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.
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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!!!
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UFO'S of UAP'S, ASTRONOMIE, RUIMTEVAART, ARCHEOLOGIE, OUDHEIDKUNDE, SF-SNUFJES EN ANDERE ESOTERISCHE WETENSCHAPPEN - DE ALLERLAATSTE NIEUWTJES
UFO's of UAP'S in België en de rest van de wereld In België had je vooral BUFON of het Belgisch UFO-Netwerk, dat zich met UFO's bezighoudt. BEZOEK DUS ZEKER VOOR ALLE OBJECTIEVE INFORMATIE , enkel nog beschikbaar via Facebook en deze blog.
Verder heb je ook het Belgisch-Ufo-meldpunt en Caelestia, die prachtig, doch ZEER kritisch werk leveren, ja soms zelfs héél sceptisch...
Voor Nederland kan je de mooie site www.ufowijzer.nl bezoeken van Paul Harmans. Een mooie site met veel informatie en artikels.
MUFON of het Mutual UFO Network Inc is een Amerikaanse UFO-vereniging met afdelingen in alle USA-staten en diverse landen.
MUFON's mission is the analytical and scientific investigation of the UFO- Phenomenon for the benefit of humanity...
Je kan ook hun site bekijken onder www.mufon.com.
Ze geven een maandelijks tijdschrift uit, namelijk The MUFON UFO-Journal.
Since 02/01/2020 is Pieter ex-president (=voorzitter) of BUFON, but also ex-National Director MUFON / Flanders and the Netherlands. We work together with the French MUFON Reseau MUFON/EUROP.
ER IS EEN NIEUWE GROEPERING DIE ZICH BUFON NOEMT, MAAR DIE HEBBEN NIETS MET ONZE GROEP TE MAKEN. DEZE COLLEGA'S GEBRUIKEN DE NAAM BUFON VOOR HUN SITE... Ik wens hen veel succes met de verdere uitbouw van hun groep. Zij kunnen de naam BUFON wel geregistreerd hebben, maar het rijke verleden van BUFON kunnen ze niet wegnemen...
17-11-2023
NASA benadrukt adembenemende foto van het noorderlicht
NASA benadrukt adembenemende foto van het noorderlicht
NASA benadrukt adembenemende foto van het noorderlicht (Dennis Lehtonen // NASA -APOD)
NASA heeft op deze vrijdag (17) de ongelooflijke aurora borealis van Qeqertaq benadrukt als de ‘Astronomische Foto van de Dag‘. Het kleine kustdorp, met iets meer dan 100 inwoners, bevindt zich in Groenland.
Qeqertaq heeft het voorrecht om een zeer lage ‘lichtvervuiling’ te hebben, wat betekent dat, in tegenstelling tot grote steden, de schoonheid van de nachtelijke hemel niet wordt overschaduwd. Op de foto toont het noorderlicht al zijn pracht en lijkt het te dansen aan de Arctische hemel – echt een hemels spektakel
De afbeelding is vastgelegd vanuit de geïsoleerde nederzettingQeqertaqdoorDennis Lehtonen. Hierop is een eenzame ijsberg te zien die door de ijzige zee drijft, verlicht door de lichten van de kust en een magische scène creëert.
Het noorderlicht is een natuurlijk lichtverschijnsel dat optreedt in de poolgebieden van de aarde en wordt veroorzaakt door de interactie tussen geladen deeltjes van de zonnewind en de gassen in de aardse atmosfeer.
Unveiling the Mysteries of the Sky: Extraordinary UFO Sightings in the Alaska Triangle
Unveiling the Mysteries of the Sky: Extraordinary UFO Sightings in the Alaska Triangle
The Alaska Triangle, a region famous for its pristine wilderness, also harbors a mystifying secret: it boasts the highest number of UFO sightings per capita in the United States. These sightings, coupled with compelling evidence, paint a picture of a sky teeming with unexplained phenomena.
The Enigmatic Encounters
Tales of strange lights and silent, flying objects have long been part of Alaska’s lore. One riveting account comes from Terry, who, along with his wife, witnessed two glowing orbs traversing the sky in a controlled manner. These orbs, described as cauldrons of molten metal with rotating lights, left no trace but awe and wonder in their wake.
In October 2020, the Alaskan coast became a stage for another unusual light display, performing maneuvers that defied conventional explanation. From Skagway to Juneau, numerous videos and photographs have captured these bewildering aerial phenomena.
Ketchikan’s Spectacular Sightings
Ketchikan, a southeastern Alaskan city, stands out with its frequent and vivid UFO encounters. A notable example is a video taken on New Year’s Eve 2012, showing unexplained lights on a mountain that remain a mystery to this day.
The Pyramid Enigma
Adding to the intrigue, counterintelligence agent Doug Mutchler unveiled a startling discovery: a subterranean structure in Alaska, shaped like a pyramid and larger than the Great Pyramid of Giza. This revelation, originating from seismic wave analysis following a nuclear detonation in China, points to hidden wonders beneath the Alaskan wilderness.
Recent Sightings and Continuing Mystery
As recently as 2020, residents of Wasilla and Palmer reported extraordinary sightings. From silent triangular formations to lights that defy physics, these accounts add layers to the already dense mystery enveloping Alaska.
VIDEO:
The Most Shocking UFO Reports With Chilling EVIDENCE | The Alaska Triangle
The Alaska Triangle remains a hotbed for UFO activity, with each sighting contributing to the enigma. These accounts, backed by visual evidence, challenge our understanding and invite us to look skyward, pondering the possibilities of what lies beyond.
In een verrassende gang van zaken hebben wetenschappers het bestaan van Nessie als ‘plausibel’ bestempeld nadat ze gefossiliseerde plesiosaurusbeenderen in een Afrikaanse rivierbedding hadden ontdekt. Eerder werd aangenomen dat deze zeereptielen met lange nek, die lijken op het mythische monster van Loch Ness, uitsluitend in zout water leefden. Zou Nessie een levend overblijfsel uit het dinosaurustijdperk kunnen zijn? Voorlopig is er niets noemenswaardigs gevonden. Het mysterie rond het kolossale wezen van het meer blijft bestaan, en de twijfels over het bestaan van het monster blijven bestaan.
Een team van wetenschappers heeft gefossiliseerde overblijfselen van plesiosauriërs, kleine zeereptielen met lange nek, gevonden in een 100 miljoen jaar oud riviersysteem in de Sahara. Deze ontdekking heeft de speculatie doen herleven over de mogelijkheid dat het monster van Loch Ness meer is dan alleen een fictief verhaal.
Sahara woestijn
De fossielen werden ontdekt in de Sahara-woestijn van Marokko. De bevinding suggereert dat deze reptielen niet alleen in zoutwater- maar ook in zoetwateromgevingen hebben gewoond, in tegenstelling tot eerdere opvattingen.
Britse wetenschappers hebben de mogelijkheid van het bestaan van een monster van Loch Ness in het verleden als ‘plausibel’ beschouwd vanwege een verbazingwekkende ontdekking.
Plesiosaurussen, een groep zeereptielen, ontstonden ongeveer 230 miljoen jaar geleden. Deze opmerkelijke waterdinosaurussen floreerden tijdens het Jura-tijdperk en vertoonden zowel een enorme omvang als een indrukwekkende behendigheid.
Plesiosaurussen zagen er intimiderend uit als een toproofdier in de oceanen, die snel grote prooien achtervolgden en verslonden. Hoewel de zoetwaterclassificatie niet eerder aan hen was toegewezen, trekt een recente ontdekking deze overtuiging in twijfel.
Wetenschappers heroverwegen de mogelijkheid van een 'monsterbewoner' in het zoetwater Loch Ness in Schotland vanwege recente Noord-Afrikaanse fossiele ontdekkingen.
Loch Ness ligt in de Schotse Hooglanden, ten zuidwesten van Inverness. Het is een uitgestrekte watervlakte met een lengte van ongeveer 37 km, met een diepste punt van 230 m (755 ft). Legenden over een wezen dat in de diepte rondspookt, zijn terug te voeren op de oudheid en de verhalen die door de Pictische volkeren werden verteld.
De vorming van het meer vond plaats als gevolg van gletsjerprocessen in de Great Glen meer dan 10.000 jaar geleden, aan het einde van de laatste ijstijd. De Great Glen-breuk ontstond ongeveer 400 miljoen jaar geleden.
De opmerkelijke ontdekking van Mary Anning, een skelet van een plesiosaurus, wordt nu permanent tentoongesteld in het Natural History Museum in Londen.
