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 Ontdek de Fascinerende Wereld van UFO's en UAP's: Jouw Bron voor Onthullende Informatie!
Ben jij ook gefascineerd door het onbekende? Wil je meer weten over UFO's en UAP's, niet alleen in België, maar over de hele wereld? Dan ben je op de juiste plek!
België: Het Kloppend Hart van UFO-onderzoek
In België is BUFON (Belgisch UFO-Netwerk) dé autoriteit op het gebied van UFO-onderzoek. Voor betrouwbare en objectieve informatie over deze intrigerende fenomenen, bezoek je zeker onze Facebook-pagina en deze blog. Maar dat is nog niet alles! Ontdek ook het Belgisch UFO-meldpunt en Caelestia, twee organisaties die diepgaand onderzoek verrichten, al zijn ze soms kritisch of sceptisch.
Nederland: Een Schat aan Informatie
Voor onze Nederlandse buren is er de schitterende website www.ufowijzer.nl, beheerd door Paul Harmans. Deze site biedt een schat aan informatie en artikelen die je niet wilt missen!
Internationaal: MUFON - De Wereldwijde Autoriteit
Neem ook een kijkje bij MUFON (Mutual UFO Network Inc.), een gerenommeerde Amerikaanse UFO-vereniging met afdelingen in de VS en wereldwijd. MUFON is toegewijd aan de wetenschappelijke en analytische studie van het UFO-fenomeen, en hun maandelijkse tijdschrift, The MUFON UFO-Journal, is een must-read voor elke UFO-enthousiasteling. Bezoek hun website op www.mufon.com voor meer informatie.
Samenwerking en Toekomstvisie
Sinds 1 februari 2020 is Pieter niet alleen ex-president van BUFON, maar ook de voormalige nationale directeur van MUFON in Vlaanderen en Nederland. Dit creëert een sterke samenwerking met de Franse MUFON Reseau MUFON/EUROP, wat ons in staat stelt om nog meer waardevolle inzichten te delen.
Let op: Nepprofielen en Nieuwe Groeperingen
Pas op voor een nieuwe groepering die zich ook BUFON noemt, maar geen enkele connectie heeft met onze gevestigde organisatie. Hoewel zij de naam geregistreerd hebben, kunnen ze het rijke verleden en de expertise van onze groep niet evenaren. We wensen hen veel succes, maar we blijven de autoriteit in UFO-onderzoek!
Blijf Op De Hoogte!
Wil jij de laatste nieuwtjes over UFO's, ruimtevaart, archeologie, en meer? Volg ons dan en duik samen met ons in de fascinerende wereld van het onbekende! Sluit je aan bij de gemeenschap van nieuwsgierige geesten die net als jij verlangen naar antwoorden en avonturen in de sterren!
Heb je vragen of wil je meer weten? Aarzel dan niet om contact met ons op te nemen! Samen ontrafelen we het mysterie van de lucht en daarbuiten.
09-03-2018
ASTONISHING SECRETS THE GOVERNMENT NEVER TOLD US ABOUT MARS
ASTONISHING SECRETS THE GOVERNMENT NEVER TOLD US ABOUT MARS
What is the STARGATE project? Well, it was a joint effort by the CIA and NSA, along with SRI and a few other academic institutions around the world to study parapsychology (telepathy, , remote viewing, etc). The program lasted more than two decades, and was funded by millions of dollars. You would think that a black budget special access program that ran for more than two decades had some success, and it did. The STARGATE program was used in multiple missions for ‘national security’ and ‘intelligence collection’ purposes, and the United States wasn’t the only country interested in this type of phenomena. For example, here is a document going into detail about certain people (studies by the Department of Defence) with ‘paranormal’ abilities. Here is a cancelled TED talk by Russel Targ, a physicist and co-founder of the STARGATE program sharing everything he knows about ESP.
Here is another example from Russia, of a women who was in the hands of their military for a while.
A CIA document titled “Chronology of Recent Interest in Exceptional Functions of The Human Body in the People’s Republic of China” is another great example of their interest. In the document, it outlines the Chinese government’s interest in parapsychology (remote viewing, telepathy, psychokinesis, etc.) just as the ones above do.
In 1976, a presentation was given at the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE) on a paper published by the Institute on behalf of Hal Puthoff (now part of the To The Stars initiative who received and released the recent UFO Pentagon footage from the US government) and Russell Targ.
Both of them titled the paper “A Perceptual Channel For Information Transfer Over Kilometer Distances: Historical Perspectives and Recent Research.” Remote viewing, which was a large part of the program, had an 85 percent success rate, and it could be taught to other people as well. Remote viewing is the ability to describe a remote geographical location, in detail, from a distant location. It’s as if these people were trained and had the ability to project their consciousness into other areas in which they were not physically located, or at least, somehow, perceive those areas.
Remote viewing also seemed to show that ‘time’ as we know it isn’t what we think it is, as it was also used to peer into the past as well as into the future, with successful ‘hits.’
The dialogue below about Mars is an example of that.
Paul H. Smith, PhD, one of the participants in the Stargate project (now a retired U.S. army major), gives us details from his book, The Essential Guide To Remote Viewing.
He also describes in his book how remote viewing, in multiple occasions, was successfully used to predict future events, and shares his own successful experience of successfully perceiving future events with great accuracy.
One of the participants in the program, Ingo Swann, was able to successfully describe and view a ring around Jupiter, which scientists had no idea even existed. This took place precisely before NASA’s Pioneer 10 spacecraft fly of the planet. You can read more about that here. (source)
“To summarize, over the years, the back-and-forth criticism of protocols, refinement of methods, and successful replication of this type of remote viewing in independent laboratories has yielded considerable scientific evidence for the reality of the [remote viewing] phenomenon. Adding to the strength of these results was the discovery that a growing number of individuals could be found to demonstrate high-quality remote viewing, often to their own surprise. . . . The development of this capability at SRI has evolved to the point where visiting CIA personnel with no previous exposure to such concepts have performed well under controlled laboratory conditions.” (source)
The point is, remote viewing, and other similar phenomena is real, and can no longer be debunked. It’s been validated a number of times. In 1999, statistics professor Jessica Utts at UC Irvine, published a paper showing that parapsychological experiments have produced much stronger results than those showing a daily dose of aspirin helping to prevent heart attacks. Utts also showed that these results are much stronger than the research behind various drugs like antiplatelets, for example.
Even as far back as 1985, a report prepared by the Army Research Institute disclosed that “the data reviewed in this report constitute genuine scientific anomalies for which no one has an adequate explanation for.”
Just because it can’t be explained does not mean it’s not real.
“The statistical results of the studies examined are far beyond what is expected by chance. Arguments that these results could be due to methodological flaws in the experiments are soundly refuted. Effects of similar magnitude to those found in government-sponsored research at SRI and SAIC have been replicated at a number of laboratories across the world. Such consistency cannot be readily explained by claims of flaws or fraud.”
So, What About Mars?
It’s safe to assume that not all which was discovered was declassified. Personally, I believe that declassifying a controversial topic is possibly a tool used by the intelligence community to prolong secrecy. I could be wrong, but it seems that when something is declassified, like the STARGATE program, the general population automatically assumes that that’s all there is/was to it, and there is nothing new left to discover. I don’t believe that’s true, and it (declassifying information) might be away to stop public inquiry into controversial and secretive subjects.
That being said, we recently came across some interesting documents regarding Mars via the Stargate files. As mentioned above, remote viewing was not limited to distance. The viewer could be trying to determine what’s in the next room, or the contents of an envelope they were given, or they could be tasked to remote view, not only another countries defence installations, but planets like Jupiter, as mentioned above, the moon, and now we know that the same thing happened on Mars.
See below:
The CIA was using a remote viewer to look at the planet Mars, not as it is presently, but to peer into the past. Below is an example of how one of these remote viewing sessions went. What’s interesting about the dialogue below is that the viewer mentions a great climate shift.
What else did the viewer see? He saw signs of life, now keep in mind that this is before the big climate change, and it’s interesting because he describes them as tall thin humanoids wearing some sort of suit.
The defence employee is constantly asking the viewer to shift coordinates.
After this, if you continue to read the document, the viewer describes large pyramid structures, and much more.
All of this is very interesting, especially when you consider that the remote viewing program had such a high success rate.
What’s so significant about the document above is that there is corroborating information. As you saw, the remote viewer in this case was tasked with remote viewing the Mars, but, again, did so in a time period approximately 1 million years BC.
It’s interesting to note how the remote viewer was ‘brought back.’
It wasn’t long ago when renowned scientist Dr. John Brandenburg, who worked for the Government with top-secret security clearances on various projects shared some very sensitive information. He has worked on the Rocket Plume Regolith Interactions on the moon and Mars, Vortex theory of Rocket engine design and the combined Sakharov-Kaluza-Klein theory of Field Unification for purposes of space propulsion and Mars science. Brandenburg was also the Deputy Manager of the Clementine Mission to the moon, which was part of a joint space project between the Ballistic Missile Defence Organization (BMDO) and NASA. The mission discovered water at the moon’s poles in 1994. (Source: page 16 of 18)(source)(source)
Clearly, he knows his stuff. There are hundreds of similar types of people with impressive and verifiable backgrounds relaying some very interesting information to the public.
Whether it’s true or not is up for you to decide.
He stated that the Clementine mission to the moon was actually a photo reconnaissance mission to check out strange structures on the back side of the moon, that were built by somebody else, not our civilization. He did so in the documentary ‘Aliens on the moon.’
Brandenburg has also done extensive research on Mars, having found strong evidence of a past civilization existing millions of years ago before the massive climatic shift. According to him, there was a large nuclear blast that could have caused the climate shift which took place on Mars, and prior to this blast, Mars had a bronze aged civilization, with pyramids and other giant structures, like the face on Mars (pictures above) and aztec looking like head.
Here is a great lecture from Brandenburg where he goes into great detail and provides the evidence.
There are a number of respected scientists in the field who have been trying to tell people that the face on Mars is not just some geological coincidence, but an actual face.
The latest example of research to contemplate this, comes from a fairly new study that was published in the Journal of Space Exploration titled “The Mounds of Cydonia: Elegant Geology, or Tetrahedral Geometry and Reactions of Pythagoras and Dirac?” A study that’s added to the already robust evidence pointing to “artificial surface interventions” on Mars, as the study states.
General Albert Stubblebine, a retired United States Major General, was the Commanding General of the U.S. Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM), and one of America’s most distinguished soldiers. He was also chief of U.S. Army Intelligence, with 16,000 soldiers under his command.
He was a major proponent of “psychic” warfare and a key player in the Stargate Project.
