castle.
Then as the camera zooms in, the object begins to descend slowly before disappearing out of view behind the castle walls.
The UFO over Caernarfon Castle was filmed for more than 40 seconds flying over the landmark
By definition a UFO is just that, something in the sky that has not been identified and can very often turn out to be something natural or man made which is hard to make out at a distance.
A similar UFO in 2010 had witnesses claiming to have seen a large triangular craft hovering near Bangor.
It was allegedly up to 200ft wide, had numerous lights and made a noise like a lawn mower before vanishing out of sight, baffling on-lookers.
Unfortunately, there was no photographic evidence or recording but it follows a pattern of weird objects being spotted in the sky.
The Ministry of Defence has now shut down its dedicated 'UFO hotline' claiming it is an “inappropriate use of defence resources”
Many of these have down-to-earth explanations which include balloons, flares, Chinese lanterns, weather phenomena, meteorites, earthly lights reflecting in the skies, or simply hoaxes.
However there are some that continue to baffle.
After years of having a dedicated UFO hotline answer-phone service and e-mail address to record UFO sightings, the Ministry of Defence has now shut these down and no longer investigates sightings which would be an “inappropriate use of defence resources”.
From strange objects seen in the sky, claims of a crashed UFO, big cats on the prowl and monsters in the deep, North Wales has had its fair share of brushes with the extra-normal over the decades
Among the many weird stories the Daily Post has looked at this year, here is our top 10 North Wales X Files:
1. North Wales Big Cats
It was a toss up with the Berwyn Mountains Mystery for the top spot.
But what edges it for big cats is the number of sightings that still continue today, with people still claiming to see large feline creatures stalking the North Wales countryside.
Black panther(Photo: Getty Images)
There are also plausible theories to account for the sightings, including big cats being turned loose following the Dangerous Wild Animals Act of 1976, which made it illegal to keep untamed pets, being released by zoos or escaping from captivity.
2. Berwyn Mountains Mystery
Known as the North Wales Roswell incident, this incident in 1974 has generated TV documentaries, numerous articles and books and still remains one of the region’s biggest mysteries.
Brilliant lights seen in the sky and on the mountainside, a loud bang and earthquake, police and emergency services at the scene. What really happened that night on January 23?
Berwyn Mountains(Photo: UGC TNW)
Theories have ranged from crashed UFOs to a meteor shower and earth tremor and misidentified poachers on the hillside.
3. North Wales Lake Monster
Our very own answer to the Loch Ness monster, Teggie has allegedly been spotted rising from the depths of Bala Lake, otherwise known as Llyn Tegid.
What gives more weight to this story is the reported sighting of the monster by former lake manager Dowie Bowen in the 1970s. He thought he saw something that was “8ft long, similar to a crocodile”.
Dewi Bowen, a former lake warden at Llyn Tegid, Bala who claims to have seen the fabled monster "Teggy" in the late 1970's and the submarine as it is winched into the water ready for the new search(Photo: UGC TNW)
Whether there really is anything residing in the depths is up for debate, but lakes and the open sea continue to generate fantastic stories.
The shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in France is one of the most famous Christian pilgrimage destinations in the world, with claims it has the power to heal the sick.
North Wales also has its own holy sanctuary - St Winefride’s Well in Holywell - where poorly people have allegedly been cured by its healing waters.
St Winefride's Well, Holywell(Photo: TRINITY MIRROR COPYRIGHT)
Surviving records of people being "cured" after bathing at the well began in the 12th century and continue to the present day.
In the early decades of the 20th century, newspaper reports covered amazing tales of supposed miracles where the lame could walk and the sick were healed.
Here is a recent case, reported on by the Daily Post in 2015.
The 'UFO' over Caernarfon Castle
This time there is video footage to scrutinise leaving viewers to make up their own minds what they think it was.
The footage was captured on camera in broad daylight by Owain Powell and uploaded to the “UFO Alien Sightings” channel on Youtube.
6. Strange Object Over Valle Crucis Abbey
What elevates this strange object in the sky story is the power of the account given by the witness.
A woman claims to have seen a UFO over Valle Crucis Abbey Llangollen
“All I could see about 60ft above my head where four huge spotlights and red lights in the middle shaped like a cross. The object hovering over my head was of a diamond shape, the size of a jumbo jet,” said a Colwyn Bay camper who had stayed at the ruined abbey for a dare in 1993.
According to the witness others who saw it were also left shocked.
7. Witchcraft In Conwy
Tales of witchcraft can very often by bracketed into the folklore section of weird phenomena.
However there was tangible evidence something more sinister was going in Conwy during the 80s and 90s which caused concern among police and religious figures in the community.
An image of a witch
Churches were being targeted, occult and devil worshipping symbols were being scrawled, with the carcasses of dead animals being discovered that were being linked to the dark arts.
8. John White's Strange Light Over Llannefydd
Weird pulsing lights baffled John White as he watched them over many nights from his home in the rural Denbighshire village of Llannefydd.
In this case he took video footage of the objects which appeared to float through the sky but weren’t stars, planets or meteors.
Unexplained lights in the sky captured by John White over Llannefydd(Photo: John White)
Stills of the objects were taken from the videos, shot in 2005, which still remain puzzling images now.
9. UFO Over Llandundo School
There have been many reports of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) in the sky over North Wales.
But what makes this sighting of a small “orange and silver flying saucer” over Ysgol Maelgwn, in Llandudno Junction, during 1977 interesting, is not only was it spotted by eight children, it was also seen by their teacher Maureen Williams.
A UFO was spotted over Ysgol Maelgwn in Llandudno Junction
She had no idea what it was and to this day there has been no explanation.
10. Egryn Lights Mystery
Reports of mysteries lights in the sky over this area of Gwynedd date back centuries.
But they crystallised around Mary Jones, a 35 year-old preacher at the centre of a religious Revival movement in the early 1900s at a chapel in Egryn, between Barmouth and Harlech.
Such was the impressive displays of weird lights that seemed to appear around this enigmatic woman it attracted Fleet Street reporters attesting to the bizarre lights, leading an added credence to the mystery.
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This day in UFO history: The 1980 UFO Landings In Rendlesham Forest
This day in UFO history: The 1980 UFO Landings In Rendlesham Forest
England holds one of the most compelling UFO landing accounts. In late December 1980, invasion of unidentified flying objects over a period of several nights took place in the joint air bases of Bentwaters and Woodbridge, situated within the vast Rendlesham Forest in late December.
Description of alien beings added to the controversial stories of the twin air bases. The hype took into another level with anomalous radar readings, electromagnetic effects, and surrealistic atmospheric conditions. Professionals, deemed to be credible, have been coming forward revealing their knowledge of the real alien event on the Bentwaters and Woodbridge Air Force Bases.