Deskundigen zijn verbaasd over de bevindingen in Marokko. De indrukwekkende collectie omvat botten en tanden van volwassen individuen met een lengte van 3 meter, evenals een armbeen van een baby van 1,5 meter lang. De omstandigheden rond hun ontdekking op de rivierbedding in het Krijt-tijdperk blijven echter onverklaard.
Nieuwe bevindingen uit de Sahara hebben paleontologen ertoe aangezet de habitat van bepaalde soorten waarvan voorheen werd aangenomen dat ze uitsluitend marien waren, te heroverwegen. Er wordt nu verondersteld dat plesiosauriërs het opmerkelijke vermogen hadden om te overleven in zowel zoet- als zoutwateromgevingen.
Onderzoekers geven aan dat de plesiosaurus in zoet water leefde en zich voedde, naast kikkers, krokodillen, schildpadden, vissen en andere waterdinosaurussen.
Spinosaurus leefde ongeveer 99 miljoen jaar geleden in het huidige Noord-Afrika. Ondanks dat het een enorm landroofdier was, bezat het semi-aquatische neigingen en dook hij in het ondiepe water om vissen en andere zeedieren te vangen als aanvulling op zijn dieet.
Nothosaurus, een zwemmend reptiel uit het Trias, leefde van vis en inktvis. Zodra de Nothosaurus zijn prooi onder water had gevangen, kwam hij weer boven water om stenen en kustlijnen te verslinden.
Ceratosaurus, een vleesetende dinosaurus uit het Jura-tijdperk, staat bekend om zijn snuithoorns. Op deze afbeelding zien we er een die in een rivier waadt terwijl hij op waterdieren zoals vissen jaagt.
Zouden Plesiosauriërs in Loch Ness kunnen overleven?
Wetenschappers geloven dat het mogelijk is dat plesiosauriërs in zoet water hebben bestaan, wat de vraag doet rijzen of men in Loch Ness had kunnen gedijen.
De theorie verliest enige geloofwaardigheid als gevolg van het uitsterven van plesiosaurussen, dat samenviel met de ondergang van dinosauriërs 66 miljoen jaar geleden. De recente fossiele ontdekking in Afrika heeft echter onverwachts de discussie over ‘Nessie’ weer doen oplaaien.
Tijdens de jaren 1870 en 1880 waren er meerdere meldingen van een object dat het water bewoog en verstoorde, evenals de waarneming van een groot dier met korte poten dat uit Loch Ness tevoorschijn kwam. Deze observaties werden echter niet algemeen erkend. Niettemin begon in 1933 de legende van het monster van Loch Ness aan kracht te winnen.
Op 2 Mei 1933 meldde de Inverness Courier dat een echtpaar beweerde "een groot wezen te hebben zien bewegen en duiken in het water" van het meer. Het was echter de foto die zogenaamd door Robert Kenneth Wilson was gemaakt en op 21 April 1934 in de Daily Mail werd gepubliceerd, die mensen echt fascineerde. Deze foto wordt algemeen erkend als de beroemdste afbeelding van het wezen dat bekend staat als het monster van Loch Ness.
In het begin van de jaren dertig verspreidde een rage genaamd Nessiemania zich over Groot-Brittannië. Op deze foto uit 1933 wordt een replica van het monster van Loch Ness voor de kerstperiode per aanhanger vervoerd naar Bertram Mills Circus in Olympia, Londen.
Het ongeïdentificeerde wezen kreeg al snel het label ‘Nessie’, wat leidde tot wijdverbreide fascinatie. Op deze foto uit 1954 voegt Urquhart Castle context toe, terwijl het vermeende monster in de buurt van het belangrijke monument lijkt te zwemmen.
Nessie's bekendheid zorgde ervoor dat ze een beroemdheid werd. Deze foto uit 1969 toont een lid van het Loch Ness Monster Investigation Team dat ijverig het oppervlak van Loch Ness in de gaten houdt op tekenen van leven.
In 1969 bouwde een Amerikaan genaamd Dan Scott Taylor Jr. zijn eigen gele onderzeeër genaamd de "Viperfish" en maakte meerdere duiken naar de bodem van Loch Ness. Zijn doel was om te ontdekken welke mysteries eronder lagen, maar helaas heeft hij tijdens zijn expedities niets gevonden.
De televisieserie 'Loch Ness' concentreert zich op het familiedrama en bevat Ted Danson en Joely Richardson. De plot volgt Dr. Jonathan Dempsey (Danson), een wetenschapper die ernaar streeft bewijs te leveren voor het bestaan van het wezen.
Hier is de echte wetenschapper Thayne Smith Lowrance, in 1999 afgebeeld met een sonarapparaat tijdens een van zijn vele pogingen om het legendarische wezen te vinden. Maar Nessie bleek even zinspelend als altijd.
In 2019 was er een aankondiging die erop wees dat Nessie misschien wel een kolossale paling zou kunnen zijn. Onderzoek uitgevoerd naar het omgevings-DNA gevonden in Loch Ness bracht een aanzienlijke hoeveelheid paling-DNA aan het licht, zoals professor Neil Gemmell, een geneticus van de Universiteit van Otago (foto) beweert. Niettemin werd er geen bewijs voor het bestaan van een monster ontdekt.
In het jaar 2016 werd een interessante ontdekking gedaan: de overblijfselen van een model dat het monster van Loch Ness afbeeldt uit de film 'The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes', gemaakt in 1970. Ingenieur John Haig, op de foto te zien, vond deze overblijfselen met behulp van een onderwaterrobot die kan worden ondergedompeld in Loch Ness.
Toeristen die hopen op een Nessie-waarneming bij Loch Ness worden misschien teleurgesteld, maar ze kunnen nog steeds genieten van het unieke Loch Ness Centre & Exhibition in Drumnadrochit. Verrassend genoeg kun je zelfs een glimp opvangen van het legendarische wezen, dat gracieus poseert voor foto's!
Bronnen:(Newsweek) (Cretaceous Research), (BBC) (The Independent) (UOL) (The Guardian)
Virgin Galactic Flies Science Experiments to the Edge of Space
On November 2, Virgin Galactic flew Unity 2 on the Galactic 05 mission. It carried two scientists, a private tourist, and an astronaut trainer on a sub-orbital trip flown by Pilots Mike Masucci and Kelly Latimer. It was the company’s sixth successful flight in six months and the last for 2023.
The scientists aboard were Dr. Alan Stern of Southwest Research Institute (SWRI), joined by Kellie Gerardi, who was sponsored by the International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS) in Canada. Stern is also the principal investigator of the New Horizons mission to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt and is vice president at SWRI. He’s a long-time planetary scientist who has served on a number of missions. Stern has conducted suborbital research aboard NASA sounding rockets. He is the former board chair of the Commercial Space Flight Federation and a current member of the National Science Board.
Kelli Gerardi is active in aerospace, and bioastronautics and served as a payload specialist for this mission. She leads mission operations for Palantir Technologies, serves on the Defense Council for Truman National Security Project, and served on the board of directors for The Explorers Club. In addition, she is a prolific science communicator with several books and a Website to her credit. She also maintains an active social media presence.
During its almost four minutes in microgravity at apogee at 87.2 kilometers (54.2 miles) above Earth, the science team performed a series of biomedical experiments aimed at tracking human performance in space. Also included was a microgravity fluids experiment and a human-tended practice session with a mockup of a camera that will fly on future space missions.
Carrying Science to Apogee
During his brief time in microgravity, Stern used the Accutracker II heart and pulse monitor to collect physiological data on himself. “This particular version flew on the Shuttle many times,” he said. Stern and his co-investigator, Dr. Dan Durda have also flown with the harness on high-performance F-104 flights and parabolic missions aboard the so-called “Vomit Comet” aircraft. Stern described the flight on Galactic 05 as a risk-reduction mission to test the technology. “For me, this was mostly a training flight,” he said, noting that NASA will sign a contract with Virgin after 13 successful test flights like this one.
The Accutracker II harness worn by Alan Stern aboard Virgin Galactic’s 05 expedition. Courtesy Dan Durda/SWRI.
Their second experiment was a practice run learning to use a handheld Xybion wide-field visible and ultraviolet astronomical imager. “What we carried today was a mockup of the camera we’ll carry on the next flight,” he said. “It’s a training and learning experience, but this is part of the new era that it’s affordable enough that you can do that. I’m going to recommend to my colleagues in the funding agencies that they give these training flights to people.