Here’s what General Stubblebine had to say about Mars:
“There are structures on the surface of Mars. I will tell you for the record that there are structures underneath the surface of Mars that cannot be seen by the Voyager cameras that went by in 1976. I will also tell you that there are machines on the surface of Mars and there are machines under the surface of Mars that you can look at, you can find out in detail, you cansee what they are, where they are, who they are and a lot of detail about them.”
Below is a lecture from from the remote viewer mentioned in the CIA documents above. His name is Joe McMoneagle, and in the lecture he goes into detail about the session.
0
1
2
3
4
5
- Gemiddelde waardering: 0/5 - (0 Stemmen) Categorie:ALIEN LIFE, UFO- CRASHES, ABDUCTIONS, MEN IN BLACK, ed ( FR. , NL; E )
FORMER CIA CONTRACTOR CLAIMS ALIENS ARE USING OUR PLANET “LIKE A SUPERMARKET
FORMER CIA CONTRACTOR CLAIMS ALIENS ARE USING OUR PLANET “LIKE A SUPERMARKET
A FORMER CIA EMPLOYEE REVEALS THE REASON WHY SOME ALIENS KEEP VISITING OUR PLANET.
The deepest echelons of the U.S. Government run a number of very dark ventures collectively known as Secret Access Programs. In 1997, the U.S. senate released a report describing the SAPs as being “so sensitive that they are exempt from standard reporting requirements to the Congress.”
One of these infamous SAPs was focused on people endowed with “special abilities,” the CIA’s remote viewing program:
“In July 1995 the CIA declassified, and approved for release, documents revealing its sponsorship in the 1970s of a program at Stanford Research Institute in Menlo Park, CA, to determine whether such phenomena as remote viewing “might have any utility for intelligence collection“. Thus began disclosure to the public of a two-decade-plus involvement of the intelligence community in the investigation of so-called parapsychological or psi phenomena.” (source)
One of the participants in this Secret Access Program was Ingo Swann and his story is one that will really make you consider what is publicly dismissed as wishful thinking.
Using his unexplained power, Ingo Swann was able to see and describe the thin ring around Jupiter before astronomers had a chance to detect it. The following year NASA’s Pioneer 10 spacecraft executed a fly-by around Jupiter and photographs it sent back confirmed the existence of the wispy ring.
Drawing on this success, the CIA went further with his training and the remote viewing program was considered worth investing into. As far as the declassified files tell, the program continued for another two and a half decades, a period during which the U.S. military was the primary beneficiary of intelligence acquired through multiple participants.
The reason behind the program’s termination is still unclear and there is an ongoing debate regarding the amount of information that was indeed declassified.
One of the most notable incidents involving this particular SAP was retold by one of the programs’ biggest supporter, U.S. Major general Albert Stubblebine. According to his admission, the remote viewers discovered structures on Mars –both on the planet’s surface and underneath its seemingly deserted facade– that did not appear to have been built by humans.
The story of Ingo Swann cannot be found amid the declassified dossiers. Although he did take part in the program, the particularities of his involvement came from a book he later published —Penetration. The book explores the subject of aliens and UFOs (both man-made and extraterrestrial) and is one of the strangest reads out there.
On one particular occasion, Swann describes an incident involving a secret agent going by the moniker Mr. Axelrod.
Swann met Axelrod while he was working with scientists at the Stanford Research Institute in Menlo Park, CA. One day, despite the strict policy of no outsiders allowed, Mr. A managed to enter the Institute and convince Swann to accompany him on a state-sanctioned mission.
Axelrod was in the good company of “two blond haired, blue eyed, military looking assistants” who were unusually tall and exuded an air of mystery. The group boarded a nondescript, unmarked Learjet and flew to the west coast; Swann’s best guess was that they landed somewhere in the Alaskan hinterland.
0
1
2
3
4
5
- Gemiddelde waardering: 0/5 - (0 Stemmen) Categorie:ALIEN LIFE, UFO- CRASHES, ABDUCTIONS, MEN IN BLACK, ed ( FR. , NL; E )
Por-Bajin: Who Built This Summer Palace In Siberia And Why?
Por-Bajin: Who Built This Summer Palace In Siberia And Why?
There are a lot of theories over mysterious 1,300-year-old fortress-like structure located on island in middle of lake.
With its island location and towering square walls that were once impenetrable, it looks at first glance to be an ancient fortress or kremlin to keep out enemies. Others believe the 1,300-year-old structure in rural Siberia has more mystical properties and might have been a summer palace, monastery, or even an astronomical observatory.
Whatever it is, more than a century after it was first explored, archaeologists are no further forward in discovering the secrets of Por-Bajin, who built it or why.
Most likely constructed in 757 AD, the complex has fascinated and frustrated experts in equal measure since it was located in the middle Tere-Khol, a high-altitude lake in Tuva, in the late 19th century.
1,300-year-old structure could be a fortress, summer palace, monastery, or even an astronomical observatory.
First explored in 1891, with small-scale excavation work later carried out between 1957 and 1963, it was not until 2007 that proper research took place at the site.
Archaeologists found clay tablets of human feet, faded coloured drawings on the plaster of the walls, giant gates and fragments of burnt wood. But nothing yet has provided a definitive answer as to why the structure was built, and excavation work continues.
‘Por-Bajin is legally treated as one of the most mysterious archaeological monuments of Russia,’ says the official website for the complex, about 3,800km from Moscow.
Construction materials, and the way the site is laid out, told the experts it was built in a typically Chinese architectural tradition, most likely in the second half of the eight century.
More than a century after it was first explored, archaeologists are no further forward in discovering the secrets of Por-Bajin, who built it or why.
‘Apparently it was built at the period of the Uighur Khagante nomadic empire (744-840 AD), but it’s not clear what they built a fortress for in such a solitary place, far from big settlements and trade routes. ‘The architecture also produces many questions and it has reminders of a model of an ideal Chinese city-palace.’
Por-Bajin, which translates as ‘clay house’ in the Tuvan language, is located in the very centre of Eurasia, on the borders of Russia and Mongolia. It sits on a small island in a lake high in the mountains between the Sayan and Altai ranges, about five miles west of the isolated Kungurtuk settlement in southern Siberia.
What puzzles the experts, however, is the lack of rudimentary heating systems, particularly given that Por-Bajin sits at 2,300metres above sea level and endures harsh Siberian weather.
Laser mapping of the site prior to the first major excavation in 2007 helped experts build a 3D model of what the community might have looked like. Despite its age, parts of the structure were well preserved when archaeologists arrived to examine the 3.5 hectare site, with walls clearly visible.
Outer walls standing 10 metres tall and 12 metres wide formed a rectangular shape, creating what many have interpreted as a protective kremlin-like fortress. A main gate was discovered, opening into two successive courtyards connected by another gate.
Walls on the inside were smaller, at about one metre-tall, forming the outline of buildings, with a large building in the centre of the site. Some of the walls and panels were covered with lime plaster painted with horizontal red striped.
The main complex in the inner courtyard had a two-part central structure, one behind the other linked by a covered walkway. It had a tiled roof and was supported by 36 wooden columns resting on stone bases.
Construction materials, and the way the site is laid out, told the experts it was built in a typically Chinese architectural tradition, most likely in the second half of the eight century.
Outer walls standing 10 metres tall and 12 metres wide formed a rectangular shape, creating what many have interpreted as a protective kremlin-like fortress. Photo: 'Por-Bajin Fortress' foundation
There is growing evidence it was a community or palace complex centred around a Buddhist monastery. Photo:'Por-Bajin Fortress' foundation
'I have been to many places, I have seen many things, but I have never seen anything of the kind,' said Vladimir Putin
‘The building was most likely of the post-and-beam construction characteristic of Chinese architecture from the T’ang Dynasty,’ wrote head archaeologist Irina Arzhantseva in a report published in The European Archaeologist in 2011.
‘Finds of burnt timber fragments point to the use of the typical Chinese technique of interlocking wooden brackets, called dou-gung. Ramps led down to the two flanking galleries which were roofed, open spaces looking onto the access to the main pavilion.’
While debate continues about the use of Por-Bajin, there is growing evidence it was a community or palace complex centred around a Buddhist monastery. Certainly, there is an argument that its layout is typical of the palaces of the Buddhist Paradises as depicted in T’ang paintings.
Books from the era also describe the existence of Uighur towns, extensive building activities, and a transition from a nomadic to sedentary lifestyle. Indeed, there may have been as many of 15 of these settlements in Tuva alone, all square of rectangular shaped and enclosed by walls with a main gate.
What puzzles the experts, however, is the lack of rudimentary heating systems, particularly given that Por-Bajin sits at 2,300metres above sea level and endures harsh Siberian weather.
The building was most likely of the post-and-beam construction characteristic of Chinese architecture from the T’ang Dynasty.' Pictures: Irina Arzhantseva, 'Por-Bajin Fortress' foundation
If anything it suggests that the complex was only ever occupied for a brief period of time, or was used as a seasonal home in the warmer summer months. Some experts even say that the climate, or other natural occurrences in the region, brought occupation of the site to an early end in the 9th century.
Por-Bajin sits on a bed of permafrost with evidence that the melting of this ice – as a result of warmer temperatures over the past century – has caused not only a destruction of the walls, but a dramatic rise in the depth of the lake water.
In the 2011 research paper, Irina Arzhantseva wrote: ‘This situation created a two-fold threat to the long-term survival of the site. Thermokarst (melting of the permafrost) seems to undermine the stability of the structures on the site, leading to collapse and decay; and frost fissures are causing constant erosion of the banks of the island to such an extent that it is estimated that the walls will start collapsing into the lake in about 80 years.
‘Archaeological and geomorphological fieldwork revealed traces of at least two earthquakes which had accelerated the natural process of deterioration. The first of these seems to have happened already during the construction of the ‘fortress’ in the 8th century.
‘It is not yet quite clear how long the buildings survived after the abandonment of the site in the 9th century, but some time after the abandonment there was another catastrophic earthquake which led to fires and to the collapse of the southern and eastern enclosure walls, and destroyed the north-western corner bastion.’
While debate on its origins will no doubt continue for decades, those who have seen Por-Bajin are all in agreement about its beauty. In fact, in many ways Russian president Vladimir Putin sums it up perfectly.
‘I have been to many places, I have seen many things, but I have never seen anything of the kind,’ he said, following a visit to the complex with Prince Albert of Monaco in 2007. Few could argue with that.
Who Crafted The 2.8 Billion-Year-Old Klerksdorp Spheres?
Who Crafted The 2.8 Billion-Year-Old Klerksdorp Spheres?