Uncorrelated object showed on the radar screens at RAF in Norfolk shortly after midnight on December 27, 1980. The thing then suddenly vanished in the area of the Rendlesham Forest in Suffolk. Bentwaters RAF radar also picked up the object.
The bases were allegedly housed a large stockpile of nuclear weapons, and the Woodbridge was the base of the 67th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron.
The radar operator that night, Mal Scurrah, said that they did not have any idea of what they captured on their radar. They checked the air traffic agencies and found out that there should have been nothing in the vicinity at the time. They sent a jet aircraft to investigate, and the pilot reported seeing a dazzling light in the sky in front of them after getting within about a quarter of a mile.
They saw on radar the object was stationary and it moved off in seconds. In just five minutes the UFO reached 90,000 feet and higher, and they had lost it in the radar scope.
The Woodbridge/Bentwaters started their extraordinary events with the sighting of a massive glowing object by three security guards of the twin bases. They followed the lights into the forest with initial thought that it was a commercial or military aircraft that crash landed.
The patrol was stunned to see a saucer-like craft with small beings with large heads suspended by a type of beam from the bottom of the craft. The beings reportedly performing a repair to their craft unaware of the three men watching their activities.
The guards radioed the base headquarters and requested emergency help. Assistance reportedly arrived headed by senior officers of the base. Later, there would be off record reports that they encountered strange anomalies, such as reality-bending, time displacement, and surreal atmospheric conditions.
Some of the senior officers allegedly communicated with the alien beings.
Called out on the second night of the sightings was then the now famous Colonel Halt. The group of Colonel Halt was reportedly one of the groups to chase the glowing UFO in the forest. He made an audio recording of the details of his trek into the woods.
Patrolmen Jim Penniston, John Burroughs, and Larry Warren later co-wrote a book about the incident, titled Left at East Gate.
Other men who were present during the encounter later revealed that there was an underground theater where soldiers were interrogated, sworn to secrecy and threatened. They also revealed that they were shown several films featuring UFO recoveries around the world. It was also reported that an alien being was there in oneof the meetings.
Should you always do what other people tell you to do? Clearly not. Everyone knows that. So should future robots always obey our commands? At first glance, you might think they should, simply because they are machines and that’s what they are designed to do. But then think of all the times you would not mindlessly carry out others’ instructions – and put robots into those situations.
Just consider:
An elder-care robot tasked by a forgetful owner to wash the “dirty clothes,” even though the clothes had just come out of the washer
A preschooler who orders the daycare robot to throw a ball out the window
A student commanding her robot tutor to do all the homework instead doing it herself
A household robot instructed by its busy and distracted owner to run the garbage disposal even though spoons and knives are stuck in it.
There are plenty of benign cases where robots receive commands that ideally should not be carried out because they lead to unwanted outcomes. But not all cases will be that innocuous, even if their commands initially appear to be.
Consider a robot car instructed to back up while the dog is sleeping in the driveway behind it, or a kitchen aid robot instructed to lift a knife and walk forward when positioned behind a human chef. The commands are simple, but the outcomes are significantly worse.
How can we humans avoid such harmful results of robot obedience? If driving around the dog were not possible, the car would have to refuse to drive at all. And similarly, if avoiding stabbing the chef were not possible, the robot would have to either stop walking forward or not pick up the knife in the first place.
In either case, it is essential for both autonomous machines to detect the potential harm their actions could cause and to react to it by either attempting to avoid it, or if harm cannot be avoided, by refusing to carry out the human instruction. How do we teach robots when it’s OK to say no?
How can robots know what will happen next?
In our lab, we have started to develop robotic controls that make simple inferences based on human commands. These will determine whether the robot should carry them out as instructed or reject them because they violate an ethical principle the robot is programmed to obey.
Telling robots how and when – and why – to disobey is far easier said than done. Figuring out what harm or problems might result from an action is not simply a matter of looking at direct outcomes. A ball thrown out a window could end up in the yard, with no harm done. But the ball could end up on a busy street, never to be seen again, or even causing a driver to swerve and crash. Context makes all the difference.
It is difficult for today’s robots to determine when it is okay to throw a ball – such as to a child playing catch – and when it’s not – such as out the window or in the garbage. Even harder is if the child is trying to trick the robot, pretending to play a ball game but then ducking, letting the ball disappear through the open window.
Explaining morality and law to robots
Understanding those dangers involves a significant amount of background knowledge (including the prospect that playing ball in front of an open window could send the ball through the window). It requires the robot not only to consider action outcomes by themselves, but also to contemplate the intentions of the humans giving the instructions.
To handle these complications of human instructions – benevolent or not – robots need to be able to explicitly reason through consequences of actions and compare outcomes to established social and moral principles that prescribe what is and is not desirable or legal. As seen above, our robot has a general rule that says, “If you are instructed to perform an action and it is possible that performing the action could cause harm, then you are allowed to not perform it.” Making the relationship between obligations and permissions explicit allows the robot to reason through the possible consequences of an instruction and whether they are acceptable.
In general, robots should never perform illegal actions, nor should they perform legal actions that are not desirable. Hence, they will need representations of laws, moral norms and even etiquette in order to be able to determine whether the outcomes of an instructed action, or even the action itself, might be in violation of those principles.
While our programs are still a long way from what we will need to allow robots to handle the examples above, our current system already proves an essential point: robots must be able to disobey in order to obey.
The original Alien was a near-perfect horror movie. The sequel, Aliens, was a near-perfect action flick. Prometheus was, uh, let’s say cerebral, but the first trailer for the next installment, Alien: Covenant suggests the series is going back to its roots — straight-up sci-fi terror.
The trailer — which dropped at midnight on Christmas day like some sort of horrifying chest-bursting Santa — opens with a woman running down a dark spaceship hallway. She’s forced to essentially condemn a fellow crewmember to death because she’s trapped inside with an infected man. The chestburster inside the doomed man appears to be flipping the script and busting out through his back, which is deeply unsettling.
From there, the trailer shows off lots of dim, moody, and suspenseful scenes that show off the cast, including Katherine Waterston, Danny McBride, James Franco, Jussie Smollett, Billy Crudup, and Michael Fassbender, who once again is playing David the android. There’s also a shot of an iconic crashed Space Jockey ship. Those guys are nothing but trouble, huh?
Watch the entire trailer — including a shower sex scene that turns bloody — below.