Practicing for Future Flights
Essentially, the team has to show NASA that they can manipulate the camera in space efficiently. Stern’s aim was to learn to maneuver the camera in space. He had to stabilize it in microgravity and get the timing sequences down for a successful run with the real thing. “We now, as a result of Galactic 05 have videos of it in flight that tell us how long it took to do all the steps,” he said.
Other aspects of using the camera in space revolve around the transmissive nature of Unity’s windows on Unity. “What you don’t know is how glints affect the camera, how micro-abrasions and scratches on the windows produce flaws, what kind of exhaust film gets on them,” he said. ” “The only way to find that out is to get data through the windows in flight, to get data from three different windows, three geometries, and then compare it to Shuttle data that we have.”
Alan Stern practicing with a mockup of an astronomical camera his team hopes to fly aboard Virgin Galactic. Courtesy Virgin Galactic.
More Biomedical Studies at Apogee
Kellie Gerardi’s experiments collected biomedical and fluid behavior data during the Unity 2 flight. Her sponsor developed all three through a series of reduced gravity flights prior to the mission. The first examined questions about how confined fluids behave in low-gravity environments. That has implications for everything from spacecraft life support systems to administering medications in space through special syringes.
In her second experiment, Gerardi gathered biometric data from the Astroskin biomonitoring device built into a “smart shirt”. It provided ECG data as well as heart rate, breathing rate, and air volume. It also measured skin temperature during flight. Unity 2’s flight was the first time it collected data through all phases of a mission. Interestingly, hospitals, first responders, and others here on Earth also use this Astroskin.
Kellie Gerardi tested a biomedical Astroskin suit, a blood glucose monitor, and tended a fluids experiment. She also made time to simply gaze at the view out the portholes during flight. Courtesy Virgin Galactic.
The third experiment measured blood glucose changes during flight. Changes in blood sugar are a well-known aspect of long-duration flight aboard the Shuttle and International Space Station. This is because prolonged periods of weightlessness induced a sort of “pre-diabetes” condition in astronauts. This sort of insulin resistance affects the way the muscles and liver absorb glucose and regulate blood sugar levels. The aim of Gerardi’s experiment was to see if that was affected during launch, apogee, and return to Earth.
Science at Suborbital Heights
After landing, both scientists talked about their experiences and the experiments they conducted. For Stern and SWRI, the mission was critical and went beyond just the two experiments he conducted. “When we set the objectives for this flight for Southwest Research, we had 8 objectives. Some were what we call minimum mission success and then accomplishing what we call slow mission success,” he said. “We got everything we wanted. All eight objectives were fully accomplished.”
Just after landing, Kellie Gerardi (left), Alan Stern (center), and space tourist Kettie Maisonrouge (right), talked about their experience during the Virgin Galactic flight. Image credit: Carolyn Collins Petersen
For Gerardi, her Institute’s tests were critical confirmation of prior work. “The Astroskin unit I was wearing is the identical unit that is flown currently on the International Space Station,” said Gerardi. She noted that there was a significant difference between its use there and on her Virgin Galactic flight. “I was able to wear it during the launch, reentry, and landing portions of the flight. Normally astronauts put it on once they’re already in a microgravity environment,” she said. “So, it’s measuring pretty much all of the things you would expect. It’s like free vector cardiography (VCG is a method of getting 2D images of cardiac electrical activity). It’s got pulse oximetry and a number of different sensor data.”
Her third experiment focused on continuous blood glucose monitoring during flight. This test is in response to evidence that long-duration space missions produce insulin resistance in astronauts. The data from the monitor she wore adds new data to studies of this condition in space flyers. It should help answer questions about how quickly that resistance resolves after flight.
Gerardi was particularly excited about the fluids payload, and its operation in microgravity. “One of the experiments we flew had Shuttle heritage. It was bolted down on the Shuttle and the G jitter really disrupted the data,” she said. The Unity 2 flight was a good chance to see how the fluids in the experiment would behave. “What we saw was extraordinary. We exceeded anything that we have seen in parabolic flight here on Earth…we were collecting the highest-quality data and watching some really novel behavior from the fluid cell and being able to react to that in real-time.”
Why Do Suborbital Science?
A question that keeps coming up is, “Why do suborbital flights? Why not just go to the International Space Station?” It’s not like suborbital science is new. Scientists have been doing suborbital science for years—using sounding rockets and high-altitude balloons. Those continue today. So, going to suborbital heights is not a new idea. Going to orbit, on the other hand, adds several challenges. One is accessibility. The ISS is a limited commodity. To get an experiment on it takes years of planning and waiting for a launch window. Getting onto a suborbital flight still has some lead time, but as more of these missions happen, the accessibility increases.
A NASA Black Brant IX sounding rocket soars skyward into an aurora over Alaska during the launch on 5:13 a.m. EST, Feb. 22, 2017. Credit: NASA/Terry Zaperach
Suborbital Is Economical
Another challenge is cost. Cost figures vary across launch platforms, but, for example, a seat on Axiom can cost in the range of $70 million. Going up on suborbital flights to microgravity to do short-term experiments (or even a tourist ride) is much more accessible and much less expensive, Stern pointed out. “The new commercial vehicles, such as the Virgin rocket ship that we just flew on, fly at ten times lower costs and they fly presently about ten times more often, and soon hundreds of times, and then soon many hundreds of times more frequently,” he said. “So, it’s opening up access in a way that we never could afford to do, or had the capacity to do all the way back to the 1950s, when rocket-borne research was really getting underway.”
Virgin Galactic’s VSS Unity conducted her second powered test flight on Tuesday, May 29th. With six flights under their belts, the VG crews are planning for more in 2024. Credit: Virgin Galactic
At the current time a tourist seat on Virgin Galactic’s Unity 2 cost around half a million dollars. (Those prices may well rise to ~$1 million, according to recent announcements from the company.) Science teams can expect to pay around $650,000 for a seat and equipment to get four minutes of microgravity in suborbital space. By comparison, someone flying a hyperbolic “vomit comet” type flight pays around $10,000 for an experience in a lunar-gravity (1/6 G) environment. An uncrewed suborbital rocket costs around $3 to $5 million (at the low end).
Training Scientists in Suborbital Space
Suborbital flight puts scientists back in control of experiments to be done in space. “You know, volcanologists go to volcanoes, astronomers go to observatories, oceanographers go into the ocean space, but space scientists have been going to control rooms,” Stern said. “And that’s not the best way to do your experiment because automating things is expensive and it’s error-prone, with lots of failure modes.” Gerardi agreed and pointed out that the research she did onboard allowed her to do things in microgravity that couldn’t be done on the ground.
Putting people into space, even for short periods of time in microgravity, is changing the face of space flight, according to both Unity 2 astronauts. “It’s going to be really transformative all the way across the 21st century and probably forever,” said Stern, also pointing out that his flight put Southwest Research Institute (where he is a vice-president), in a very competitive place for continuing human spaceflight for suborbital science. For IIAS, it’s a chance to enhance its robust educational programs that train future astronauts and explorers. “It’s a new era of access to space,” she emphasized, “for scientists and for civilians.”
The Galactic 05 expedition was the last Unity flight of the year. The next Unity 2 mission is planned for January 2024 and the company will then begin phasing out those flights by mid-year. The company is already working on the Delta suborbital craft to replace it and plans to open a new spacecraft plant in Phoenix next year. Virgin has announced layoffs as part of a process of streamlining the non-Delta workforce. The first Delta craft may launch as soon as 2026, and the company expects to serve both tourist and science research passengers.
For years, people noticed strange features on the Moon dubbed “Lunar Swirls.” They’re bright regions that appear to be concentrations of lighter-colored material on the surface. It turns out that interactions between the solar wind and magnetic regions on the Moon may play a role at two sites.
Scientists long thought that these swirls weren’t related to the surrounding topography, but it turns out there’s some kind of interaction going on between the swirl deposition and the surface. Planetary Science Institute senior scientist John Weirich led a team to study topographic data for lunar swirls at high resolution. They found a correlation between the swirl areas and lower topography in a region called the Reiner Gamma swirl.
About Swirl Regions
The Moon has a number of similar regions with high-contrast bright markings that appear to loop across the surface. Generally, they look like wide bright swirls separated by darker off-swirl lanes. The fact that they exist spurs questions about how they form and there isn’t a clear answer, yet. Once that mystery is solved, scientists will have a better understanding of how the lunar surface is affected by the solar wind, bombardment by micrometeorites, how the lunar soil “migrates”, and what other effects the local environment has on the surface.
Lunar swirls are found in several regions on the Moon. Courtesy NASA.