2.8 Billion-Year-Old Spheres balanced within one-hundred thousandths of an inch from absolute perfection have created confusion among experts.
They vary in size from 30 – 50 mm in diameter and have perfectly concentric grooves around the center as if they were molded. Inside the hard “shell” some have a spongy substance, while in others it resembles charcoal.
Man-Made Artifacts, or the result of mother nature?
Called the Klerksdorp spheres, the enigmatic artifacts are considered by many authors as the ultimate evidence of pre-human civilizations existing on Earth billions of years ago.
However, given their controversial age, mainstream scholars argue they are the product of mother nature.
The Spheroid objects found in Africa date back to a time when humans did not exist on Earth. The mystery objects are elliptical in shape with rough ridges around the center.
Having curious ‘design’ elements on their surface, some authors have argued that the enigmatic spheres are the result of intelligent design.
Side view of typical calcareous concretions, which exhibit equatorial grooves, found in Schoharie County, New York. The cube, for scale, is one centimeter cubed.
According to Michael Cremo (Michael A. Cremo (born July 15, 1948), also known by his devotional name Drutakarmā dāsa, is an American freelance researcher who identifies himself as a Vedic creationist and an “alternative archaeologist”) and other researchers of prehistoric culture, these spheres add to a body of evidence suggesting intelligent life existed on Earth long before a conventional view of history places it here.
Suggestions that Earth was inhabited by different lifeforms in the distant past, millions if not billions of years ago, has created countless debate among researchers and authors.
Tests performed on the spheres have yielded controversial results.
According to Biblioteca Pleyades, a man called John Hund who acquired one of the spheres took it to the California Space Institute at the University of California in order to find out more about the curious artifacts.
“It turned out that the balance is so fine, it exceeded the limit of their measuring technology,“ and these are the guys who make gyrocompasses for NASA.
However, this statement was later subtracted by the California Space Institute which denied that anyone told Hund that the object had the extraordinary properties.
A Klerksdorp sphere. It is 3 to 4 centimeters in maximum diameter and 2.5 centimeters in thickness.
According to their statement, there have been “some error in transmission” and that Hund had completely misunderstood the information regarding these objects.
The mystery sphere acquired by Hund is balanced to within one-hundred thousandths of an inch from absolute perfection.
Nobody knows what these stones are.
One NASA scientist told Hund that they do not have the technology to create anything as finely balanced as this.
Hund said the only way that either nature or human technology could create something so finely balanced would be in zero gravity.
A letter from Mr. Hund, made available by Biblioteca Pleyades offers more details about the enigmatic objects:
The existence of the sphere came to my attention ca 1977 while removing endangered rock engravings from the site where pyrophyllite or “wonderstone”, as it is commonly known in the region, is mined on the farm Gestoptefontein (meaning plugged fountain) near the little village of Ottosdal about 110 km from Klerksdorpin South Africa’s Northwest Province.
I was intrigued by the form of the spheres, grooves around the middle and the fact that they are as hard as steel, while the material (pyrophyllite) in which they are found, is as soft as limestone with a count of only 3 on the Moh scale. As you probably know, pyrophyllite (Al2 Si4 O10 (OH)2) is a secondary mineral and the deposits were formed by a process of sedimentation. On Gestoptefontein volcanic activity was responsible for the forming of outcrops varying in height from about 10 to 100 meters. The smooth and relatively soft surface on the slopes were ideal for the prehistoric dwellers (San) to make their engravings of animal and abstract designs.
On Gestoptefontein these outcrops were “swan” into huge pieces by means of twisted steel cables running zig-zag on pulleys for several kilometers. These blocks were then sawn by the same method into more manageable pieces of about 500 x 500 mm. Occasionally the “sawing cable” got stuck on one of the metal spheres embedded in the pyrophyllite.
They vary in size from 30 – 50 mm in diameter and have perfectly concentric grooves round the center as if they were molded. Inside the hard “shell” some have a spongy substance, while in others it resembles charcoal.
When only partly embedded so that they can be seen on the surface, they are not all spheres, but some are also oblong in form.
Andries Bisschoff, a former professor of the University of Potchefstroom argues the curious objects are limonite concretions.
According to research performed on the spheres, they are found in pyrophyllite a secondary mineral which is quite soft.
The spheres have a fibrous structure in the interior with a shell around them.
The spheres are very hard and according to researchers, it is nearly impossible to scratch them.
According to Roelf Marx, curator if the museum of Klerksdorp, South Africa, the spheres are harder than Steel.
What If Plato’s Atlantis Never Sank, What If Atlantis Lifted Off?
What If Plato’s Atlantis Never Sank, What If Atlantis Lifted Off?
Atlantis is the name of a mythicalislandmentioned and described in the dialogues Timeo and Critias, texts written by the GreekphilosopherPlato.
According to everything we know, Atlantis is said to have been a military power that existed nine thousand years before the time of the Athenian legislator Solon, who, according to Plato, is the source of the story.
Atlantis was said to have been located beyond the Pillarsof Hercules and is described as larger than Libya and AsiaMinortogether.
I was a massive island/continent, and according to Plato’saccounts, a catastrophe not described in Timeo and Critias, made Atlantis disappear “in a single day and night.”
The sea where Atlantis was once located soon became unnavigable because of the shallows, while Athens and the people of Greece forgot the event, since only a few survived, in Egypt, on the other hand, the memory that, thousands of years later, came to Solon’s knowledge and, from his stories and a manuscript to Critias, the narrator, was preserved.
A thin line divides myths from facts
During Antiquity and the Middle Ages the interpretation of the story prevailed as an allegory, but from the Modern Age and, especially since the second half of the 19th century, during Romanticism, the hypothesis about Atlantis became very popular, which led many researchers and authors to identify Atlantis in different cultures.
Modern research, however, suggests that there are no supposed Egyptiansources of the story and that the narrative presents anachronisms and impossible data, which leads to dismissing Atlantis as a historical fact.
Despite this, some researchers, however, admit the possibility that the myth has been inspired by a background of historical reality linked to a natural disaster.
But what if all of this was wrong? What if Atlantis did exist? And what if it never sank?
Was Atlantis real? Image Credit: Shutterstock.
If we take a look at ancient times, we can notice a sheer number of events that have been recorded around the globe which could, in fact, be what many authors today say are UFO sightings.
The idea that thousands of years ago, ancient civilizations were contacted by civilizations notfromEarth has become ever popular, and ancient astronaut theorists have offered ample evidence supporting this idea, throughout the years.
Atlanteans are actually displayed on many occasions as a bloodthirsty civilization. Their goal, according to some scholars was global domination. Thanks to their advanced technology in weaponry, sailing, and warfare, they were capable of winning great battles with ease. They subjected the people of the conquered lands to slavery.
Atlantis was protected by Poseidon, brother of Zeus. Poseidon had five male children and he named his eldest son Atlas, the king of this great civilization and the oceans. The Atlantic Ocean is named in his honor.
Ancient Aliens and Atlantis
If we take a look at ancient Egyptian History, we will come across a document titled The Tulli Papyrus.’
However, rather than being a Papyrus, the Tulli Papyrus is, in fact, a translation of a modern transcription of an ancient Egyptian document that records what is interpreted as fiery ufos. The Tulli Papyrus has cited by many as the most important ancient Egyptian texts which document the visitation of Ancient Astronauts to Egypt thousands of years ago.
In the year 22 third month of winter, sixth hour of the day (…2…) the scribas of the House of Life found it was a circle of fire that was coming in the sky (Though) it had no head, the breadth of its mouth (had) a foul odour. Its body 1 rod long (about 150 feet) and 1 rod large, It had no voice… They hearts become confused through it; then they laid themselves on the bellies (…3…) They went to the King ..?) to report it. His Majesty ordered (…4…) has been examined (…5…) as to all which is written in the papyrus-rolls of the House Of Life His Majesty was meditating upon what happened. Now, after some days had passed over these things, Lo! they were more numerous than anything. They were shining in the sky more than the sun to the limits of the four supports of heaven. (…6…) Powerful was the position of the fire circles. The army of the king looked on and His Majesty was in the midst of it. It was after supper. Thereupon, they (i.e. the fire circles) went up higher directed to South. Fishes and volatiles fell down from the sky. (It was) a marvel never occurred since the foundation of this Land! Caused His Majesty to be brought incense to pacify the hearth (…9… to write?) what happened in the book of the House of Life (…10… to be remembered?) for the Eternity. (Source: de Rachewiltz, Boris, Doubt Magazine, No. 41, the official magazine of the Fortean Society, pp. 214-15, Arlington, 1953.)
The above translation is just one of the many ancient documents that offer ‘evidence’ of ancient alien contact, thousands of years ago.
If we take a look at Mesopotamia, we will find the Ancient Sumerian King List, another historical document which offers more evidence of what many refer to as alien contact:
“…Alulim became king; he ruled for 28800 years. Alaljar ruled for 36000 years. 2 kings; they ruled for 64800 years. Then Eridug fell and the kingship was taken to Bad-tibira. In Bad-tibira, En-men-lu-ana ruled for 43200 years…
According to the accounts written down on the Sumerian King List, Eight ancient kings ruled over ancient Mesopotamia for a period of 241,200 years, before the Great Flood.
So, if there is historical evidence that suggests how thousands of years ago, people witnessed something extraordinary on Earth, isn’t it possible that Atlantis, the mythical continent was not of Earth, but from somewhere else in space?
What if thousands of years ago, before the time of Plato, an advanced ancient alien civilization existed on Earth, and what if that civilization was Atlantis?
Is it really possible that an entire continent/island disappears in one day and one night? Perhaps not, but a massive, hypothetical spaceship may have disappeared, only it may not have sunk, but rather lifted off to the stars.
Ook de Canadese overheid deed in het geheim onderzoek naar UFO’s. Deze stukken leveren een schat aan informatie op
Ook de Canadese overheid deed in het geheim onderzoek naar UFO’s. Deze stukken leveren een schat aan informatie op
Overheidsdocumenten uit 1967 laten zien dat de Canadese overheid serieus onderzoek deed naar UFO’s, schrijft Vice.
De stukken onthullen dat de overheid hoogstwaarschijnlijk ook jaren later nog UFO-waarnemingen bestudeerde.
De documenten zijn opgediept door Chris Rutkowski, die ze onlangs op zijn blog plaatste. Hij zegt een schat aan informatie te hebben gevonden.
Geen verklaring
“Wat we hier hebben zijn interessante meldingen die zijn gedaan door getraind personeel en getrainde bronnen en onderzocht door getrainde onderzoekers, maar er is nog altijd geen verklaring voor,” zei hij.