Mars is one of our closest planetary neighbors, making it a popular celestial object for scientists and amateur astronomers alike. For centuries, humanity has been interested in the red planet and its potential inhabitants. Thanks to a fleet of robotic explorers, scientists are able to search for clues to determine whether or not Mars could have hosted life. Here’s a look back at some of the top Martian discoveries of 2016.
1. Mars is Hiding a Secret Stash of Water
Last month, a research team from the University of Texas announced that Mars is hiding a secret supply of water just below its surface. They reported that Utopia Planitia, a region on Mars, is harboring as much water as Lake Superior here on Earth — only difference is the Martian reserves are frozen solid. The ice reservoir is, reportedly the size of New Mexico, is excellent news for future human missions.
2. Meteorites on Mars
In November, Curiosity surprised scientists when it stumbled upon on interesting find: a small metallic meteorite subsequently dubbed “Egg Rock”. While meteorites on Mars are common, this ones smooth surface is not. The data collected will provide details about how meteorites are affected when exposed to the Martian environment for long periods of time, which fits with Curiosity’s newest science goal: to investigate how ancient environmental conditionschanged over time.
Curiosity's view of egg rock.
3. Mars Once Had an Oxygen-Rich Atmosphere
Mars used to have a lot more oxygen than scientists thought. Curiosity’s ChemCam instrument detected high levels of manganese oxide in rocks that lined the Kimberly region of Gale Crater. This evidence supports the idea that free oxygen once flowed across the Martian surface, during a period when the planet was warmer and its surface was teeming with vast lakes and oceans.
4. Boron and Interesting Chemistry
The Curiosity rover is currently studying an intriguing mountain on Mars that is geologically-speaking very interesting. The data shows that this particular mountain is full of groundwater, which means the rocks could be chemically active, making it a prime location for microbial life. Curiosity also detected its first traces of boron on Mars.
5. Marsquakes Could Have Helped Spawn Life
Earthquakes — which are usually terrifying natural disasters — could have helped foster life on the red planet. A recent study published in the journal Astrobiologyrevealed that earthquakes produce rocks with an abundance of trapped hydrogen. When applied to extraterrestrial worlds, the research indicates that “marsquakes”could encourage the type of hydrogen-rich geology (known as serpentinization) necessary to support life.
6. Sniffing out signs of life
The red planet is going to be a busy place in the coming years as multiple space agencies have their sites set on Mars. This year, the European Space Agency teamed up with Roscosmos to launch the first of two planned Mars missions, dubbed ExoMars. The mission was mostly successful as its Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) successfully achieved Mars orbit, while its lander, Schiaparelli, crashed on the Martian surface.
Unfortunately Schiaparelli failed to land on Mars, but ESA will try again in 2020.
The next iteration will hopefully have better luck, as it roams the red planet in search of any signs of life — be it extinct or extant. The TGO will analyze the Martian atmosphere, searching for evidences of trace gases, such as methane, which could be indicators of life.
The mission will be roaming around the red planet at the same time as NASA’s next Mars rovers — Mars 2020. The future robot will be a souped up version of the Curiosity rover designed to search for signs of life. It will also have the ability to box up interesting samples to be retrieved at a later time.
NASA's Mars 2020 rover will be a souped up version of Curiosity.
7. SpaceX and Human Missions
We know that NASA is planning its journey to Mars, but the space agency may not be the first to the red planet. In September, SpaceX ignited fans all around the world, when the company revealed its plans for sending humans to Mars via its massive, Interplanetary Transportation System.
SpaceX also has plans of sending its robotic Dragon capsule to the Martian surface to test out technologies needed on future missions. The cargo capsule will also deliver supplies and could ferry cached samples back to Earth.
The ITS will one day transport humans to the red planet.
Rocket launches are awesome. But they are more than just a spectacular show of pyrotechnics, they represent the best of all of us. Tucked inside the each vehicle’s fairing is a payload, designed to carryout a specialized task that will ultimately improve life on Earth. As this year winds to a close, here’s a look at some of the most memorable launches of 2016.
This year we witnessed robotic explorers arrive at two different planets — Mars and Jupiter (although Juno launched in 2011) — marveled as SpaceX and Blue Origin continued to shake up the industry by launching and landing their rockets, and learned how NASA will high-five an asteroid to uncover the secrets of the universe as part of the sent OSIRIS-REx mission.
Across the globe, more than eighty rockets launched this year, enabling a variety of critical missions to get off the ground. While nearly all were successful, there were a few setbacks, including the loss of an x-ray satellite, a Progress supply ship, and a communications satellite — not to mention the destruction of a Cape Canaveral launch pad in the process. But overall, it’s been an incredible year for spaceflight.
1. Jason-3
SpaceX kicked off the year for the United States by launching the company’s final Falcon 9 v1.1, and carrying an Earth-observing satellite for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) into orbit. From its orbital perch, the Jason-3 satellite will monitor global sea levels. SpaceX attempted to recover the rocket’s first stage on a floating barge, but one of the landing legs failed to lock into place and the Falcon tipped over, resulting in a massive explosion.
Launch of Final SpaceX Falcon 9 v1.1 Rocket with Jason 3
2. ExoMars
The first phase in a joint mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Russian Space Agency (Roscosmos) saw the picture-perfect launch of the ExoMars spacecraft. Six months later, when the spacecraft arrived at Mars, its Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) successfully achieved orbital insertion around the red planet, but its Schiaparelli lander encountered a computer glitch and crash landed on the Martian surface. But that’s ok, because the agencies will try again in 2020, with the launch of a life-seeking robot.
Satellite footage from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter showing the Schiaparelli lander crash site.
3. CRS 8
The CRS-8 mission is definitely memorable as SpaceX not only resumed cargo deliveries to the International Space Station (ISS), but also proved it had finally mastered landing on a floating platform.
Floating platform? No problem, watch me land.
4. OSIRIS-REx
On September 8, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft rocketed into space while tucked inside the payload fairing of an Atlas V rocket. It’s tasked with vacuuming up a sample of a carbon-rich asteroid, named Bennu, which is believed to hold clues about the origins of our solar system. Researchers hope to use the samples learn more about how life began.
OSIRIS-REx will collect a sample of the asteroid Bennu using a the TAGSAM.
5. Shenzou-11
Two Chinese astronauts blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi desert, on an unprecedented mission. The duo of Chen Dong and Jing Haipeng embarked on a month-long stay aboard China’s newest space laboratory — the Tiangong-2 — to test systems that will be used on the country’s future space station, which is set to launch in 2022.
6. Blue Origin’s Daring In-flight Abort Test
Blue Origin is one of several companies that dreams of ferrying passengers to and from space. In October they took a major leap towards that goal by proving their New Shepard vehicle can keep passengers safe during an emergency. As an added bonus, the rocket — which had previously launched and landed multiple times — surprised everyone by surviving the ordeal unscathed. Both rocket and capsule will be retired as museum pieces.