“Lunar swirls have piqued scientists’ interest since they were discovered, partly because the scientific community doesn’t completely understand how they formed. There are many hypotheses about their formation process. Each hypothesis has observations that support it, but there are also other observations that contradict them,” Weirich said. “Since we don’t have a full understanding of how these swirls formed, we don’t completely understand the story they can tell us about the Moon. Forming them could involve a combination of well-understood processes interacting together or a currently unknown process. Unusual objects or phenomena are sometimes the key to obtaining deeper knowledge, and for this reason, lunar swirls are very intriguing. And the fact that they look really cool.”
Studying Swirls in Higher Detail
To do their work, Weirich’s team looked at earlier research showing that bright areas are 2-3 meters lower than dark areas, particularly in the Mare Ingenii lunar swirl. “However, it is not as simple as the bright areas are uniformly lower than the dark areas. If that was the case this relationship between topography and swirl would be easy to demonstrate by comparing an elevation map to a picture of the swirl. Instead, this relationship is only seen when we compare the average height of the bright areas and the average height of the dark areas.”
Weirich studied Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission images and applied a special software suite to determine the surface topography. The team also used machine-learning tools on specific images. It classified the swirls into various units: bright areas (on-swirl)and dark areas (or “off-swirl”). The studies allowed them to identify transition regions between the two units, and they labeled those “diffuse-swirl”.
The correlation between topography and swirl formation still doesn’t explain exactly why they form. But, it does give planetary scientists some new clues as they study other swirl features on the Moon. At present, there are several theories about formation, but none of them explain all of the details. One idea is that they formed as a result of cometary impacts. That explains the brightness of these features. Another theory is that the swirls form when weak magnetic fields protect lighter-colored lunar surface soil (regolith) from the solar wind. Finally, weak electric fields created by brief interactions between the magnetic anomalies and solar wind plasma could play a role. Those fields could affect electrically charged fine dust on the surface. How topography plays into any of these theories is still an unknown.
How They Did It
The specialized software the team used does stereophotoclinometry to analyze the topography of a surface. It combines stereo imaging and photoclinometry to get the surface height of a region. The swirl units of interest were defined by machine learning procedures. The team then compared that information to the SPC-derived topography. That allowed them to statistically determine if height correlations existed and what differences they showed.
The SPC methodology has been used on various surfaces, including using data from the OSIRIS-REx mission, among other missions. Planetary scientists use SPC methodologies to describe the shapes of planets, asteroids, comets, and other small bodies. Still, there’s not yet a definite explanation for these swirls. However, the combo of high-resolution imaging, machine learning, and advanced software techniques gives planetary scientists more insight into their still-mysterious origins.
Details about the seventh mission of the U.S. military’s mysterious X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle have been revealed, along with surprising news about the secretive spaceplane’s upcoming launch.
For the first time, X-37B Mission 7 (OTV-7) will see the robotic spaceplane launched on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, according to an announcement from The Department of the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office and its partners at the U.S. Space Force.
The launch will occur on December 7, 2023, lifting off from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center.
While much is known about the X-37B and its past missions, several of the reusable robotic spaceplane’s operations remain mysterious. Carried into space aboard a rocket during its missions, the X-37B carries out orbital operations overseen by the Space Force, demonstrating reusable spaceflight technologies while facilitating a range of experiments and other operations for various agencies.
The spaceplane’s December launch, dubbed USSF-52, will include various experimental capabilities with several objectives.
The X-37B is seen after its sixth mission, OTV-6
(Credit: Staff Sgt. Adam Shanks),
X-37B Program Director Lt. Col. Joseph Fritschen said the tests will help to broaden the current capabilities of the reusable spaceplane and, with the help of SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket, will be able to carry out “multiple cutting-edge experiments for the Department of the Air Force and its partners.”
“These tests include operating the reusable spaceplane in new orbital regimes, experimenting with future space domain awareness technologies, and investigating the radiation effects on materials provided by NASA,” the U.S. Space Force said in a statement on November 8.
One of the experiments, aptly named “Seeds-2,” will be carried out during OTV-7 as part of a NASA test that will expose seeds to the radiation conditions of long-duration spaceflight. In addition to helping scientists better understand how radiation impacts plant seeds, the experiment aims to support NASA’s objectives in the coming years to facilitate long-term crewed space missions.
The X-37B’s last mission saw the introduction of a new service module, which broadened the mysterious spaceplane’s capabilities and facilitated more experiments than its initial five missions.
(Credit: Boeing)
X-37B Mission 6 (OTV-6) was the first to undertake a research experiment undertaken by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, called the Photovoltaic Radio-frequency Antenna Module experiment, which successfully displayed the capability of generating radio and microwaves through the collection of solar power.
Other experiments carried out during OTV-6 included tests similar to NASA’s upcoming “Seeds-2” experiment and the deployment of a small satellite called FalconSat-8 procured by the U.S. Air Force Academy and the Air Force Research Lab.
Fundamentally, the forthcoming OTV-7 mission will aim to perform similar tests with experimental technologies to help ensure space domain awareness during future missions.
“The X37B continues to equip the United States with the knowledge to enhance current and future space operations,” said Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, Chief of Space Operations, who said X-37B’s forthcoming mission will help showcase “the USSF’s commitment to innovation and defining the art-of-the-possible in the space domain.”
Astronomers report that the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) recently detected water vapor, sand clouds, and sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere of the exoplanet WASP-107b, according to newly published findings.
Led by a team of European astronomers from Belgium’s KU Leuven University, the researchers pointed the JWST’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) at the exoplanet, located roughly 211 light-years from Earth. Their discovery, now published in Nature, has revealed the presence of water vapor, sulfur dioxide, and silicate sand clouds while notably lacking methane, a common greenhouse gas
WASP-107b is a low-density exoplanet orbiting WASP-107. Discovered in 2017, the exoplanet immediately challenged our understanding of planetary development. The super-Neptune planet, meaning it’s larger than Neptune, has a surprisingly low density. This has implications for our understanding of gas giant formation and structure.
Moreover, it orbits very close to its star, with a year lasting only about 5.7 Earth days. Due to its proximity to its star, astronomers still need clarification on how the planet can retain an atmosphere, which generally would burn up due to its proximity to its star.
The recent discovery has only complicated astronomers’ understanding of this unique gas giant.
Due to its atmospheric conditions, Neptune is distinguished by its ‘fluffy’ nature. Astronomers were able to peer deep into its atmosphere. This fluffiness, combined with the precision of the JWST infrared system, has enabled a new understanding of the planet’s atmospheric composition.
The absence of methane in WASP-107b’s atmosphere is intriguing, hinting at a potentially warm interior and shedding light on the planet’s internal heat dynamics. Detecting sulfur dioxide, typically associated with the smell of burnt matches, was unexpected, as previous models had not predicted its presence.
According to the report, due to the “fluffy” atmosphere and the general cooler temperatures of the planet’s host star, photons from the star can penetrate deeper into the planet’s gaseous atmosphere, allowing for complex chemical reactions to occur. Moreover, the discovery of water vapor in the atmosphere was also surprising since it seems connected to giant clouds made of sand.
Elements like water and sulfur do not appear often in cloudless atmospheres, so the fact that they were detected indicates that WASP-107b has high-altitude clouds. The JWST was able to peer into these clouds and indicated that they were a silicate-type material, similar to sand on Earth. According to traditional models of exoplanet formation, sand clouds like this usually form much closer to the planet’s surface, where the temperature is much warmer. However, since WASP-107b’s atmospheric temperature sits at around 500 degrees Celsius, the clouds seemingly “fluff” up into the upper atmosphere due to its close proximity to a star.
The endurance of these high-altitude sand clouds is similar to Earth’s water cycle. Silicate vapors from evaporated sand droplets in hotter, deeper layers rise and then recondense into clouds at cooler, higher altitudes. This vaporization and condensation process keeps the sand clouds persisting high in the atmosphere.
“The fact that we see these sand clouds high up in the atmosphere must mean that the sand rain droplets evaporate in deeper, very hot layers and the resulting silicate vapour is efficiently moved back up, where they recondense to form silicate clouds once more,” explained lead author Dr. Michiel Min. “This is very similar to the water vapour and cloud cycle on our own Earth but with droplets made of sand.”
Professor Leen Decin of KU Leuven emphasized that JWST’s discovery is reshaping our comprehension of planetary formation and evolution, offering new perspectives on the Solar System itself. Moreover, the study demonstrates how JWST can characterize exoplanets without counterparts in our own Solar System.