“Dat zegt mij dat het UFO-fenomeen echt serieus werd genomen,” vervolgde hij.
De stukken bevatten een aantal interessante meldingen. Zo zag ene Steven Michalak uit Manitoba twee vliegende schotels terwijl hij een rotsformatie bestudeerde.
Radioactief
Eén van de UFO’s vloog met hoge snelheid weg, terwijl de andere op enkele honderden meters afstand van hem landde. Toen hij het object aanraakte, brandde hij zich gelijk.
Bodemmonsters werden geanalyseerd en bleken erg radioactief te zijn. Het was onduidelijk waarom het gebied besmet was met straling.
De Canadese overheid kon geen verklaring vinden voor het incident.
Opener
Een tweede case heeft betrekking op een foto die in 1967 is gemaakt in de buurt van Calgary. Boven de bomen verscheen plotseling uit het niets een UFO, waar Warren Smith enkele foto’s van maakte.
De foto’s werden opgestuurd naar het Canadese ministerie van Defensie en authentiek verklaard.
De documenten zijn opgesteld door officier Douglas Robertson. Hij schreef dat de overheid opener moet zijn over haar onderzoek naar UFO’s.
Learjet and Airbus had Strange Encounter with Mysterious UFO over Arizona
Learjet and Airbus had Strange Encounter with Mysterious UFO over Arizona
A series of strange events occurred high up in the flight levels above Southern Arizona on February 24, 2017.
Between roughly 3:30pm and 4:15pm local time, N71PG, a Learjet 36 belonging to Phoenix Air, and American Airlines Flight 1095, an Airbus A321, had independent close encounters with a strange craft flying at around 40,000 feet.
The planes were flying east at about 37,000 feet between the Sonoran Desert National Monument and the New Mexico border when the incident took place.
The initial report came from N71PG, the Learjet, asking Albuquerque Center if traffic had passed above them. The controller replied "negative," meaning that there was no traffic to his knowledge that would account for such an observation.
The Learjet pilot replies defiantly, "somethin' did." Another pilot chimed in on the frequency saying "a UFO" and the Learjet pilot replied "yeah."
The incident comes after a bizarre and remarkably well documented series of encounters with a mystery aircraft flying at a similar altitude occurred over Oregon and Northern California last October 2017.
In that prolonged event, USAF F-15s were scrambled to investigate and the response from both the FAA and the military was extensive on multiple levels.
Here is the unedited and official audio recording of the Arizona incident – Warzone Link:
Triangle-Shaped UFO Spotted by Astronomers On The Moon’s Surface Sparks Conspiracy
Triangle-Shaped UFO Spotted by Astronomers On The Moon’s Surface Sparks Conspiracy
Earth’s moon is a strange place… apparently.
From mysterious alleged structures on the moon’s surface to stories that Apollo never landed on the moon, countless ‘controversial’ theories have emerged in recent years.
But even before crazy theories about structures on the moon started appearing in recent years, two Russian scientistsMikhail Vasin and Alexander Shcherbakov, published in July of 1970, an article in the Soviet journal Sputnik called “Is the Moon the Creation of Alien Intelligence?”
The paper proposed by the two experts offers arguments that would explain the countless enigmas surrounding the moon and its creation. Shcherbakov and Vasin proposed that massive machines were used to melt rock and form long cavities within the Moon, spreading the molten refuse onto the lunar surface.
Their study marked what many ufologists the beginning of countless theories that proposed the moon was heavily connected to advanced alien life.
Now, astronomers have spotted a mysterious triangle-shaped craft on the moon, which conspiracy theorists claim originated from a secret base on the moon’s surface.
The video and images of the mysterious craft show an unidentified object moving on the moon’s surface, and ufo hunters claim, it cannot be ignored by skeptics.
The footage was captured with a high-powered telescope, the shots appear to show a gigantic, black, triangular shape against the backdrop of the moon’s rocky surface, reports the Daily Mail.
The video of the mystery craft was posted on YouTube by Secure Team 10, a YouTube account that explores mysterious occurrences on the moon, as well as UFO footage.
‘You can tell that this is a shadow because you can see the shadow wrapping around the craters’, the narrator of the footage said.
‘This was emailed to me by not only an amateur astronomer but a guy who was the CEO of a corporate jet fleet in Texas.’
Skeptics have already come forward trying to explain the mysterious triangle-shaped craft, arguing that the enigmatic object is nothing more than the shadow cast by a craggy formation on the surface.
However, UFO believers argue that this explanation does not solve the mystery as to how the object is moving.
Other theories suggest that the triangle-shaped object is just a telescope anomaly or even a flaw within the telescope’s lens.
However, and yet again, the theory does not explain how the object is moving between the images.
This footage is just one of the many strange finds that UFO hunters and amateur astronomers have spotted on the moon.
NASA’s Juno Spacecraft Reveals What Lies Beneath Jupiter’s Clouds In Stunning Images
NASA’s Juno Spacecraft Reveals What Lies Beneath Jupiter’s Clouds In Stunning Images
Since the time of Galileo, the observers of the stars have looked at Jupiter and wondered what lies beneath the striking clouds that cover the Gas giants atmosphere.
The analysis of the latest data from the Juno probe, published in March of 2018, will help answer that question. The scientific papers also help understand what lies beyond Jupiter’s thick envelope of gases and whether there is a nucleus that was formed from rock, which could help astronomers answer one of the biggest mysteries about the origin of the Solar System.
According to the latest mission reports and a series of scientific studies, NASA’s probe observes huge storms, detected winds more than 3,000 kilometers below the clouds that cover its atmosphere and details about an almost unknown nucleus.
An image of the North polar region of Jupiter.
Photograph: MSSS/SwRI/JPL-Caltech/NASA
Jupiter has more mass than the rest of the planets of the Solar System together.
Jupiter has the shortest days of all the planets in our Solar System. Since Jupiter is a gas planet, it does not rotate as a solid sphere. Jupiter’s equator rotates a bit faster than its polar regions at a speed of 28,273 miles/hour (about 43,000 kilometers/hour). This makes the Gas Giant the fastest spinning planet in our Solar System rotating on average once in just under 10 hours.
With these characteristics, its gravitational field should be uniform, but for some reason, it is not, there are areas where the giant’s pull is greater, and until now researchers had no idea why.
However, four studies published in Nature provide an explanation for this phenomenon and describe what the interior of the planet is like.
This composite image, derived from data collected by the Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper (JIRAM) instrument aboard NASA’s Juno mission to Jupiter, shows the central cyclone at the planet’s north pole and the eight cyclones that encircle it.
Scientists analyzed data obtained by NASA’s Juno probe and have found that ‘odd Gravity and rapid jest streatms lie around 3,000 kilometers below the surface of the clouds that cover the planet.
Furthermore, experts have found that at each pole on Jupiter exists a cyclone which is thousands of miles in diameter. The study also explains how these cyclones appear to be surrounded by a polygonal arrangement of storms — eight in the north and five in the south.
“Before Juno, we had no idea what the weather was like near Jupiter’s poles. Now, we have been able to observe the polar weather up-close every two months,” said Alberto Adriani, Juno co-investigator from the Institute for Space Astrophysics and Planetology, Rome, and lead author of the paper.
“Each one of the northern cyclones is almost as wide as the distance between Naples, Italy and New York City — and the southern ones are even larger than that. They have very violent winds, reaching, in some cases, speeds as great as 220 mph (350 kph). Finally, and perhaps most remarkably, they are very close together and enduring. There is nothing else like it that we know of in the solar system.”
The discoveries reveal unprecedented details about Jupiter’s interior and could help experts finally understand the dynamics that exist inside the gas giant’s atmosphere and other similar planets across the galaxy.
“These astonishing science results are yet another example of Jupiter’s curve balls and a testimony to the value of exploring the unknown from a new perspective with next-generation instruments. Juno’s unique orbit and evolutionary high-precision radio science and infrared technologies enabled these paradigm-shifting discoveries,” said Scott Bolton, principal investigator of Juno from the Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio.
“Juno is only about one third the way through its primary mission, and already we are seeing the beginnings of a new Jupiter.”
“Juno’s measurement of Jupiter’s gravity field indicates a north-south asymmetry, similar to the asymmetry observed in its zones and belts,” said Luciano Iess, Juno co-investigator from Sapienza University of Rome, and lead author on a Nature paper on Jupiter’s gravity field.
This computer-generated image is based on an infrared image of Jupiter’s north polar region that was acquired on February 2, 2017, by the Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper (JIRAM) instrument aboard Juno during the spacecraft’s fourth pass over Jupiter.
“Galileo observed the stripes on the Gas Giant more than 400 years ago,” said Yohai Kaspi, Juno co-investigator from the Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, and lead author of a Nature paper on Jupiter’s deep weather layer.
“Until now, we only had a superficial understanding of them and have been able to relate these stripes to cloud features along Jupiter’s jets. Now, following Juno’s gravity measurements, we understand how deep the jets extend and what their structure is beneath the visible clouds. We are basically going from a 2-D picture to a 3-D version in high definition.”
The result was a huge surprise for the Juno mission scientists because it indicated that the weather layer of Jupiter was more massive, extending much deeper than previously thought. The Jovian weather layer, from its very top to a depth of 1,900 miles (3,000 kilometers), contains about one percent of Jupiter’s mass, which is approximately 3 Earth masses.
“By contrast, Earth’s atmosphere is less than one-millionth of the total mass of Earth,” said Kaspi “The fact that Jupiter has such a massive region rotating in separate east-west bands is a surprise.”
The finding is important for understanding the nature and possible mechanisms driving these strong jet streams.
In addition, the gravity signature of the jets is entangled with the gravity signal of Jupiter’s core.
The scientific studies:
The measurement of Jupiter’s asymmetric gravity field:
Exposing Puma Punku: 50 Unbelievable Facts About The Mysterious Ancient Ruins
Exposing Puma Punku: 50 Unbelievable Facts About The Mysterious Ancient Ruins
One of the most mysterious ancient sites composed of supermassive megaliths and stones that appear to be worked with laser-like tools was built thousands of years ago in modern-day Bolivia.
Located not far from another amazing site—Tiahuanaco—the ruins of Puma Punku have puzzled experts for decades.
Some 45 miles west of the city of La Paz in Bolivia, we find an ancient site that is unlike any other on Earth.
Shattering traditional views on ancient cultures, the archaeological site of Puma Punku features incredibly precise stones, precision cuts, and polished surfaces on stones that have defied explanation for centuries.
Some of the stones at Puma Punku were so finely polished that they appear smooth as glass.
Only a few places on earth display this type of stonework.