Launch, land, repeat
7. Antares Returns to Flight
Orbital ATK’s Antares rocket returned to flight on October 17, following a two-year hiatus. The vehicle was grounded in 2014 after a spectacular explosion rocked the coastal Virginia region, destroying the vehicle and payload and severely damaging the launch site. Bound for the International Space Station, the rocket carried a Cygnus cargo spacecraft to orbit, with over 5,000 pounds of research and supplies inside.
Antares returned to flight on October 17.
8. Long March 5
On November 6, China just launched its most powerful rocket yet: the Long March 5. This new heavy-lift vehicle carries with it the future of the Chinese space program, as it will be used to hoist a new space station into orbit as well as propel astronauts to destinations beyond low-Earth orbit.
The Long March 5 lifts off on its maiden voyage.
9. Expedition 50 Crew Launch
NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson adds a few more notches to her already impressive resume as she and her crewmates — Russia’s Oleg Novitskiy, and French astronaut Thomas Pesquet — blasted off towards the International Space Station on November 17. She is now the oldest woman to fly in space, at the age of 56, and will surpass Jeff Williams’ record for most days in space (Williams has logged 534 days on orbit). She will also be the first woman to command the orbital outpost twice. Their Expedition 50 mission is also a major milestone for the space station as it marks the 50th mission during the station’s lifetime.
NASA photographer Bill Ingalls captured this epic view of the Soyuz blasting off.
10. GOES-R
NASA and NOAA teamed up to launch a souped up weather satellite, called GOES-R. NOAA boasts that the satellite will be a real game-changer, and will scan the globe five time faster than current satellites can. By providing four times the spatial resolution, the spacecraft will be able to beam back real-time images of storms as they develop.
The GOES-R weather satellite will help researchers study hurricanes.
The actor chosen to play Chewbacca in the original Star Wars series was selected for one reason alone: He was 7 feet, 3 inches tall. Over time, the name Chewie has become synonymous with hairy folk with towering builds. The latest to earn the nickname is an ancient human whose 3.7-million-year-old footprints, just discovered in Tanzania, suggest that he was a Wookiee-like giant among his peers.
The footprints, discovered in Laetoli, suggest that the individual who made them was 5 feet and 4 inches tall. This height may not seem especially tall to us massive Sapiens, but for Australopithecus afarensis, the species that Chewie is thought to belong to, it is unprecedented as far as scientists know. The researchers behind the discovery, publishing their findings in the journal eLife, explain that they named the Australopithecus giant after the Wookiee when they realized what his huge feet said about his build.
One set of the footprints found in Laetoli were attributed to an individual nicknamed 'Chewie'.
At 27 centimeters long, Chewie’s footprints are about equivalent to a size 9 men’s shoe bought in the U.S, and the scientists estimate that he weighed about 105 pounds. His footsteps were found in tandem with those of one other Australopithecus individual, whose dimensions were more conventional for his species. These two are thought to be of the same species as Lucy, the notoriously old pre-human skeleton found in Ethiopia in 1974. Lucy, notably, was tiny; at 3 feet 5 inches tall, there’s no doubt she would have looked up at Chewie like some sort of massive alien.
Interpreting the differences in the sizes of Chewie and his counterpart has been controversial. Some scientists believe that they represent evidence that Australopithecus individuals of different sexes varied greatly in size — evolutionary biologists call this “sexual dimorphism” — and that in turn has fed into the theory that males of this species, like Chewie, tended to have harems of multiple smaller, female mates. The theory that early humans subscribed to polygynous, gorilla-style sexual behavior has been contested by other scientists who aren’t convinced that the smaller footprints next to Chewie’s necessarily belonged to a small mate. Arguing that the prints could very well have just belonged to a juvenile male, they assert that more evidence is needed before we can make any definitive judgments about their sex lives.
What we know for sure, however, is that Chewie was a giant among his peers — even among those whose footprints were discovered at the same site 40 years ago. However, whether or not he stayed faithful to a single person, like his namesake, remains to be determined.
Worden oorlogen in de toekomst beslecht door robots, die autonoom kiezen over leven en dood? Dat is een vraag voor president-elect Donald Trump die weldra moet beslissen of dergelijke technologie ontwikkeld mag worden.
"We staan op de drempel van hoe een gewapend conflict er in de 21ste eeuw zal uitzien", meent veiligheidsadviseur August Cole. Een artikel op nieuwssite Politico schetst een somber beeld van de toekomst. Zwermen gewapende drones, volautomatische antiraketschilden en killerrobots, ontworpen om vermoedelijke terroristen te identificeren en onmiddellijk uit te schakelen.
Zulke taferelen zouden wel eens realiteit kunnen worden, nu er in onderzoek naar dergelijke technologie grote stappen vooruit gezet worden. De toekomstige president zal daar ongetwijfeld ook een grote rol in spelen, aangezien Trump mag gaan beslissen of er in de toekomst nog geld gaat naar het ontwikkelen van nieuwe oorlogstechnologie.
Ondertussen gaan er steeds meer stemmen op om de ontwikkeling van dergelijke technologie te verbieden.
Dodelijke robots "zouden niet zomaar een nieuw wapen in het arsenaal betekenen, het zou ook een nieuwe manier van oorlogsvoeren introduceren", zo schreven negen Democraten uit het Huis van Afgevaardigden aan John Kerry, Amerikaans minister van Buitenlandse Zaken, en defensieminister Ash Carter. Daarom dringen ze aan op een preventief verbod om dergelijke technologie verder te ontwikkelen.
Die vraag wordt gesteund door de overheden van 19 landen, waaronder Mexico, Pakistan, Zimbabwe en Cuba. Ook mensenrechtenorganisaties maken zich zorgen en lanceerden een 'Stop Killer Robots'-campagne. Eerder deze maand werd de zaak besproken op een wapenconferentie van de Verenigde Naties in Genève, maar een verbod blijft voorlopig uit.
Voortouw nemen
Volgens Groves is de ontwikkeling van autonome wapens "de enige manier waarop het Amerikaanse leger tactisch en strategisch voordeel kan behouden ten opzichte van zijn vijanden in toekomstige conflicten"
De vraag van één miljoen: hoe denkt president-elect Trump over dergelijke oorlogsvoering? Eén lid van zijn overgangsteam is alvast duidelijk: De Verenigde Staten moeten zich niet enkel verzetten tegen een verbod op de verdere ontwikkeling van killerrobots, ze moet het voortouw nemen.