WASP-107b, with all its fluffiness, points astronomers to a whole new host of possible planetary incarnations that have yet to be discovered. While this exoplanet is undoubtedly inhospitable to life, at least as we know it, it allows us to imagine strange new worlds that do not fit the mold of planetary evolution.
Mysterious 'explosive' sound from a 'UFO' over New England shook homes and rattled windows - and a Harvard physicist believes he has located the source
Mysterious 'explosive' sound from a 'UFO' over New England shook homes and rattled windows - and a Harvard physicist believes he has located the source
A loud boom that lasted for 12 seconds was heard and felt in New England
An observatory also pictured up the sound, leading to an investigation
New Englanders reported hearing a 'strange' sound on the evening of October 20, which shook homes and raddled windows for at least 12 seconds.
Harvard University's astronomical instruments recorded the noise, finding it did not resemble anything from birds, aircraft or wind.
Alien-hunting physicist and Harvard's former head of astronomy Avi Loeb to investigate the source of the 'unidentified flying object.'
Loeb determined the UFO released explosive energy equivalent to 2,400 pounds of TNT detected from over a 10-mile radius.
The sound was moving 1,115 feet per second when an observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts detected it.
Loeb determined that the energy source likely came from an exploding mile-wide meteor during the Orionid shower that peaked in the area on October 21.
Avi Loeb determined the UFO released explosive energy equivalent to 2,400 pounds of TNT detected from over a 10-mile radius. The sound was moving 1,115 feet per second when an observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts detected it
Loeb's Galileo Project observatory recorded the boom using a giant, ultra-sensitive microphone (pictured) he installed on the roof of a building on Harvard's campus
Loeb's Galileo Project observatory recorded the boom using a giant, ultra-sensitive microphone he installed on the roof of a building on Harvard's campus.
Andy Mead, who designed and constructed the system, contacted Loeb on October 21 after noticing something strange picked up by the sensors.
'I started getting messages this morning about a 'viral' sound that was heard throughout New England,' Mead shared in the note.
'Notably, the Mount Washington Observatory made a post about it as they had so many inquiries.
'That post now has over 4,000 reactions, 1,000 comments, and 751 shares, many of whom heard the sound and are following the story.'
Reports stemmed from both states, traveling through Mount Washington, Boothbay Harbor, Maine and Sturbridge, where people heard an explosion over their homes around 7:43pm ET on October 20.
Andy Mead, who designed and constructed the AMOS system, contacted Loeb on October 21 after noticing a social media post about something strange in New Hampshire
(pictured)
Mead told Loeb he checked AMOS, finding 'a very interesting sound' that lasted for 12 seconds.
Loeb then created a website to crowdsource reports from other locations that could constrain the distance of the mystery source.
Harvard University's observatory recorded the noise, leading alien-hunting physicist Avi Loeb to investigate the source of the 'unidentified flying object'
'Given the mission of the Galileo Project, one question came to mind: 'Is this an Unidentified Anomalous Phenomenon (UAP)? Are aliens using advanced technologies near Earth,' the physicists shared in a Medium post.
The signal was short but produced a sudden release of energy that sent a wave through Earth's atmosphere.
Loeb found that the pressure wave had weakened by the time AMOS detected the sound, as it was moving 1,115 feet per second.
'Multiplying this speed by the duration of the pulse, 12 seconds, implies a shell width of 4 kilometers [2.4 miles] for the blast wave, implying a distance of about 40 kilometers [24.8 miles] from the explosion,' he shared.
'At that distance, the measured pressure disturbance suggested an explosive energy release of 2.4 kilotons of TNT. The inferred energy and distance are reminiscent of meteors, which are known to make their own music at high altitudes.'
The Orionid Meteor Shower, which takes place every autumn when Earth passes through a stream of debris from Halley's Comet, peaked on October 21 with up to 25 shooting stars every hour
The Orionid Meteor Shower, which takes place every autumn when Earth passes through a stream of debris from Halley's Comet, peaked on October 21 with up to 25 shooting stars every hour.
Meteors, also known as shooting stars, come from leftover comet particles and bits from broken asteroids.
When comets come around the sun, the dust they emit gradually spreads into a dusty trail around their orbits.
Every year, Earth passes through these debris trails, which collide with our atmosphere and disintegrate to create fiery and colorful streaks in the sky.
Because this is an annual event, residents of New England reported hearing the same 'boom' in 2021, also on October 20.
ESA’s Trace Gas Orbiter Observes Green Atmospheric Nightglow on Mars
ESA’s Trace Gas Orbiter Observes Green Atmospheric Nightglow on Mars
The atmospheric nightglow is observed on Earth. On Mars, it was something expected, yet never observed in visible light until now.
This image shows an artist’s impression of what nightglow might look like to an astronaut in the polar winter regions of Mars at night.
Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech /Cornell University / Arizona State University / E.W. Knutsen.
Airglow occurs when two oxygen atoms combine to form an oxygen molecule, about 50 km above the planetary surface.
The oxygen atoms form on Mars’s dayside when sunlight gives energy to carbon dioxide molecules, making them split apart.
When the oxygen atoms migrate to the night side and stop being excited by the Sun, they regroup and emit light at lower altitudes.
“This emission is due to the recombination of oxygen atoms created in the summer atmosphere and transported by winds to high winter latitudes, at altitudes of 40 to 60 km in the Martian atmosphere,” said Dr. Lauriane Soret, a planetary scientist at the University of Liège.
The illumination from the nightglow could be bright enough to light the way of future see the glow as bright as moonlit clouds on Earth.
“These observations are unexpected and interesting for future trips to the Red Planet,” said Dr. Jean-Claude Gérard, a planetary scientist at the University of Liège.
ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft observed the Martian nightglow in infrared wavelengths a decade ago.
ESA’s Trace Gas Orbiter followed up by detecting glowing green oxygen atoms high above the dayside of Mars in 2020 — the first time that this dayglow emission was seen around a planet other than Earth.
These atoms also travel to the nightside and then recombine at lower altitude, resulting in the visible nightglow detected by the orbiter.
Orbiting Mars at an altitude of 400 km, Trace Gas Orbiter was able to monitor the night side of Mars with the ultraviolet-visible channel of its NOMAD instrument.
The instrument covers a spectral range from near ultraviolet to red light and was oriented towards the edge of the planet to better observe the upper atmosphere.
“The nightglow serves as a tracer of atmospheric processes,” the researchers said.
“It can provide a wealth of information about the composition and dynamics of a region of the atmosphere difficult to measure, as well as the oxygen density.”
“It can also reveal how energy is deposited by both the Sun’s light and the solar wind.”
“Understanding the properties of the Martian atmosphere is not only scientifically interesting but it is also key for missions to the planet’s surface.”
“Atmospheric density, for example, directly affects the drag experienced by orbiting satellites and by the parachutes used to deliver probes to the Martian surface.”
The team’s paper was published in the journal Nature Astronomy.
JC. Gérard et al. Observation of the Mars O2 visible nightglow by the NOMAD spectrometer onboard the Trace Gas Orbiter. Nat Astron, published online November 9, 2023; doi: 10.1038/s41550-023-02104-8
Visible Spectrum Unveils New Clues: Is This the Same Mysterious Gimbal UFO?
Visible Spectrum Unveils New Clues: Is This the Same Mysterious Gimbal UFO?
In the realm of the unexplained and the extraordinary, UFO sightings occupy a unique and captivating space. The recent surge in reports of unidentified flying objects has reignited public and scientific interest alike. As we delve into the latest UFO sightings, we unravel a tapestry of mystery, skepticism, and boundless curiosity.
Video:
The initially released Gimbal, showcased in the infrared spectrum.
The Resurgence of UFO Interest
The phenomenon of UFO sightings is not new, but recent advancements in technology and a shift in governmental transparency have brought it back into the spotlight. High-quality video recordings and enhanced imaging techniques have allowed for more detailed observations than ever before. In 2022, the United States government’s establishment of the Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) marked a significant step in recognizing and investigating these enigmatic occurrences.
The Gimbal Sighting: A Case Study
Among the numerous reports, the “Gimbal UFO” sighting stands out. Originally captured by a U.S. Navy jet’s infrared camera, this sighting showcases a flying object with extraordinary aerodynamic capabilities. Unlike conventional aircraft, the Gimbal UFO demonstrates an ability to hover, rotate, and change directions at seemingly impossible speeds. The release of this footage by the AARO has sparked a wave of speculation and analysis among both enthusiasts and skeptics.