It’s as if thousands of years ago, an unknown culture used advanced tools to shape and form massive andesite stones. Some of these rocks have been cut with such precision that they fit together perfectly and are interlocked with each other without the use of mortar.
Even more fascinating is the fact that not a single sheet of paper can fit between some of these stones.
In this article, we take a look at Puma Punk and its history, bringing you 50 incredible facts about one of the most mysterious archaeological sites on the surface of the planet.
The ancient ruins of Puma Punku are located in modern-day Bolivia.
Puma Punku is located near Tiahuanaco, in fact, it’s less than a quarter-mile northeast of Puma Punku.
Puma Punku and Tiahuanaco may have been in fact one massive complex.
Tiahuanaco’s most distinctive feature, other than the wall of faces, is the Gate of The Sun.
It is believed that, because of certain markings on stones found at Puma Punku, the Gate of the Sun was originally part of Puma Punku.
Puma Punku has a length of 116.7 meters and a width of 167.36 meters.
The archaeological site of Puma Punku consists of an unwalled western court, a central unwalled esplanade, a terraced platform mound that is faced with stone, and a walled eastern court.
Tiahuanaco may have been an ancient metropolis according to experts, as more than 40,000 inhabitants called it home.
Tiahuanaco features a massive wall which, according to some authors, displays all the races of mankind, even elongated skulls, people wearing turbans, people with broad noses, people with thin noses, people with thick lips, people with thin lips.
At its peak, the Tiwanaku culture dominated the entire Lake Titicaca basin as well as portions of Bolivia and Chile.
In the vicinity of Tiahuanaco, experts excavated a mysterious object called the Fuente Magna Bowl. The Ceramic bowl has Sumerian cuneiform and Proto-Sumerian hieroglyphic written on it.
Since Puma Punku is of great interest to scholars, the area within the kilometer separating the Puma Punku and Kalasasaya complexes have been surveyed using ground-penetrating radar, magnetometry, induced electrical conductivity, and magnetic susceptibility.
In Aymara—an Aymaran language spoken by the Aymara people of the Andes—Puma Punku’s name means “The Door of the Puma.”
The archaeological site is a treasure of ancient history located deep within the Andean mountain. Puma Punku is located at an altitude of nearly 13,000 feet.
Given the fact that Puma Punku lies at an altitude of almost 13,000 feet, it means that the ancient site is above the natural tree line, which in turn means NO trees grew in that area.
The fact that no trees grew in the area challenges the idea that the ancient builders used wooden rollers to transport massive stones from where they were quarried.
Mainstream scholars argue that the massive stones used in the construction of Puma Punku were transported thanks to a large labor force.
Another theory suggests that the ancient builders of Puma Punku made use of the llama skin ropes and the use of ramps and inclined planes.
Researchers have found no evidence whatsoever that the ancient builders of Puma Punku knew about the wheel.
Despite the fact that Puma Punku is believed to have been built around 500 AD, many researchers claim that this ancient site, just as Tiahuanaco, could predate the Inca themselves.
The Ancient Inca denied having anything to do with the building of Tiahuanaco or Puma Punku.
This means that the culture that built these sites existed INDEPENDENTLY of the Inca, predating them as well.
Puma Punku is not isolated. It is part of a massive complex of temples, plazas and even pyramids, and is believed to have belonged to the ancient Tiahuanaco culture, which predates the ancient Inca by millennia.
Puma Punku features massive stones. But the fact that there are so many of them make makes Puma Punku’s stones amongst the largest found on the planet.
Puma Punku consists of a mixture of andesite and red sandstone.
Despite having been researched, analyzed, and studied by experts around the globe, not a single researcher has managed to explain how the ancient builders of Puma Punku managed to cut, polish and transport the stones at the site.
Modern day engineers argue that the base of the Puma Punku temple was constructed using a technique called layering and depositing.
Oral legends indicate that the first inhabitants of Puma Punku were unlike ordinary humans.
These ‘early people’ had the ability to ‘carry’ megalithic stones through the air with the use of SOUND.
The eastern edge of the Puma Punku is occupied by what is called the Plataforma Lítica.
The so-called Plataforma Lítica consists of a stone terrace that is 6.75 by 38.72 meters (22.1 by 127.0 feet) in dimension.
This terrace is paved with multiple enormous stone blocks.
One of the largest stones at Puma Punku is 7.81 meters long, 5.17 meters wide, averages 1.07 meters thick.
The estimated weight of this massive rock is 131 metric tons.
But this isn’t the only one. Another massive rock at Puma Punku is 7.90 meters long, 2.50 meters wide, and averages 1.86 meters thick. Its weight has been estimated to be 85.21 metric tons.
Both of these stone blocks are part of the Plataforma Lítica and composed of red sandstone
Puma Punku’s H Blocks are the best-known feature of the site.
The H blocks at Puma Punku have approximately 80 faces each.
Some authors suggest that given the precision cuts and incredible angles seen on Puma Punku’s blocks, it is possible that the ancient builders made use of prefabrication and mass production, technologies far in advance of the Tiwanaku’s Inca successors hundreds of years later.
Experts note that the precision with which these angles have been used to create flush joints is indicative of a highly sophisticated knowledge of stone-cutting and a thorough understanding of descriptive geometry.
As noted by researchers, many of the joints are so precise that not even a razor blade will fit between the stones. Much of the masonry is characterized by accurately cut rectilinear blocks of such uniformity that they could be interchanged for one another while maintaining a level surface and even joints.
One of the closest stone quarries used by the builders of Puma Punku was located some 10 km away, near Lake Titicaca.
The furthest identified quarry is believed to have been located near Copacabana Peninsula about 90 km away from and across Lake Titicaca.
According to archeological investigations, Puma Punku’s H blocks match each other with such an extreme precision that the architects most likely used a system of preferred measurements and proportions.
While it is amazing what the ancients achieved thousands of years ago in terms of transportation, design, and logistics, the ancient engineers that built Puma Punku and Tiahuanaco were also adept at developing a civic infrastructure at this complex, constructing functional irrigation systems, hydraulic mechanisms, and waterproof sewage lines.
Despite the fact we see ruins today, Puma Punku is thought to have been “unimaginably wondrous,” adorned with polished metal plaques, brightly colored ceramic and fabric ornamentation, and visited by costumed citizens, elaborately dressed priests, and elites decked in exotic jewelry.
There are some still unfinished stones found near Puma Punku.
Experts say that the unfinished stones show some of the techniques that were used to shape the blocks.
Experts say that Puma Punku’s blocks of stone were initially pounded by stone hammers, which can still be found in numbers on local andesite quarries, creating depressions, and then slowly ground and polished with flat stones and sand.
Excavations have documented “three major building epochs, in addition to small repairs and remodeling”.
A series of four papers using data from NASA’s Juno mission reveals intriguing information about Jupiter, including its gravitational field, its atmospheric flows, its interior composition and its polar cyclones.
Jupiter’s winds are tightly connected to the planet’s gravitational and magnetic fields. Image credits: NASA / ESA / UC Berkeley.
When the Juno mission was successfully launched in 2011, astronomers worldwide were thrilled. The shuttle had the potential to reveal valuable information about Jupiter and its satellites — and that potential has been thoroughly fulfilled. The new papers are the latest in a long chain of remarkable findings about the most massive planet in our solar system, adding some much-needed pieces to the puzzle.
In the first paper, researchers led by Luciano Iess of the Sapienza University of Rome in Italy used Doppler data to study Jupiter’s gravitational field. The data allowed researchers to measure Juno’s velocity down to 0.01mm/s accuracy, even while the shuttle is traveling at speeds of up to 70 km/s in orbit.
Jupiter’s gravitational field is famously asymmetrical, which is unusual for fast-rotating and oblate (squashed at the poles) gas giants. This gravitational asymmetry is caused by hydrogen-rich gas is flowing asymmetrically deep in the planet, and Juno was able to study this process.
This picture of the Jupiter’s South Pole is a mosaic of many images acquired by the Jovian InfraRed Auroral Mapper on board the Juno shuttle. The images have been taken in different times while Juno was leaving the planet after the closest approach. What you see here is the heat (measured as radiance) coming out from the planet through the clouds: yellow indicates the presence of thinner clouds and dark red the thicker ones. Credit: NASA/SWRI/JPL/ASI/INAF/IAPS
Two other papers looked at different physical parameters of Jupiter. A team led by Yohai Kaspi of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel used another asymmetry, that of Jupiter’s magnetic field, to calculate the depth of Jupiter’s atmosphere, finding that the mass of the atmosphere amounts for about 1% of the planet’s total mass. Meanwhile, Tristan Guillot and co-authors report that at depths greater than 3,000 kilometers below cloud level, Jupiter’s deep interior is made up of a fluid mixture of hydrogen and helium, rotating as a solid body. They also found that the speed of the above-mentioned winds extend some 3,000 km beneath the cloud level, dropping in intensity with altitude.
Even with all this information, we’re still just barely scratching the surface of what we know about Jupiter.
“We’re at the beginning of dissecting Jupiter,” says Juno mission leader Scott Bolton of the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio.
However, there’s also a downside to the Juno mission: it offered so much valuable data that it’s gonna be very hard to top it. In an accompanying News&Views article, planetary scientist Jonathan Fortney of the University of California Santa Cruz praised the work, writing:
“The work demonstrated here is extremely robust,” Fortney wrote in his editorial. “I do not foresee another leap in knowledge on Jupiter’s interior after the Juno mission ends, unless astronomers are able to study the planet’s internal oscillations, as has been done for the Sun.”
Fortunately, Juno will remain in orbit for at least a couple of years, so we’ll certainly have more to learn about Jupiter.
Journal References:
Measurement of Jupiter’s asymmetric gravity field. Corresponding Author: Luciano Iess (Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy). DOI: 10.1038/nature25776. http://nature.com/articles/doi:10.1038/nature25776
Jupiter’s atmospheric jet streams extend thousands of kilometres deep. Corresponding Author: Yohai Kaspi (Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel). DOI: 10.1038/nature25793. http://nature.com/articles/doi:10.1038/nature25793
A suppression of differential rotation in Jupiter’s deep interior. Corresponding Author: Tristan Guillot (Université Côte d’Azur, Nice, France). DOI: 10.1038/nature25775. http://nature.com/articles/doi:10.1038/nature25775
Clusters of cyclones encircling Jupiter’s poles. Corresponding Author: Alberto Adriani (INAF-Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali, Rome, Italy). DOI: 10.1038/nature25491. http://nature.com/articles/doi:10.1038/nature25491
We may not be on Mars yet, but new research has made sure that when we get there, we’ll know exactly where to settle.