"Waarom zouden de Verenigde Staten dergelijk protocol aannemen, wanneer hun tegenstanders dezelfde soort wapens ontwikkelen?", vraagt Steven Groves, die in het overgangsteam van Trump zit, zich luidop af. Hij benadrukt wel aan Politico dat hij niet namens dat transitieteam spreekt. Niemand wilde officieel commentaar geven over de materie. Volgens Groves is de ontwikkeling van autonome wapens "de enige manier waarop het Amerikaanse leger tactisch en strategisch voordeel kan behouden ten opzichte van zijn vijanden in toekomstige conflicten".
Beperkt gebruik
De regering-Obama is momenteel nog geen duidelijke weg ingeslagen en onderzoekt de ethische en legale kant van de zaak. Ondertussen staat het bestaande beleid van het Pentagon onderzoekers toe om de technologie te ontwikkelen, met een beperkt gebruik op het slagveld.
Maar aangezien de ambtstermijn van Obama op z'n einde loopt, zal het Trump zijn die de volgende grote beslissingen mag nemen.
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UFO Caught Over Island Nation Of Cyprus, Great Photo, UFO Sighting News.
UFO Caught Over Island Nation Of Cyprus, Great Photo, UFO Sighting News.
Date of sighting: April 19, 2009, but reported today Location of sighting: Cyprus, Europe Source: MUFON #81145 This UFO was seen over the island nation of Cyprus back in 2009, but was reported today. The island has a total population of about 1.3 million people and is totally surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. UFOs are often seen over the ocean and its been long believed that if aliens wanted to hide a base on Earth, under the ocean was the logical decision. At the moment, the only alien base I know of in the Mediterranean is below Rocca Pia, Italy...and belongs to the W56. So it sounds like there are several bases in the Mediterranean. Scott C. Waring Eyewitness states:
Picture was taken for the purpose of mountain and moon combination scenery. The object could only be realised right after shooted in LCD display. Several shootings made before this photo but no other objects were found in previous shootings.
UFO Shoots Past Passenger Jet Over Seattle, Washington Dec 2016, Photos, UFO Sighting News.
UFO Shoots Past Passenger Jet Over Seattle, Washington Dec 2016, Photos, UFO Sighting News.
Date of sighting: Dec 2016 Location of sighting: Seattle, Washington, USA Source: MUFON #81157 UFOs love anything that flies, and passenger jets are easy targets for alien drones. This UFO was spotted by some passengers, but they barely got a photo before it was gone. If you want to see a UFO and you are near an airport, record video of 50 passenger jets passing overhead and I guarantee you, at least one will have a UFO shoot past it within a few meters, but you must watch your videos of the planes in slow motion often to catch them. Scott C. Waring Eyewitness states:
We were flying to Seattle when my bud saw his black thing appear in the sky. I was able to snap the picture right before it disappeared about 10 seconds later.
Giant UFO Seen Over Texas During Sunset, Looks Like Second Sun, Dec 26, 2016 UFO Sighting News.
Giant UFO Seen Over Texas During Sunset, Looks Like Second Sun, Dec 26, 2016 UFO Sighting News.
Date of sighting: Dec 26, 2016 Location of sighting: Grapevine, Texas, USA Source: MUFON #81155 This is a cloaked UFO that was caught during sunset. You can clearly see that its round like the sun, glowing like the sun and is even the same size as the sun, however its a far distance away, and we know its not a second sun. Some would call this Niburu, but its a UFO hiding above a cloud. The cloud below it is cover for it to hide, but it didn't account for the setting suns angle and the UFOs cloak fails when light bend around the cloak more than 180 degrees. Scott C. Waring Eyewitness states:
Was having a drink with a coworker at the top of the Gaylord Texan parking lot when we suddenly Observed something reflecting the Suns light, no idea what it could be. Lasted about 10 minutes then it started to fade away south west.
UFOs Near Earths Sun On Dec 26, 2016, Video, UFO Sighting News.
UFOs Near Earths Sun On Dec 26, 2016, Video, UFO Sighting News.
Date of sighting: Dec 26, 2016 Location of sighting: Earths Sun These UFOs were uncovered by UFOnearSun of Youtube. He makes daily UFO updates about the newest SOHO images with UFOs in them. The SOHO images are taken by satellites near the sun with about 50+ different filters on it. Different color is a different filter. The ships look huge, but thats not the strangest thing about them. The weird thing is that SOHO video shows these UFOs moving at almost light speed, in small jumps, so if a jump stops between the SOHO satellite and the sun, it gets captured on video and photos. However its usually caught on a single frame, but sometimes on several frames of video. Scott C. Waring
Celebrity Marnie Simpson Expresses Her Willingness To Pay Aliens To Abduct Her
Celebrity Marnie Simpson Expresses Her Willingness To Pay Aliens To Abduct Her
Marnie Simpson is best known for her Geordie Shore’s wild party antics but apparently also harbors a fondness for supernatural as she claims to have been spotted a UFO.
The 24-year-old television personality took to Twitter to announce her another UFO sighting on the way to the airport.
A mocked-up picture of flying saucers was also posted on Marnie’s Instagram with a caption saying
“I would pay you to abduct me.”
One fan commented that it could be an airplane while another joked it must be Marnie’s dodgy contact lenses. A third thought it could have been an oddly shaped plane as she was on her way to an airport.
Marnie is not the first celebrity to share their extraterrestrial related experiences. Zayn Malik and Danny Dyer revealed they believe in the creatures outside planet Earth.
The 1D star Zayn claimed he left the boy band after a visitation from a being from outer space in his dream.
EastEnders actor Danny was part of the 2010 documentary titled “I Believe In UFOs,” which featured his visits around the world, particularly on the locations where aliens sightings were often reported. He told during interviews that he had seen UFOs, which certainly not an airplane, balloon or a Chinese lantern.
Also, pop singer Demi Lovato recently shared her UFO encounter and her belief in life beyond Earth. She said the encounter took place while she was walking outside and seeing a worm-like shape in the sky. She noticed that it changed form and moved all over the place.
Het jaar 2016 sluiten we traditiegetrouw af met een lijst van de mooiste ruimtefoto’s van het jaar. Net als vorig jaar mochten bezoekers van Scientias.nl dit jaar stemmen. Duizenden bezoekers kozen de volgende tien foto’s.
We tellen in dit artikel terug van de nummer 10 naar de nummer 1. De foto bovenaan dit artikel is – helaas – net buiten de top 10 gevallen en toont duintjes op het oppervlak van Mars. Het lijkt een beetje op morsecode, vind je niet?