Analyzing the Evidence
What makes the Gimbal sighting particularly intriguing is the clarity and quality of the footage. Experts and amateurs alike have pored over this video, debating the physics of the UFO’s movements and the potential technologies behind it. Some suggest experimental military aircraft or drones, while others lean towards extraterrestrial origins. The lack of definitive answers only adds to the allure of the phenomenon.
New video in the visible light spectrum. Could it be the same object?
The Impact of Technology on UFO Reporting
The proliferation of smartphones and social media has played a crucial role in the increase of UFO sightings. People around the globe can now capture and share their experiences in real-time, creating a vast network of eyewitness accounts. This democratization of reporting has led to a significant uptick in UFO sighting reports, providing researchers with a wealth of data to analyze.
The Role of Government and Scientific Inquiry
The establishment of organizations like the AARO represents a paradigm shift in how governments approach UFO sightings. No longer dismissed outright, these phenomena are being studied with a scientific lens. This change is encouraging more witnesses to come forward, shedding light on incidents that might have otherwise gone unreported.
The Future of UFO Sightings
As we continue to explore the skies and beyond, the mystery of UFO sightings remains an enticing puzzle. With each new report, we edge closer to understanding whether these sightings are earthly in origin or point to something beyond our current comprehension. The quest for answers continues, fueled by human curiosity and the relentless pursuit of the truth.
The world of UFO sightings is as mystifying as it is fascinating. With advancements in technology and a shift in attitude towards these phenomena, we are entering a new era of discovery. Whether the truth behind these sightings is terrestrial or not, the journey of exploration and understanding is in itself a remarkable adventure.
Wetenschappers van KU Leuven ontdekken zandwolken op exoplaneet WASP-107b: "Wetenschappelijke mijlpaal"
Wetenschappers van KU Leuven ontdekken zandwolken op exoplaneet WASP-107b: "Wetenschappelijke mijlpaal"
Artikel van Vincent Merckx
Stel het je eens voor: in de plaats van de regenbuien die we momenteel over onze hoofden uit gegoten krijgen, valt zand uit de lucht. Dat zand wordt door luchtstromen de atmosfeer in gestuwd, bevriest daar en "regent" vervolgens weer uit. Dat hele proces herhaalt zich opnieuw en opnieuw en opnieuw.
Klinkt een beetje apocalyptisch, niet? Toch doet precies dát zich voor 200 lichtjaar hiervandaan, op de exoplaneet WASP-107b. Dat ontdekte een team van Europese astronomen, geleid door onderzoekers van het Instituut voor Sterrenkunde aan de KU Leuven. Ze publiceren hun bevindingen vandaag in het wetenschappelijke tijdschrift Nature.
Kringloop van zand
Eerst iets meer over die exoplaneet - een planeet buiten ons eigen zonnestelsel, dus. WASP-107b draait rond een ster die iets koeler is dan "onze" zon. Het is ook een erg ijle exoplaneet, een zogenoemde gasreus. WASP-107b heeft ongeveer de massa van Neptunus, maar is meer dan twintig keer groter. Doordat de atmosfeer er zo ijl is, kan je er ook makkelijk doorheen kijken.
Dat biedt een mooie kans voor onderzoekers die de verschillende lagen van die atmosfeer willen onderzoeken. Het team van astronomen, onder wie professor Leen Decin van de KU Leuven, analyseerde de atmosfeer door de golflengtes op te meten van het licht dat erdoorheen viel. De verschillende golflengtes van dat licht leerden hen op hun beurt iets over de chemische samenstelling van de atmosfeer van WASP-107b.
Zo ziet het lichtspectrum van de atmosfeer van WASP-107b eruit.
Daarbij deden ze twee opvallende ontdekkingen: zwaveldioxide (SO₂) en siliciumwolken. Die zwaveldioxide was een grote verrassing. Volgens wetenschappelijke modellen kon er immers geen zwaveldioxide aanwezig zijn.
Dat er wolken waren, was op zich niet zo nieuw. Die zijn al vaker aangetroffen op exoplaneten. Wel slaagde het team er als eerste in om de chemische samenstelling van de wolken uit te lezen. Ze bleken te bestaan uit kleine deeltjes silicium (het belangrijkste bestanddeel van zand op onze Aarde).
Dat silicium vormt op WASP-107b een kringloop zoals die van water en wolken op onze planeet, legt Michiel Min uit. Hij is astronoom aan het SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research en werkte mee aan het onderzoek. "Het feit dat we deze zandwolken hoog in de atmosfeer zien, moet betekenen dat de zandregendruppels verdampen in diepere, zeer hete lagen van de atmosfeer en dat de resulterende siliciumdamp omhoog wordt getransporteerd, waar ze opnieuw condenseren om opnieuw siliciumwolken te vormen."
Immense spiegel
We hebben de ontdekkingen te danken aan de James Webb-ruimtetelescoop, zegt Decin van het Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, en dan in het bijzonder het instrument MIRI. Daar is twintig jaar lang aan gewerkt door een team van Europese en Amerikaanse wetenschappers. De KU Leuven leverde daar een belangrijke bijdrage aan.
De gigantische spiegel van de James Webb-telescoop kan veel zwakkere lichtsignalen opvangen.
Maar ook de immense spiegel van de James Webb-ruimtetelescoop was onmisbaar. Die heeft een diameter van zes meter. "Die spiegel zorgt dat je dingen kan waarnemen die vroeger veel te zwak waren om te zien", legt Decin uit. "Planeten zenden geen eigen licht uit, die reflecteren licht van hun moederster. Dat vraagt om krachtige instrumenten om dat zwakke signaal te kunnen waarnemen."
Gigantisch veel andere zonnestelsels
Maar waarom is die ontdekking van siliciumwolken en zwaveldioxide nu belangrijk?
Decin noemt het "een wetenschappelijke mijlpaal". "Het verandert ons begrip van de vorming en evolutie van planeten en werpt een nieuw licht op ons eigen zonnestelsel."
"Zwaveldioxide, dat kennen we op aarde bijvoorbeeld van de geur van verbrande lucifers. We begrepen niet hoe dat op een exoplaneet gevormd zou kunnen worden. Als we onze kennis enkel baseren op wat hier op aarde te zien is, dan is dat onvoldoende om te begrijpen wat er gebeurt op exoplaneten."
Dit dwingt ons om onze horizonten te verbreden, vindt Decin. "Ons zonnestelsel is maar één planetenstelsel. Daarbuiten bestaan gigantisch veel andere architecturen met compleet andere chemische samenstellingen dan wat we kennen van hier op Aarde of hier in ons eigen zonnestelsel."
There is a series of shooting down unidentified objects around the world that involves the United States. The military 2023 February UAP events are among the recent cases. Filmmaker Jeremy Corbell, along with investigative journalist George Knapp, has revealed a photograph of an object initially labeled as a “hostile drone” by the media. However, official statements from the United States, the UK, and allied intelligence agencies now confirm their inability to ascertain its origin, designating it as “unidentified.”
In episode 41 of Weaponized, Corbell and Knapp discuss UFO shootdowns covering both current events and historical perspectives. Corbell discusses events in 2019, specifically mentioning attempts to bring down over 100 UAPs on Navy warships using electromagnetic systems like the DRAKE (Drone Restricted Access Using Known Electromagnetic Warfare) Anti-Drone System.
In the episode, Jeremy Corbell provides details about a UAP event that took place in late summer 2021 off the coast of Japan involving the USS Milius. The USS Milius experienced a series of encounters with UAPs that exhibited similar behavior to the previously mentioned incidents near Navy warships. However, in this case, the UAPs were observed in a vast 300-mile radius of sea, with no other ships around.
Corbell further describes the frustrating attempts to take down the UAPs using electromagnetic techniques, noting that these efforts were once again ineffective. The UAPs displayed extreme maneuverability over four or five consecutive nights, with multiple objects present during a 5-hour window from 1:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. or midnight to 4:00 a.m. The ship’s captain, out of frustration, reportedly instructed the crew to stop reacting to the UAPs and creating reports since there seemed to be no viable solution.
It’s a UFO, not a Hostile Drone!
Corbell and Knapp discussed an incident that happened in the Middle East, specifically in Syria on December 14, 2021. Corbell describes how the Royal Air Force, using a Typhoon fighter plane, reported shooting down a hostile drone, marking the first air-to-air firing by the Royal Air Force in 40 years. The media initially reported it as a terrorist drone, but there was a subsequent shift to calling it a “Mystery drone” as no terrorist group or nation claimed responsibility.