You don’t know this yet but those blue areas? They mean food! Image credits Wieger Wamelink, Line Schug / Wageningen University & Research
What would life be without food? Well, for starters, really short; but also quite unpleasant. Precisely because of that, colonists going to Mars in the future will need to settle in a place that’s good for agriculture — as good as can be, on a planet with almost no atmosphere.
To their aid comes a study from the Wageningen University & Research, which has identified the areas on Mars which are favorable for the growing of plants. Even though the crops will be grown indoors, local factors still play a part — chief among them being the presence of regolith and ice deposits, both of which will be used to sustain the crops.
Mars’ cropspots
In order to estimate which areas of the planet would be most suitable, the team combined data on Martian geography and geology to create a 3D, Mars-wide landing map, showcasing the best spots for agriculture. The datasets included information about mineral content — relating to calcium and heavy metal content in the soils, for example. Other important element ‘maps’ were those for potassium, chloride, iron, and silicon. The team also mixed in data pertaining to climate, terrain altitude, and radiation exposure.
That’s a lot of data, and several scientific bodies — including the JPL, the Arizona State University, and NASA — pitched in.
“Without them this endeavour would not have been possible”, says Wieger Wamelink, one of the two researchers who created the map.
That’s because each of these elements has a hand to play in the suitability of each area for agriculture. They needed all this data to control for as many factors as possible — and any missing piece could have drastically reduced the work’s applicability. All the maps were merged and, based on the data each contained, were used to calculate a ‘score’ for every area — with high scores marking the best sites, just like in a video game.
Some factors, naturally, were more decisive than others:
“High levels of heavy metals in the soil and strong radiation make a location unsuitable for establishment,” explains Line Schug.
The map revealed that the Mars Pathfinder and Viking 1 landed at ‘hotspots’ for colonies, while the MSL Curiosity and Viking 2 crafts landed on less favorable spots.
The research is part of the larger “Food for Mars and Moon” project unrolling at Wageningen. It aims to develop a sustainable agricultural system that we can take with us to space. The most important element it relies on is the presence of soils and water, both on Mars and the moon.
The first experiments in the project started in 2013. Researchers used soil simulats supplied by NASA — from a volcano in Hawaii (Mars) and a desert in Arizona (moon) — to try and grow crops. At first, the results weren’t very encouraging. But today the team can grow over a dozen crops. The only species that has stubbornly refused to take the plunge to space-soils is spinach. Chemical analysis showed that the plants are safe for human consumption, but there were fears that the plants would accumulate heavy metals more readily than in Earth soils — that’s why this factor was given more importance when creating the agricultural potential map of Mars.
After they were tested, the veggies were cooked and served to those who supported the project via its crowdfunding campaign. I imagine the attendees considered the food to be “stellar” and “out of this world”.
Cosmic rays hitting Earth are ‘bad and getting worse’ says NASA
Cosmic rays hitting Earth are ‘bad and getting worse’ says NASA
Have you ever been hit by a beam of high energy particles from above? Surely you have since it happens all of the time. And the cosmic ray situation is WORSENING. Cosmic rays hitting Earth are bad and are getting worse. That’s the conclusion of a new paper just published in the research journal Space Weather, showing that radiation from deep space is dangerous and intensifying faster than previously predicted.
Cosmic rays were discovered unexpectedly in 1912. It is now known that most cosmic rays are atomic nuclei. Most are hydrogen nuclei, some are helium nuclei, and the rest heavier elements. The relative abundance changes with cosmic ray energy, with the highest energy cosmic rays tend to be heavier nuclei. Although many of the low energy cosmic rays come from our Sun, the origins of the highest energy cosmic rays remains unknown and a topic of much research. This drawing illustrates air showers from very high energy cosmic rays. Cosmic rays may even be important to Earth’s weather, as common lightning may be triggered by passing cosmic rays. via APOD
The story begins four years ago when Schwadron and colleagues first sounded the alarm about cosmic rays. Analyzing data from the Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER) instrument onboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), they found that cosmic rays in the Earth-Moon system were peaking at levels never before seen in the Space Age. The worsening radiation environment, they pointed out, was a potential peril to astronauts, curtailing how long they could safely travel through space.
This figure from their original 2014 paper shows the number of days a 30-year old male astronaut flying in a spaceship with 10 g/cm2 of aluminum shielding could go before hitting NASA-mandated radiation limits:
Cosmic rays in the Earth-Moon system were peaking at levels never before seen in the Space Age and the trend is worsening.
In the 1990s, the astronaut could spend 1000 days in interplanetary space. In 2014 … only 700 days. “That’s a huge change,” says Schwadron.
Galactic cosmic rays come from outside the solar system. They are a mixture of high-energy photons and sub-atomic particles accelerated toward Earth by supernova explosions and other violent events in the cosmos. Our first line of defense is the sun: The sun’s magnetic field and solar wind combine to create a porous ‘shield’ that fends off cosmic rays attempting to enter the solar system. The shielding action of the sun is strongest during Solar Maximum and weakest during Solar Minimum–hence the 11-year rhythm of the mission duration plot above.
The problem is, as the authors note in their new paper,the shield is weakening: “Over the last decade, the solar wind has exhibited low densities and magnetic field strengths, representing anomalous states that have never been observed during the Space Age. As a result of this remarkably weak solar activity, we have also observed the highest fluxes of cosmic rays.”
Back in 2014, Schwadron et al used a leading model of solar activity to predict how bad cosmic rays would become during the next Solar Minimum, now expected in 2019-2020. “Our previous work suggested a ~ 20% increase of dose rates from one solar minimum to the next,” says Schwadron. “In fact, we now see that actual dose rates observed by CRaTER in the last 4 years exceed the predictions by ~ 10%,showing that the radiation environment is worsening even more rapidly than we expected.” In this plot bright green data points show the recent excess:
Previous work suggested a ~ 20% increase of dose rates from one solar minimum to the next. In fact, the actual dose rates in the last 4 years exceed the predictions by ~ 10%, showing that the radiation environment is worsening even more rapidly than we expected.
The data Schwadron et al have been analyzing come from CRaTER on the LRO spacecraft in orbit around the Moon, which is point-blank exposed to any cosmic radiation the sun allows to pass. Here on Earth, we have two additional lines of defense: the magnetic field and atmosphere of our planet. Both mitigate cosmic rays.
But even on Earth the increase is being felt
Spaceweather.com and the students of Earth to Sky Calculus have been launching space weather balloons to the stratosphere almost weekly since 2015. Sensors onboard those balloons show a 13% increase in radiation (X-rays and gamma-rays) penetrating our planet’s atmosphere:
Even on Earth the increase in cosmic rays intensity is being felt. Space weather balloon sensors show a 13% increase in radiation (X-rays and gamma-rays) penetrating our planet’s atmosphere.
X-rays and gamma-rays detected by these balloons are “secondary cosmic rays,” produced by the crash of primary cosmic rays into Earth’s upper atmosphere. They trace radiation percolating down toward our planet’s surface. The energy range of the sensors, 10 keV to 20 MeV, is similar to that of medical X-ray machines and airport security scanners.
How does this affect us?
Cosmic rays penetrate commercial airlines, dosing passengers and flight crews so much that pilots are classified by the International Commission on Radiological Protection as occupational radiation workers. Some research shows that cosmic rays can seed clouds and trigger lightning, potentially altering weather and climate. Furthermore, there are studies linking cosmic rays with cardiac arrhythmias in the general population.
This plot displays radiation measurements not only in the stratosphere, but also at aviation altitudes. Dose rates are expessed as multiples of sea level. For instance, we see that boarding a plane that flies at 25,000 feet exposes passengers to dose rates ~10x higher than sea level. At 40,000 feet, the multiplier is closer to 50x. These measurements are made by our usual cosmic ray payload as it passes through aviation altitudes en route to the stratosphere over California. via Spaceweather
Why are cosmic rays intensifying?
The main reason is the sun. Solar storm clouds such as coronal mass ejections (CMEs) sweep aside cosmic rays when they pass by Earth. During Solar Maximum, CMEs are abundant and cosmic rays are held at bay. Now, however, the solar cycle is swinging toward Solar Minimum, allowing cosmic rays to return. Another reason could be the weakening of Earth’s magnetic field, which helps protect us from deep-space radiation.
Cosmic rays will intensify even more in the years ahead as the sun plunges toward what may be the deepest Solar Minimum in more than a century.
The year was 1967 and the Canadian government was super into aliens.
A collection of documents from 1967 found in the national archives give us a hint into just how seriously the government used to take UFO sightings.
The documents outline how the government investigated UFOs—a process that most likely lasted for years afterwards—and breaks down six cases that are “of interest” to the government in detail. The investigations include a man burned by a UFO in Manitoba, some incredibly weird radar sightings by the Department of Defence, an RCMP officer in Nova Scotia who watched a UFO dive below the water and disappear, and a crop circle found in Alberta that was the first investigated by a government.
The documents were found in the national archive by Chris Rutkowski—a man that could probably be best described as Canada’s Fox Mulder—and recently posted to his Ufology blog. Rutowski routinely goes through Canada’s national archives looking for things like this and described the find as “a gem.”
"What we do have in here is rather interesting reports from qualified personnel and qualified sources and investigated by qualified investigators and still there is no explanation," Rutkowski told VICE. "What that tells me is that the UFO phenomena was taking quite seriously by them indeed."
The intro to the document.
Photo via screenshot.
While the government has some of tUFO research readily available online in a database it is still relatively unknown—especially among the general public—how they actually investigated cases and what the bureaucracy was like. This, Rutkowski says, might be “our best snapshot” into this process.
"This is certainly an interesting snapshot because it does show what was happening before and how it was going to move forward and I think it set the stage for how the Canadian military and government were looking at UFOs from that point onward,” said Rutkowski.
The 27 page set of documents—which Rutkowski was kind enough to direct VICE towards—was prepared by Wing Commander Douglas Robertson (a Canadian Forces officer well-known in the UFO community) for someone we do not know in November of 1967. Rutkowski speculates it could’ve been for a newly-appointed Minister of Defence as “the infamous Paul Hellyer [one of the world’s highest ranking alien believers] had left the position a few months earlier.” At the time, as Robertson writes, the National Department of Defence was the body in charge of investigating UFO reports.
The briefing breaks down the seven military categories of UFOs which include hoaxes, mass hysteria, misinterpretations of natural events, advanced military technology, and psychological conditions. However, the seventh and final category is “unusual sightings which the viewer is unable to identify or explain, namely, UFOs.” Hell yeah.