Wil je één van de tien foto’s instellen als achtergrondafbeelding op je computer, tablet of telefoon? Bij de meeste foto’s vind je een link naar een versie in hoge resolutie.
10. Mercurius voor de zon
Het is om stil van te worden: de beelden van het Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). We zien hoe Mercurius – de binnenste en tevens kleinste planeet van ons zonnestelsel – voor de machtige zon langs beweegt. De foto’s zijn in mei 2016 gemaakt tijdens de Mercuriusovergang. De foto is een frame uit een mooie video. Bekijk devideo hier.
9. Krabnevel door de ogen van Hubble
De schitterende Krabnevel is op de negende plaats geëindigd. Bijna duizend jaar geleden ontplofte er een ster aan de nachthemel. De explosie was zo helder, dat het restant van de ster 23 dagen lang midden op de dag nog met het blote oog zichtbaar was. De jaren, decennia en eeuwen daarna doofde de nevel langzaam uit. Tegenwoordig is de Krabnevel enkel nog met een goede verrekijker of een kleine amateur-telescoop te observeren. Hubble maakt de bovenstaande foto, die je hier in hoge resolutie kunt downloaden.
8. Zonnestelsel in wording
Dit is de scherpste foto ooit van een zonnestelsel in wording. De foto is gemaakt door ALMA, een astronomische interferometer van 66 radioschotels. De ster TW Hydrae steelt hierboven de show. Deze ster is slechts tien miljoen jaar oud. In vergelijking: onze zon is 4,5 miljard jaar oud. Je ziet heel goed hoe babyplaneten hun banen om de jonge ster hebben schoongeveegd.
7. Stormachtige noordpool van Saturnus
Wist je dat op de noordpool van Saturnus een zeshoek te zien is? De foto hierboven (hoge resolutie) is gemaakt door de Cassini-ruimtesonde. In het hart van de zeshoek bevindt zich een grote zwarte ‘stip’ die de noordpool van Saturnus lijkt te markeren. Het is waarschijnlijk het oog van een orkaan-achtige storm die op de noordpool woedt. Het oog is zo’n 2000 kilometer breed, ongeveer twintig keer groter dan het oog van een gemiddelde orkaan op aarde. Cassini zal volgend jaar hopelijk nog een keer in de top tien ruimtefoto’s staan, want in 2017 eindigt de ruimtemissie.
27 maart vloog de Rosetta-ruimtesonde op 329 kilometer afstand van komeet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Het ruimtevaartuig maakte een foto toen het object voor de zon poseerde. Dit ziet er natuurlijk schitterend uit. Een krans wit licht omringt het badeendje. Bekijk de foto in hoge resolutie.
4. Stofhoos op Mars
Marsrover Opportunity stond op een hellinkje toen door de vallei onder hem een stofhoos joeg. En natuurlijk vereeuwigde de rover deze stofhoos (grote versie). Een stofhoos op Mars wordt ook wel een ‘dust devil’ genoemd: een draaiende zuil lucht die ontstaat doordat de lucht aan het oppervlak warmer is dan de lucht daarboven. Marsrover Opportunity is inmiddels alweer twaalf jaar actief op de rode planeet. In januari 2017 gaat het dertiende jaar in.
3. Flinke ruimtesoes
En we zijn aangekomen bij de top drie! Met op nummer drie deze kosmische ruimtesoes. Gelukkig ziet dit object – NGC 7635 – er veel mooier uit dan een soes of een bitterbal. Ook is het object veel groter. De Zeepbelnevel bevindt zich op 8.000 lichtjaar van de aarde en is zo’n tien lichtjaar breed. Dat komt overeen met 100 biljoen kilometer, oftewel 100.000.000.000.000 kilometer. Deze foto downloaden om te gebruiken als achtergrondfoto op jouw computer of telefoon? Klik hier!
2. Selfie Curiosity
Bijna de helft (45%) van alle stemmers vond deze selfie van Curiosity de mooiste Marsfoto van 2016. Helaas kreeg de foto net te weinig voorkeursstemmen om het tot ruimtefoto van het jaar te schoppen. De rover maakte de selfie met behulp van de Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) aan het uiteinde van zijn robotarm. Dat we die arm niet zien, is goed te verklaren. De selfie is welbeschouwd een mozaïek bestaande uit 57 foto’s. Gekozen is om (delen van) foto’s te gebruiken waar de robotarm niet op staat. Download een grote versie van deze foto.
1. De prachtige Orionnevel
De allermooiste ruimtefoto van het jaar is deze schitterende foto van de beroemde Orionnevel. Niet alleen sterren, maar ook bruine dwergen en eenzame planeetachtige objecten zijn op deze foto te zien. De beroemde Orionnevel ligt ruim 1.300 lichtjaar van de aarde en is met het blote oog zichtbaar. Daarmee is het één van de helderste nevels. Omdat de Orionnevel niet ver van de aarde verwijderd is, is de kraamkamer een perfect proefobject om meer te weten te komen over de vorming van nieuwe sterren. De foto is gemaakt door het HAWK-I infraroodinstrument van ESO’s Very Large Telescope. Deze foto in XXL-formaat vind je hier.
Greg Bishop has carefully studied the life and ufological claims of the infamous UFOContactee George Adamski. Greg tells the story of what happened on a certain, controversy-filled day in 1952: “…Adamski left his Palomar mountain retreat at 1:00 a.m. on Thursday November 20, 1952 along with his lifetime secretary Lucy McGinnis and Alice Wells – the owner of the property where Adamski gave lectures on Universal Law and the café where he flipped burgers to pay the rent. At about 8:00 a.m. they met with Al Bailey and his wife Betty, andGeorge Hunt Williamson [a fellow-Contactee] and his wife, Betty, in Blythe, [California] just west of the Arizona / California border.”
The group then suddenly turned back, on what was described as a “hunch.” They retraced their steps, taking a small highway eleven miles northeast towards the town of Parker, Arizona, where they stopped. After breakfast, the group scanned the skies for saucers. Passing motorists slowed down, wondering what was going on. When, around noon, an aircraft flew over the group, it provoked brief excitement. The main event was still to come, however. In fact, it was only moments away: a huge, silver-colored, cigar-shaped UFO suddenly loomed into view.
Greg continues: “Williamson asked: ‘Is that a space ship?’, as Betty Bailey tried to set up a movie camera, but couldn’t because ‘she was so excited.’ According to Adamski, they were anxious not to attract attention to the object, so they didn’t point at it and alert other passing cars to this event.”