Corbell notes a significant discrepancy between public reporting and intelligence community products. He introduces an image, referred to as the “Syria Dome UAP,” associated with the event, and mentions that internally, the intelligence community labeled it as an UAP. Corbell emphasizes the importance of transparency and accurate reporting, pointing out that what is publicly disclosed differs from the information shared among allied nations within the intelligence community.
Corbell posts on X (formerly Twitter), “In a joint operation, a Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jet engaged an unidentified aerial vehicle using an Advanced Short Range Air to Air Missile (ASRAAM). Initial media reports labeled the unidentified as a ‘hostile drone’ – however – internal intelligence products officially classify the aerial vehicle of unknown origin as a UAP – and maintain this designation. The UAP was not recovered.”
Liberation Times writes, “According to Corbell, the Five Eyes report was published months after the incident occurred and indicates that on 14 December 2021, an RAF Typhoon jet shot at one UAP using an ASRAAM missile. At the time, the incident was reported as the first enemy aircraft shot down by the RAF since the Falklands War in Argentina more than 40 years ago.”
Corbell continues, stating that Centcom (United States Central Command) has been tracking UAP for over 15 years, and the frustration lies in the lack of proper reporting and handling of these incidents within the chain of command. He notes that in conflict zones, there is a tendency to shoot at anything within a certain proximity to ground troops or bases, especially if it appears to have a payload. However, the issue arises in the lack of recovery or proper handling after such engagements.
Further, in the episode, Corbell reveals the image of an object that he called the “Syria Dome UAP.” He says, “This image… is the one that was historically fired upon. It is referred to as a ‘terrorist drone,’ exhibiting a peculiar appearance. Whatever it may be, it is classified as a UAP within the intelligence community. This is not something that has been identified.”
Corbell notes that there were two of these unidentified devices, and when the Royal Air Force engaged with them, firing an Advanced Short Range Air-to-Air Missile (ASRAAM), one of the objects managed to evade and escape the scene. Corbell emphasizes the intelligence control exhibited by these objects, suggesting that they were not under random or autonomous flight.
Corbell admits uncertainty about whether the fired missile hit the object or if it made contact with the ground. He underscores the discrepancy between the public narrative, which presented the incident as involving a terrorist drone, and the internal classification within the intelligence community, where it is recognized as a UAP. The point is reiterated that the public is not receiving the full and accurate information about these encounters.
George Knapp shares his perspective on the image, stating that, in his extensive experience, he has seen various images of drones, both military and private, but finds the appearance of this particular object unique. He likens it to resembling a mushroom cloud, highlighting its distinctive and unconventional design.
Corbell said that the Five Eyes report indicates that the USAF militarily engages such craft if they are within a radius of ground troops and appear to carry a payload.
He told Liberation Times: “Unless observed with a possible payload, UAPs largely go ignored, as they are not part of the mission – this means that we lose the opportunity to study the phenomena and answer key questions, including 1) Who are the operators 2) Where do they originate from 3) How do they work? And 4) What is their intent?”
“I can confirm that there is frustration within the ranks of the U.S. military that UAPs with unique flight characteristics are being ignored. Worryingly, this critical information is not being reported up the chain of command properly – causing vulnerability to our troops and those of other nations.”
Previously on the Joe Rogan show, Corbell claimed that based on information from documents, the military fires upon UAPs within a certain proximity to ground troops, typically within 27 to 30 miles. The decision to engage is reportedly based on the perceived threat, with the military firing upon objects that appear to have a payload. The text also mentions that UAPs resembling cubes surrounded by spheres are not targeted, as they do not appear to have a payload.
Corbell suggests that the military has been firing Hellfire missiles at these UAPs, and there are reports of similar actions by countries like Russia and Syria. The text raises questions about the origin of these UAPs, as they are not believed to be assets of the countries engaging with them. Some UAPs are described, such as one resembling a jellyfish about the size of a coffee table.
“One of the UAPs that was fired upon looked like a jellyfish, about the size of a big coffee table, and domed. There is no known retrieval program in these war zones, and even if they did hit something, it’s unknown if they would be able to take it down. It’s possible that these UAPs could be balloons used by drug smugglers, but they have controlled flight, which is not a new phenomenon. There have been similar sightings of metallic spheres outpacing planes during World War II, with both sides thinking it was the other side’s technology.”
A while ago, Lue Elizondo, the former head of AATIP shared his thoughts on the UFO/UAP and how the Pentagon approaches the phenomenon from strictly national security perceptive. In an interview with Curt Jaimungal and Sean Cahil, Elizondo provides deeper insight into the Pentagon’s theories on why UFO/UAPs are routinely spotted around American, Russian, Chinese, and other nuclear-armed nations’ most secretive and sensitive nuclear assets.
Breaking News: Pentagon UFO Chief Shawn Kirkpatrick Resigns! Insider David Grusch Reveals Startling New UFO Insights!
Breaking News: Pentagon UFO Chief Shawn Kirkpatrick Resigns! Insider David Grusch Reveals Startling New UFO Insights!
In the ever-evolving quest to unravel the mysteries of the universe, the topic of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs), more commonly known as UFOs, has transitioned from the realm of science fiction to serious scientific and governmental consideration. The recent resignation of Sean Kirkpatrick, the head of the Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), after an impactful 18-month tenure, has brought this topic into sharper focus.
Kirkpatrick’s departure was not just a routine change in personnel. It came amidst a backdrop of escalating discussions about the nature of UAPs — are they evidence of extraterrestrial visitors, or advanced technologies from earthly adversaries? Kirkpatrick himself leaned towards the former, expressing that the possibility of these sightings being aliens would be less concerning than foreign technologies operating undetected in U.S. airspace.
Adding fuel to the fire are the claims of David Grush, a whistleblower with bold assertions about the U.S. government’s possession and reverse-engineering of UAP crafts. Grush speaks of the retrieval of crafts and biological materials related to UFO incidents, a claim that, if proven true, could redefine our understanding of life and technology.
What is striking in today’s discourse is the shifting public perception. Once a topic relegated to late-night talk shows and conspiracy theorists, UFOs and UAPs are now being discussed openly in mainstream media. Notable figures in science and academia are joining the conversation, suggesting that we are on the cusp of significant revelations.
The implications of these discussions are profound. Confirmation of extraterrestrial life or advanced alien technologies would not only be a scientific breakthrough but could also have far-reaching implications for our understanding of the universe and humanity’s place in it. The thought of other intelligent life forms existing in the vast expanse of space challenges our worldview and raises philosophical questions about existence itself.
VIDEO:
MASSIVE!! Pentagon UFO Chief Shawn Kirkpatrick steps down! David Grusch shares NEW information!
The conversation about UAPs also touches on fascinating theories of time travel and parallel universes. It opens the door to speculation about the nature of time and space, and how these might interact with the phenomenon of UFOs. The idea that these crafts could be from different timelines or dimensions is a tantalizing one, adding layers of complexity to an already intricate puzzle.
As we look to the future, there’s a palpable sense that more disclosures and developments in UAP research are on the horizon. This could lead to a greater understanding of these phenomena, shedding light on what these unidentified objects truly are. Will they reveal secrets of advanced extraterrestrial civilizations, or unveil new technological capabilities of rival nations?
In conclusion, the resignation of Sean Kirkpatrick and the revelations of whistleblowers like David Grush have opened a new chapter in the story of UFOs and UAPs. As the world watches with bated breath, one thing is certain: we are on the brink of potentially groundbreaking discoveries that could forever change our perception of the universe and our place within it. The skies above hold more secrets than we ever imagined, and the truth, as they say, may indeed be out there.
Over enkele miljarden jaren zal onze Melkweg botsen en samensmelten met het Andromeda-stelsel, onze ruimtelijke buur, in een kosmische gebeurtenis die het hele zonnestelsel zou kunnen beïnvloeden.
Astronomen spreken al geruime tijd over de dreigende botsing tussen de twee stelsels, en dankzij gegevens verkregen via de Hubble-ruimtetelescoop is dit onderzoek aangevuld met een simulatie van dit belangrijke galactische evenement.
Volgens deNASAzal de botsing leiden tot een significante transformatie van beide stelsels. Wetenschappers illustreren de botsing met een analogie van honkbal, waarbij deMelkwegde slagman zou zijn en de balAndromeda, die beweegt met een snelheid van 110 kilometer per seconde.
Wanneer ze botsen, over ongeveer 4 miljard jaar, zullen de sterren binnen elk stelsel niet botsen, maar worden ze in verschillende banen rond het nieuwe galactische centrum geworpen. Zo zal bijvoorbeeld onze Zon worden weggeslingerd naar een nieuw gebied, wat invloed kan hebben op de Aarde.