The documents show that the investigation into UFOs was a little bit of a hot potato in Canada as in it was frequently handed off between departments. When a new report came in, researchers would first decide if the object was a meteor or fireball—if so it would be directed to the NRC. If it was something else it would then be put in one of three categories Class A: worthy of investigation Class B: interesting but you don’t need to look into it; and Class C: boring.
Photo via screenshot.
The investigations varied and could be as simple as an interview or as a complicated as getting several other agencies including the RCMP, NRC, Defence Research Board (DRB) or (weirdly) the Department of National Health and Welfare on board. In many of the cases, you can see that post-secondary institutions like the University of Toronto and the University of Manitoba would help out with analysis. The government would also send professionals to investigate the sites in-depth and if the case was intense enough, partner with the United States.
The document was written during an interesting time for UFOs in Canada. As Rutkowski puts it, 1967 was a high water mark for this type of activity in the Great White North. The briefing indicates there was a jump in reports from 1966 to 1967—from about 40 to 167. The case files showcase A) just how strange these occurrences were and B) just how seriously the government was taking the investigations.
Here are breakdowns of the case studies Robertson concludes “may be of interest” to whoever the intended reader of the briefing may be:
Falcon Lake
The first one outlines perhaps Canada’s most infamous “UFO encounter,” the Falcon Lake case. The case revolved around Steven Michalak, a Manitoba man, who says he encountered two UFOs 90 miles east of Winnipeg. While Michalak was analyzing a rock formation he said two flying saucers appeared before him. One flew off at high speed while other landed about 100 feet in front of him. When he reached out and touched the object with his gloved hand, it burned him immediately. The object took off and the exhaust fumes reportedly burned him as well. Michalak was hospitalized for several days as a result.
In the briefing, Robertson writes that soil samples at the site were “analyzed and found to be radioactive to a degree that the samples had to be safely disposed of.” In the briefing, Robertson admits that “neither the DND nor the RCMP investigative teams were able to provide evidence which could dispute Mr Michalak’s story.” Furthermore, the radiologist dispatched to the area was unable to explain why the area was contaminated with radiation. The section ends with “although the investigation has been completed, a satisfactory ending or conclusion is still lacking.”
Many, many things have been written about the Falcon Lake case, including a book Rutkowski wrote with Michalak's son.
Calgary UFO Photo
The second case, again made in 1967, revolves around a famous Canadian photograph taken of a UFO near Calgary. It tells the story of Warren Smith who was out for a hike near Nanton, Alberta.
“A UFO suddenly appeared outside of an area of trees a few hundred feet above the observers,” reads the briefing which goes on to explain how Smith was able to snap two photos of the objects. Smith made prints of these shots, which were then sent to the DND. “The prints were subjected to a detailed analysis by the Photo Intelligence Interpretation Centre. The Centre concluded its investigation by stating, assuming the photos by Mr Smith to be genuine, the UFO fit the description of the objects by Mr Smith.”
Clear Water Bay
The next case outlined in the briefing is focused on a family that was returning to their home in Clear Water Bay by boat when they encountered a UFO. According to the briefing the object appeared about 50 feet away from “Mr. Green” (how he is referred to in the document) and Green decided to investigate it. When he approached the object ripped towards Green and he “immediately retreated using maximum power.” Then the object returned to its original spot.
Green and his family docked the boat and ran to a nearby home to wake all the occupants so they could come and look at the object. They were able to do so for about 15 minutes until it took off. In a nearby home, a neighbour that was interviewed by the government said that while he didn’t see the object he was “listening to his radio at the time the UFO was sighted and received so much static he was forced to turn it off.”
A “detailed investigation conducted by the DND in cooperation with the RCMP” found that Green was a “reliable, competent, and sincere witness with no indulgence tendencies.” They also checked to see if alcohol was consumed at the time, found none, and tested Green’s eyes. Wilted leaves were found at the top of the trees near where the object was allegedly hovering and some were sent to the University of Manitoba for lab testing. The Department of Forestry also checked and found “that they are unable to explain the reason for the wilting.”
The section ends with “the investigation has been concluded without any fixed conclusions or findings being made.”
The RCMP’s Diving UFO
The next sighting was seen by an RCMP corporal out near Barrington Passage, Nova Scotia. The RCMP officer describes seeing an object about 60 feet in length with white lights flying over the water at a low altitude. The object started making a high pitched whistling sound and slammed into the water leaving only one white light visible. RCMP Cpl Wereisky approached the light by boat and it rapidly sank underneath him as he got close. The area was then searched by the Canadian Coast Guard and other boats but nothing was found.
The government conducted a rigorous investigation into this sighting which included an underwater search and wasn’t able to find anything. The government investigation ended, once again, “without finding any fixed findings.”
Department of Transportation Radar Sighting
The next investigation outlined in the briefing is one Rutkowski described as being “very unique.” In July of 1967, the Department of Transportation reported that “an unidentified radar target was tracked through seven sweeps of their radar, witnessed by three controllers, and two technicians some 70 miles east of Winnipeg.”
The target was ripping at intense rate. As outlined in the briefing, it increased from a speed of “720 knots [1,333 km per hour] to 3,600 knots [6,667 km per hour] in one minute and ten seconds.” The briefing explains that the five people who witnessed the radar object are “certain it was a radar target and not something associated with mechanical, electrical, or equipment faults.” On the same day in Kenora, Ontario, a similar object was picked up on the radar.
“The unknown object was under the positive radar for 29 minutes,” reads the briefing about the Kenora sighting. “The object followed Air Canada Flight 405 for a period before disappearing from scope. It reappeared and followed Air Canada Flight 927 for a period of time. DOT are unable to explain these radar returns.”
The DND again did an investigation into this and again were unable to find any conclusions.
Camrose Crop Circle
The final case outlined in the briefing is one in Alberta and, according to Rutowski, contrary to popular belief shows that it was in Canada, not Britain, where a government first investigated crop circles. It occurred outside of Camrose Alberta in August of 1967 when “several deep impressions were made in an unknown object in a pasture.”
The Department of Defence sent out a man who is referred to as “Dr. Jones” in the document to investigate and he found “no physical evidence of any damage to trees or shrubs in the field and no evidence to suggest a deliberate interference or involvement by a person.” Rutowski was able to find further documentation of Dr. Jones investigation and again was kind enough to share them with VICE. In the documents, you can see just how in depth the government got with their investigation.
In the documents, Jones said that he believed it could be a “deliberate hoax” but the hoaxers would “require some equipment and a great deal of determination.” He estimates that in order to do such spherical circles the hoaxers would need two wheels on a 30-foot axle that put pressure of three-quarters of a ton on a pasture. Next Jones has us “consider the UFO possibility” and he breaks down the math behind what size a flying vehicle would need to be in order to produce such marks and comes upon 135 tons.
“This load of 135 tons would be in the right ballpark for a large aircraft, or presumably, small space craft,” ends this section of Jones’ report.
Epilogue
After the case studies, Robertson uses the briefing to discuss possible future plans regarding UFO research in Canada and give several recommendations to our unknown reader. He proposes that the DND hands off the responsibility of investigating UFOs to the National Research Council and that the Director of Operations works as the coordinating agency between the DND units providing field investigations and the NRC.
“It is evident that from investigations conducted by the DND, and from the findings made by prominent and highly qualified personnel, that the primary interest of UFOs lies in the field of science, and to a lesser degree, to one that is associated with national security,” writes Robertson.
Robertson writes that the workload in 1967 regarding UFOs was so large that it was actually becoming detrimental to government workers as it took up so much time. He also writes that the government should be more open with the public about their work in UFOs. This is something Rutkowski—even over 51 years removed—still admittedly agrees with.
"By not being able to comment it made it look like there was something to hide. Of course, this document does show there was some very interesting conclusions, some unexplained cases that should have been made more public,” said Rutkowski. “But when a public relations officer just keeps saying no comment, no comment, it shows that perhaps there is something that is being hidden.
"My reading from this document is that the Canadian Forces didn't really know what to do with UFOs either. It's not that they were hiding everything they just didn't have the expertise in the field and the scientific community didn't want anything to do with it so they were kinda hung out to dry."
The US-funded Aerospace Corporation said there was “a chance that a small amount of debris” could survive re-entry and make contact with Earth.
“If this should happen, any surviving debris would fall within a region that is a few hundred kilometres in size,” the research organisation said in a statement.
The organisation said it was extremely unlikely that a person would be struck by falling debris.
“When considering the worst-case location, the probability that a specific person will be struck by Tiangong-1 debris is about one million times smaller than the odds of winning the Powerball jackpot,” the corporation wrote.
“In the history of spaceflight, no known person has ever been harmed by re-entering space debris. Only one person has ever been recorded as being hit by a piece of space debris and, fortunately, she was not injured.”
However, there is a chance the space station could be carrying a highly toxic and corrosive substance called hydrazine on board.
“For your safety, do not touch any debris you may find on the ground nor inhale vapours it may emit,” Aerospace said.
The Tiangong-1 station was launched in 2011 as one of the great hopes of the Chinese ambitions in space, and as part of a plan to show itself off as a global superpower.
The country’s space agency referred to the station as the “Heavenly Palace” and conducted a range of missions, some of which included astronauts.
Gary McKinnon: The Hacker Who Exposed NASA’s Secret UFO Files
Gary McKinnon: The Hacker Who Exposed NASA’s Secret UFO Files
IT expert and so-called hacker Gary McKinnon has claimed in an interview with RichPlanet TV that he came across information relating to UFOs and extraterrestrial life during his infamous foray into NASA’s computer system.
Police said it was a hoax, but James Lawson wasn’t so sure.
The flattened circle in the middle of his sea of corn looked perfect. It looked, if he was being honest, like something had landed on it.
“Whatever it was, it came down from the elements and took off,” he told The Associated Press a few days after discovering the crop circle on his farmland in Milan, Illinois. “I think it’s a UFO landing.”
Webb: The night police reported UFOs
Crop circles became a small epidemic in the fall of 1990. About a month after Lawson found the round disturbance tattooed on his land on Oct. 16, Mike Thompson discovered something similar only eight miles away.
A co-worker named Mike Searle had been riding his John Deere through Thompson’s cornfields on Nov. 23 when he unexpectedly came to a clearing: an immaculate 64-foot circle.
“I about ran into it, so I backed out and went around it,” Searle said. “I was surprised. All the corn around it was standing.”
Thompson was surprised, too.
Webb: Two tales of UFOs invading the Tri-State
“People might think it’s crazy,” he said. “But it was there.”
No one disputed the crop circle’s existence. The question was, who made them? For Rock Island County Sheriff Tod VanWolvelaere, the answer was simple.
“We think it’s probably just kids,” he said.