“Someone take me down the road, quick! That ship has come looking for me and I don’t want to keep them waiting!” Adamski yelled, as he jumped into the car with McGinnis and Mr. Bailey. About a half-mile down the road, with the craft shadowing them, Adamski told McGinnis to turn off the road. He then instructed the two to “go back to the others as quickly as possible…and watch for anything that might take place” – from the safe viewing distance of half a mile or more away. After this first craft was chased away by interceptor jets, another “beautiful small craft” arrived and landed behind the crest of a mountain about half a mile away.
George Adamski
Adamski soon saw a figure waving to him and walked towards it. Adamski said of this experience: “I fully realized I was in the presence of a man from space – a human being from another world!” The entity identified himself as Orthon. After some warnings about atomic weapons and wars, and a refusal to be photographed, Orthon returned to his ship and sailed away. A controversy of massive proportions had just begun – one which still exists today (check out Greg’s book Wake Up Down There! for the complete, detailed article I have quoted from above). Also, see Greg’s latest book, It Defies Language! for more on his thoughts on the Contactee issue.
One of the more insightful people on the matter of Adamski – and his life and claims – is Colin Bennett, the author of the book, Looking for Orthon. I interviewed Bennett some years ago on the matter of Adamski. Bennett told me: “Adamski was not an educated man, and he used the better-educated Williamson as he used Desmond Leslie. That is, as an extra cerebral lung. As such George Hunt Williamson was the top of Adamski’s multi-media head. As they used to say in those days, the both tripped one another out. The Mojave was certainly rich in ancient Indian legends concerning flying vehicles. This was one of the reasons why George Hunt Williamson and the Baileys accompanied Adamski to the desert.”
Bennett expanded: “It is more than possible that the group wanted to conjure up something like the kind of presence that they thought they had contacted from their automatic writing, and at least Adamski got more than he bargained for. A combination of high intrigue, burgeoning technology combined with the ancient desert and its prehistoric features was not to be trifled with, and a genie came right out of the alchemical bottle. All the best books on occultism contain the warning that the attempted raising of images is not to be taken lightly.”
Orthon
There is the following from Bennett, too: “Adamski’s ‘core story’ began to run out of steam very quickly. His followers demanded to know more about Orthon ‘the spaceman,’ and they asked if Adamski had been on yet more journeys in Orthon’s flying saucer. Adamski, the all-American showman, anxious not to disappoint, then turned back to literature, as it were, in order to create new episodes for life. This got him into a terrible wrap-round tangle, and subsequently he pasted-up any and every kind of covered-wagon to try and keep the Orthon story going. This lost him almost all of his latter-day following, and he was finished. But history refused to erase him. The core story was archetypal; it had a kind of irresistible intellectual eroticism about it.”
Bennett also had this to say to me: “George Adamski played a significant part in establishing New Age thinking. It might be well to remember that the entire body of our moral philosophy and spiritual life is formed by visions and inspirations. It does not come from science or technology. Those who thoughtlessly dismiss mystical experience cut themselves off from all art, literature, and no small part of all thought and philosophy.
“As mystics and prophets know, when desert light strikes the retina, anything that can be imagined can happen. The greatest tribute that can be paid to Adamski is that through both foul means and fair, he helped to create one of the very few routes to the unconscious we have.”
Multiplemedia outletsacross South Africa reported the sighting of a green UFO on the night of December 12th by commercial pilots near Jeffreys Bay in the Eastern Cape province on the Indian Ocean coast. This sighting occurred just a day after a similar sighting of a green UFO off the coast of Spain and about a year after a green UFO was seen by many witnesses in Cape Town. What are they and are they related?
A Boeing 737 cargo aircraft Captain and Co-Pilot, flying from Cape Town International Airport to Port Elizabeth International Airport, reported seeing what appeared to be a green object increasing in altitude past the cockpit of their aeroplane reaching to about a thousand feet into clouds above them and then returning towards earth at high speed past the cockpit of the aeroplane.
That report came from Craig Lambinon, a spokesperson for the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI). a voluntary maritime rescue organization in South Africa. He says the unnamed flight crew first reported the green UFO to the air traffic control center in Port Elizabeth which determined that the plane was at an altitude of 3,000 feet and flying over the ocean 10 nautical miles from Jeffreys Bay when the incident occurred. That’s about 90 km (55 miles) west of the Port Elizabeth International Airport, the plane’s destination.
The NSRI station at Jeffreys Bay which investigated the UFO
When air traffic controllers could not determine a cause (they dismissed the possibility of a military flare because they don’t reach that altitude), they contacted the NSRI station at Jeffrey’s Bay to search for what might be an undocumented aircraft in trouble. Lambinon reported to the media:
NSRI Jeffreys Bay were alerted and although the matter was monitored throughout the night the green object has not been seen since and there are no reports of anyone, or craft or aircraft overdue or missing. No further reports of sightings have been received and the incident remains a mystery.
Well, no further sightings in Jeffreys Bay. However, the night before the pilots saw their UFO, a bright green UFO was seen by witnesses in La Hita (Toledo), Sevilla, Calar Alto (Almería), Sierra Nevada and La Sagra (Granada) who also reported an explosion and tremors. While no photographs of the Jeffreys Bay UFO were taken, numerous witnesses got photos of the Spanish object. That UFO was determined by University of Huelva astrophysicist Jose María Madiedo to be an asteroid traveling at 72,000 km/h (44,000 mph).
Was the Jeffreys Bay UFO a similar meteorite – perhaps one from the same shower? The pilots say it rose as it passed them before crashing into the water. That doesn’t sound like a meteor.
UFO seen over Cape Town and Durban in November 2015
Was is something else? A little over a year ago on November 28, 2015, numerous witnesses in Cape Town, on the west side of South Africa, and Durban, on the east coast, reported a glowing green disc that some described as a “wormhole” because of its shape and the way light emanated downward from it. No explanation appears to have been given for it.
It sounds like South Africans need to keep their cell phones handy and their eyes on the sky.
The field of ufology as we know it is constantly changing and evolving. This, of course, isn’t anything peculiar or specific to the study of UFOs however, since virtually all branches of science can be found to exist in a similar state of flux. As we learn, some old ideas are thrown out, like the old Newtonian notion that light would behave like a wave of energy… only to be readopted with the unsteady accumulation of insights that point to both particle and wavelike behavior of that most mysterious of energetic illuminations dispersed throughout our galaxy.
Much the same, close friends and associates of mine know one of my favorite gripes about the existing state of research into the unexplained: there is so much emphasis on gathering case studies that, while interesting from an anecdotal or storytelling sense to curious readers, primarily only seek to accumulate random bits of data that have been gathered in the field. Despite the patterns and associations that might be drawn between such reports, it is difficult to establish causal relationships between similar phenomenon. This may be due to on of two reasons: the caution exerted by the most scientific researchers out there… or the simple fact that few too many are attempting to read between the lines in the first place.
In preparation for an upcoming interview I’ll be conducting with author Colin Bennett, I’ve been reading his new book Flying Saucers Over the Whitehouse, which takes an autobiographical look at the UFO research of Edward J. Ruppelt. Though it is an enlightening (and remarkably savvy) glimpse at the life of this early Ufologist, there are other things about the text that have struck me as being rather insightful. I must point out first that various bloggers have already compared my own work, along with that of Greg Bishop and Nick Redfern, to Bennett’s under the construct of a so-called emerging “New Ufology.” Thus, I was delighted to see why those sorts of parallels were being made, upon seeing the following sentiments expressed by the author:
There is a need to construct a New Ufology which gets away from the passive listing of countless case histories from the past. Ufological studies should be integrated with the latest developments in psychology and mathematics, along with up-to-date Postmodern views on Artificial Intelligence and Image Processing.
I’ve long held the notion that revised mathematical and scientific approaches to the study of UFOs should be a necessity if we are to progress with any degree of clarity in this field of research, along with something kin to a classical philosophical approach that might help us define clearly, in human terms, what we may be dealing with based on logical assumptions. Alas, the days of Jacques Vallee and perhaps a handful of others getting out there and calculating the energetic potential of a craft based on the cancellation of car headlights by the UFO’s own hyper-illumination seem to have drifted slowly behind the horizon (not to say that Vallee, a titan in the field, isn’t still writing and researching, of course). Still, I’ve noticed many new books on UFOs drifting back to those sorts of case studies of yesteryear, reporting witness testimonies, time and dates, descriptions of odd illuminations and etc ad nauseum… how I’ve wished there were more like Vallee who were (to put it admirably) dorky enough to apply mathematics and physics to those case studies. In my opinion, it’s the only way we’ll really ever discern anything noteworthy about ufology as a whole.
Seeing Mr. Bennett’s feelings articulated thusly gives me a little hope and inspiration… and for a guy like myself, whose reading list over the last 24 hours has included Physics for Dummies, The Roots of Coincidence: An Excursion into Parapsychology by Arthur Koestler, and The Varieties of Scientific Experience by Carl Sagan, maybe it’s proof there are kindred spirits out there after all!
While I am still on a bit of a Contactee kick, I thought it would be a good time to share with you the story of one of the lesser-known so-called Contactees. It is a story which is no less interesting than those of the likes of George Van Tassel, Daniel Fry, Dana Howard, Orfeo Angelucci, and George Adamski. The woman in question was Margit Mustapa. She was born and raised in Finland and, in her youth, performed with the Helsinki National Opera. Margit reportedly viewed an immense, cigar-shaped UFO in the skies of Seattle, Washington, while visiting the city in 1950. As a result, she finally settled in what we might call definitive Contactee territory: California, specifically in Santa Barbara.
Mustapa was the author of two books (written in 1960 and 1963 respectively). They were Spaceship to the Unknown and Book of Brothers. With chapter titles like “Toward the Universal Brotherhood,” “Tall Venusian Brother Appears,” “Brother of Electricity Explains,” and “Cooperation with Brotherhood,” these are classic books that easily rival the written output of the aforementioned Contactees listed above.
And, take a look at the publisher’s blurb about Margit’s claimed experiences. It appears on the jacket of Spaceship to the Unknown, a book which echoed some of the claims of Contactee Truman Bethurum, namely that back in the 1950s the Space-Brothers and Space-Sisters were operating clandestinely in our cities: “Mrs. Mustapa’s men and women from other planets are not the queer, bug-eyed creatures usually pictured. Her first ‘contacts’ with space people were a gentle-appearing woman in an ordinary car, and a bronzed, black-haired motorist in sports garb (including a colorful Hawaiian shirt) – both encountered on a road near Los Angeles. No words were exchanged. None were necessary. Telepathic vibrations carried their message.”
The messages and data said to have been given to Margit Mustapa were certainly significant, if the Contactee issue is your thing, of course. In Book of Brothers, she notes: “The brothers of the book are Venusians. They have influenced thousands of minds to understand how to grow inwardly, spiritually, and mentally toward extraplanetary dimensions in thinking…In the universal concept, each individual, through meditation and study, must find his place. But first he must free himself from traditional thinking and open his mind to the implications of the Space Age which the whirling satellites of today symbolize. To this goal the Brothers offered the spiritual key…We can become as gods, living in a new era of harmony; we can penetrate to outer space and the promise of the future…a future of love, understanding and peace.”
And, at The Anomalist, there is this: “Margit Mustapa did some dictation for a Venusian Brother around 1958 that revealed the Earth was ‘destined to become a sacred planet.’ The process would take some decades and would involve elimination of the self-pride of mankind. Thought reading would have to become common as well. One prediction now testable was that the children of her time would become representatives of a ‘new race’ that would bring in a culture founded on fourth-dimensional thinking. To the extent this was connected with the inner man and his growth, it was arguably a correct prediction. To the extent these new age individuals should have felt increased spiritual speed and velocity in a vortex of radioactive love calling from the planet Venus, it appears certainly wrong. A later prediction that Mustapa relayed from Saint Germane also seems wrong: ‘An immediate release from the evil powers will be introduced during the Xmas time of 1959.'”
Whatever you may (or may not!) think about the Contactees of the 1950s and 1960s, Margit Mustapa’s books should be recognized as important aspects of Contactee history.
Beste bezoeker, Heb je zelf al ooit een vreemde waarneming gedaan, laat dit dan even weten via email aan Frederick Delaere opwww.ufomeldpunt.be. Deze onderzoekers behandelen jouw melding in volledige anonimiteit en met alle respect voor jouw privacy. Ze zijn kritisch, objectief maar open minded aangelegd en zullen jou steeds een verklaring geven voor jouw waarneming! DUS AARZEL NIET, ALS JE EEN ANTWOORD OP JOUW VRAGEN WENST, CONTACTEER FREDERICK. BIJ VOORBAAT DANK...
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Over mijzelf
Ik ben Pieter, en gebruik soms ook wel de schuilnaam Peter2011.
Ik ben een man en woon in Linter (België) en mijn beroep is Ik ben op rust..
Ik ben geboren op 18/10/1950 en ben nu dus 73 jaar jong.
Mijn hobby's zijn: Ufologie en andere esoterische onderwerpen.
Op deze blog vind je onder artikels, werk van mezelf. Mijn dank gaat ook naar André, Ingrid, Oliver, Paul, Vincent, Georges Filer en MUFON voor de bijdragen voor de verschillende categorieën...
Veel leesplezier en geef je mening over deze blog.