Police said there was plenty of evidence to support the hoax theory. On Thompson’s land, they found a hole that looked like it had once been filled with a wooden stake. That could have been used to mark off the circle so the hoaxers could flatten the crops.
Webb: Here are 7 Evansville UFO sightings
They also claimed a local newspaper got an anonymous call not long after Lawson’s discovery. The caller warned authorities that another crop circle was coming.
But none of that does much to explain the high number of UFO sightings that plagued Illinois and the rest of the Tri-State that fall.
According to Francis L. Ridge’s book “Regional Encounters: The FC Files,” 1990 was a busy year. Ridge and his team of UFO field investigators based in Mount Vernon, Indiana, handled almost 70 reports, including 21 close encounters. Seven sightings occurred between Oct. 16 and Nov. 23.
The night of Lawson’s discovery, a 23-year-old woman reported a strange craft hovering over Fort Wayne. Two days later in Argos, Indiana, a father and son driving down the road saw a silent aircraft shaped like a bow-tie lingering over the road. They watched it for 15 minutes before it disappeared.
Webb: Sunday sales are here. Weed may be next
There were sightings in Culver and Plymouth. The strangest, however, occurred in Louisville, Kentucky.
A woman looking out the 12-floor window of her office building in the middle of a sunny day saw a saucer rise from below her and shimmy through the sky in half-circle loops. Co-workers joined her and watched for 20 minutes. Then a second craft appeared. Shaped like a boomerang, it shot toward the saucer. The two merged and vanished.
Meanwhile, the interest in crop circles was igniting. According to the book “Crop Circle: Exploring the Designs & Mysteries” by Werner Anderhub and Hans Peter Roth, there were at least 60 reports of crop circles in the U.S. in 1990.
The problem was even bigger in the United Kingdom where countless fields were branded with ornate patterns. From the sky, they looked like ancient keys or beautiful sewer grates.
Researcher Colin Andrews spearheaded several investigations, and even claimed to coin the term “crop circle.”
Interest grew so much in the U.S. that Lawson accepted an offer to appear on “Unsolved Mysteries.” But his segment was canceled after two other crop circle victims in North Dakota and Missouri declined to appear.
School shooting survivor: 'It makes you sick'
By the fall of 1991, a London tabloid thought they had discovered the source of the phenomenon. Two “jovial con men” named David Chorley and Doug Bower took credit. Giggling, they said they created the crop circles with “two wooden boards, a piece of string and a bizarre sighting device attached to a baseball cap.”
Crop circles fanatics, who had given themselves the science-y title of “cereologists,” didn’t buy it. After all, where did the patterns in Canada and Europe and India come from? Were these two 60-year-old men swimming in frequent flyer miles?
And what about Illinois? Searle certainly didn’t have an answer.
“There’s got to be a reason for it,” he told the Associated Press. “When you figure it out, tell me.”
In de VS verschenen in 1990 vele tientallen graancirkels. Tegelijkertijd werden deze vreemde objecten gezien
In de VS verschenen in 1990 vele tientallen graancirkels. Tegelijkertijd werden deze vreemde objecten gezien
In 1990 verscheen er een graancirkel in het weiland van een boer uit Illinois. Het was alsof er iets op de grond was geland.
“Wat het ook was, het kwam uit de lucht en steeg weer op,” vertelde boer James Lawson aan persbureau AP. “Ik denk dat er een UFO is geland.”
In de herfst van 1990 doken overal graancirkels op in het gebied. Een maand na de vondst stuitte collega Mike Searle op enkele kilometers afstand op een tientallen meters grote graancirkel.
Erg verrast
“Ik reed er bijna overheen, ging terug en reed er omheen,” zei Searle. “Ik was erg verrast.”
De politie zei te denken dat het waarschijnlijk het werk was geweest van kinderen.
Op het land van Thompson vonden agenten een gat in de grond ‘waar mogelijk ooit een stok in had gezeten’. Maar dat verklaart niet het grote aantal UFO-waarnemingen in Illinois gedurende die periode.
Vreemd vaartuig
Toen Lawson zijn graancirkel ontdekte, deed een 23-jarige vrouw melding van een vreemd vaartuig in het gebied.
Twee dagen later zagen een vader en zoon in buurstaat Indiana een onbekend object boven de weg hangen. Ze keken er 15 minuten lang naar, waarna het verdween.
De vreemdste melding werd gedaan in Kentucky, een andere buurstaat, waar een vrouw samen met een aantal collega’s 20 minuten lang twee vaartuigen zag vanuit haar kantoor.
Boemerang
Het ene vaartuig, dat eruitzag als een boemerang, smolt daarna samen met het andere en verdween.
In 1990 werden in de VS tenminste 60 graancirkels gemeld. In Groot-Brittannië lag dat aantal nog veel hoger.
"Maar ook viel mij iets anders veel meer verontrustend op. Namelijk een 2e zon. Ik dacht meteen dit kan niet waar zijn."
Naast een planeet nabij onze zon zien mensen ook steeds vaker hele vreemde luchten, waar geen enkele verklaring voor is.
Langzaam maar zeker beginnen er zich steeds meer vreemde zaken voor te doen aan onze hemel. Zelfs de zogenaamde nuchtere mensen vinden het soms moeilijk om hun eigen ogen te geloven.
We beginnen vandaag in de Amerikaanse staat Utah waar iemand rond een uur of één 's nachts richting huis gaat en dan plotseling stopt, want hij ziet een vreemde lucht. Een vreemde oranjekleurige lucht op een moment dat er geen sprake is van een zon.
De man rijdt er iedere dag langs en nog nooit heeft hij zoiets gezien. Wanneer hij gaat zoeken naar een bepaalde lichtbron is er helemaal niets te vinden.
In het begin van de video hoor je, wat wij niet echt mooie muziek plegen te noemen, maar daarna hoor je gewoon de stem van de man die hoogst verbaasd is over wat hij ziet. Van Utah gaan we naar ons land en wel naar de dijk tussen Lelystad en Enkhuizen. Een lezer schrijft het volgende (dank!):
Hierbij stuur ik een foto welke mijn vrouw vanuit de auto door het raam nam van de zon. We reden op de dijk van Lelystad/Enkhuizen, op 20-02-2018. Na het bekijken valt iets op wat we niet kunnen verklaren. Heeft u hierover een mening?
Het is duidelijk dat er zich gedeeltelijk achter de wolken iets verbergt dat heel sterk lijkt op een planeet. Eén die daar normaal gesproken niet hoort te zijn en die zeker niet als een lensflare kan worden uitgelegd omdat er duidelijk wolken zichtbaar zijn die voor het object langs lopen, iets wat niet gebeurt in het geval van een lensflare.
Van Lelystad gaan we naar de andere kant van de wereld en wel naar het Zuid Amerikaanse Ecuador. De volgende video laat een bizar verschijnsel zien in de lucht. Iets dat het midden houdt tussen een soort vreemde wolk, een lichtstraal of iets anders, maar waarvoor ook geen enkele verklaring is.
Soms zijn er vreemde verschijnselen waar misschien wel een heel "normale verklaring" voor is, zoals de volgende foto die gemaakt is door een lezer vanuit de cabine van zijn vrachtwagen. Hij schrijft (dank!):
Ik heb ook even terug zitten zoeken in mijn fotos. Omdat jullie het al een paar keer over paarse/roze luchten hebben gehad.
23 december 2016 dus al meer dan een jaar geleden, kwam ik sochtends rond de klok van 8 ook van die roze luchten tegen. Maar zo duidelijk als mijn fotos heb ik ze nog niet op jullie site gezien.
Locatie in de buurt van Rotterdam ik gokte dat de lucht boven Oud Bijerland hing. Maar als het een tweede zon zou zijn zou het dus over al te zien zijn in Nederland als je richting het noorden kijkt. Als het een ruimteschip zou zijn is die goed te zien alleen plaatselijk. Ik weet het ff niet , jullie?
Zeker weten doen we het niet, maar het zou hier kunnen om de reflectie van de roze/paarsachtige LED lampen die door steeds meer kwekerijen in de buurt van Rotterdam worden gebruikt.
En dan naar de Nederlands/Duitse grens waar zich afgelopen weekend een merkwaardig schouwspel voor deed.
Een lezer schrijft het volgende (dank!):
Afgelopen weekend zaterdag 03-03 was ik bij mijn ouders op bezoek. Deze wonen net over de grens in Duitsland. Tegen het eind van de middag zaten we in de woonkamer en vanuit daar een prachtig zicht over de landerijen. Maar ook viel mij iets anders veel meer verontrustend op. Namelijk een 2e zon. Ik dacht meteen dit kan niet waar zijn. Is het dan toch waarheid. Planeet Niburu. Planet X. Zelf lees ik al enige jaren over dit onderwerp en vind dit een zorgwekkende ontwikkeling. Als het wel de echte waarheid is en dat ons (de mensheid) hier niets over verteld word. Zelf dacht ik steeds eerst zien dan geloven. Ik geloof dat dat moment nu daar is. En dit benauwd mij behoorlijk.
De foto's die ik bijvoeg zijn aan het eind van de middag gemaakt. En vanuit de woonkamer kijk je naar de Nederlandse/Duitse grens.
Hopelijk kunnen jullie hier iets mee. Graag zou ik van jullie horen wat jullie gedachte hierbij is.
Het zijn hoe dan ook uitzonderlijk mooie opnames. Wat ook mooi is in dit geval is dat de getuige in de zitkamer zit en naar buiten kijkt waarbij iets ongewoons opvalt. Dat betekent dan in ieder geval dat het geen lensflare of iets dergelijks is omdat hij het ook met zijn eigen ogen ziet en ja, het lijkt ontegenzeggelijk op een tweede zon, achter onze eigen zon of, wie weet, wel omgekeerd? Dit laatste omdat er berichten zijn over deze planeet waarbij wordt uitgelegd dat deze tussen onze zon en de aarde kan staan op bepaalde momenten.
Wat dan verder opvalt, is dat dit onbekende hemellichaam plots groter lijkt dan in opnames die nog niet zolang geleden werden gemaakt. Dat zou kunnen aantonen dat het object inderdaad veel dichterbij onze aarde staat nu.
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...
Druk op onderstaande knop om je bestand , jouw artikel naar mij te verzenden. INDIEN HET DE MOEITE WAARD IS, PLAATS IK HET OP DE BLOG ONDER DIVERSEN MET JOUW NAAM...
Druk op onderstaande knop om een berichtje achter te laten in mijn gastenboek
Alvast bedankt voor al jouw bezoekjes en jouw reacties. Nog een prettige dag verder!!!
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 74 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.