De volledige samensmelting van de Melkweg met Andromeda staat gepland om twee miljard jaar na de ontmoeting van beide plaats te vinden.
Unraveling the Phaistos Disc – Historical Enigma or Ingenious Sham?
Unraveling the Phaistos Disc – Historical Enigma or Ingenious Sham?
In 1908, an Italian researcher delved into the remains of Phaistos, a bygone Minoan stronghold situated on Crete's southern shoreline. Within a subterranean temple vault, amid scorched remains, grime, and cinders, he unearthed a remarkably preserved disc with a gold tint. This find has since become one of archaeology's most talked-about enigmas: The Phaistos Disc.
This disc, often called the Phaistos or Phaestos Disc, is a broad, sienna-hued, baked clay circular plate measuring around 15 cm (5.91 inches) across and 1 cm (0.39 inches) in thickness. Each face of this disc showcases a spiral filled with odd stamped insignias that wind their way clockwise to its core. It's believed these 45 distinct insignias were formed by embedding hieroglyphic stamps into the wet, malleable clay disc.
It was the archaeologist Luigi Pernier who chanced upon this disc in a sub-level chamber of the palace during his dig. It's believed that a seismic tremor or volcanic explosion may have led to the site's downfall. Distinct relics, like the Arkalochori Axe, bearing resemblances in inscriptions, speculated to be Linear A (an undecoded script of ancient Greece), have been found elsewhere in Crete.
Interkriti writes of the ancient city:
“Phaistos was one of the most important centres of Minoan civilization, and the most wealthy and powerful city in southern Crete. It was inhabited from the Neolithic period until the foundation and development of the Minoan palaces in the 15th century B.C. […] According to mythology, Phaistos was the seat of king Radamanthis, brother of king Minos. It was also the city that gave birth to the great wise man and soothsayer Epimenidis, one of the seven wise men of the ancient world.”
The disc's purpose, the meaning behind its cryptic symbols, and even its origin at Phaistos remain subjects of ongoing debate among scholars.
Panorama of ruins of the ancient Minoan Palace of Phaistos, Crete, Greece. ( dach83 /Adobe Stock)
Cryptic Insignias on the Phaistos Disc
The disc's most intriguing feature is undoubtedly the hieroglyphic sequence spiraling on both its surfaces. These icons, or pictograms, depict varied images like a pedestrian, a tattooed face, protective headgear, a projectile, shackles, felines, raptors, and others. Both the Minoan capital Knossos' discoverer, Sir Arthur Evans, in 1900, and Luigi Pernier tried and failed to decode the disc. Since then, over 26 notable efforts have been made to break the code.
The general consensus is that the script is Linear A, unassociated with any recognized language. However, some academics propose it could relate to multiple tongues, like Hittite, Homeric Greek, Indo-European, or a Semitic dialect. An article by WMMagazin cites Petr Kovar's "convincing" translation which indicates the script might be Proto-Slavic. Yet, there's no universally accepted translation.
Linear A Script. Ink-written inscriptions round the inner surface of a cup. Third Middle Minoan (Public Domain)
Decoding Efforts Surrounding the Phaistos Disc Theories about the disc's significance range from it being an age-old chant, a gaming surface, an astral record, an Atlantis manuscript, a mythical narrative, a maze's description, female initiation ceremonies, to a celestial almanac.
There's uncertainty regarding whether to read the symbols from the disc's core spiraling out or the reverse. Further, scholars can't agree on whether the transcribed symbols should be read from right to left or the opposite. Many concur that without more context or symbol samples, successful decoding might remain elusive.
Chart detailing a rendering of some of the symbols found on the Phaistos Disc (Partial Screenshot, Public Domain)
Yet, the allure of the disc remains. For instance, in 2015, Dr. Gareth Owens proposed that one disc side might praise the Minoan maternal deity, while the other honors Astarte, the love deity. This wasn't a direct translation but rather an inferred vocalization, inspired by Michael Ventris's code-breaking of Linear B. Owens clarified:
“We are reading the Phaistos disc with the vocal values of Linear B and with the help of comparative linguistics, ie comparing with other relative languages from the Indo-European language family. Reading something, however, does not mean understanding. The Disc of Phaistos is written in the Minoan script that records the Minoan language. This is the best sample of ‘Cretan hieroglyphics’, always in quotes, because it is not the writing system of ancient Egypt. The name is wrong. The scripts of the Phaistos Disc is also Minoan Linear A.”
The two sides of the Phaistos Disc. ( dimcha /Adobe Stock )
In October 2018, Georgian Journal presented an alternate theory – that the disc's content might be in Proto-Kartvelian (Proto-Georgian) – a pictographic script predating alphabets. They noted that only the Proto-Georgian language matched when Dr. Herbert Zebisch compared various languages using his software. Consequently, Gia Kvashilava theorized that the disc's content might be dedicated to the Colchian fertility deity, Nana.
While most experts believe in the disc's authenticity, a few speculate it might be a sophisticated forgery. Although Pernier's dig records were meticulous, the disc's exact origin remains unverified through scientific age determination methods. Hence, speculated dates range from 1700 BC to 1400 BC, targeting either Middle or Late Minoan periods.
Some even ponder if Pernier might have crafted the disc himself. However, the discovery of other items bearing Linear A inscriptions suggests otherwise. Crafting such a resilient fake, deceiving experts for over a hundred years, would be a colossal and daring deception.
Ultimately, until the Phaistos Disc's code is definitively unlocked and its secrets exposed, this gilded disc will persistently captivate linguists, code-breakers, and aficionados of historical conundrums.
Top Image: The Phaistos Disc ( CC BY SA 3.0 ) in front of a mysterious background. ( kerenby /Adobe Stock )
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, T. Temim (Princeton University)
When Chinese astronomers first glimpsed the Crab Nebula in 1054 CE — they didn’t see anything like this. A new photo courtesy of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) captures milky strands of material, known as synchrotron radiation, as it courses throughout the body of SN 1054 — a hat tip to the supernova remnant’s original discovery.
The $10 billion telescope, filled with an array of infrared instruments, began snapping photos of the universe in unprecedented detail in the summer of last year. In that short amount of time, JWST has already delivered groundbreaking revelations about our universe, and the Crab Nebula is its latest subject in a new image published on Monday by NASA.
The Crab Nebula is located in the constellation Taurus, and in 1054 CE, its star went supernova. Amazingly, the resulting explosion caught the attention of Chinese astronomers during the Song Dynasty, some 6,500 light years away. Fast forward 1,000 years later, and the nebula is an ever-expanding remnant of that medieval explosion, but interest in the nebula has only grown as we’ve improved ways to glimpse the cataclysmic aftermath.
But unlike previous images of this iconic cosmic object, the JWST reveals the smoke-like feature flushed throughout the nebula in greater detail. These ethereal wisps come from the pulse of the Crab Nebula’s zombie heart. When certain massive stars die, they go supernova by ejecting their outermost layer, leaving behind an ultra-dense object called a neutron star.
When some neutron stars rapidly rotate, they emit what NASA describes as a “milky smoke-like material,” known as synchrotron radiation. These wind-charged particles move around magnetic field lines, and as they blow through the supernova remnant, they push the Crab Nebula’s shell of gas and dust outward.
A STELLAR DEATH
The Princeton University research team behind the latest investigation relied on JWST’s Near-Infrared Camera (NIRCam) and Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) to better understand the nebula’s origins and to explore how stars die. Stars are complicated objects, and what happens when one dies can be incredibly varied. That’s why detailed imagery like this one is necessary for scientists to unpack the complicated machinations of a star’s violent ending.
A neutron star, like the one in the center of the Crab Nebula, forms when a star roughly eight to 20 times the mass of the Sun runs out of hydrogen in its core. This triggers the beginning of the end. As NASA explains, a star will then begin to fuse helium into carbon, carbon into neon, neon into oxygen, oxygen into silicon, and silicon into iron.
“By the time silicon fuses into iron, the star runs out of fuel in a matter of days. The next step would be fusing iron into some heavier element, but doing so requires energy instead of releasing it,” NASA says.
The star’s core then collapses, and when it does, there emerges a cataclysmic shock wave that ripples through the star’s outer layers as the core rebounds to its original size, which creates a supernova.
“Webb’s sensitivity and spatial resolution allow us to accurately determine the composition of the ejected material, particularly the content of iron and nickel, which may reveal what type of explosion produced the Crab Nebula,” Princeton University’s Tea Temim shared in NASA’s announcement.
According to NASA, scientists will rely on new data from another major observatory, the Hubble Space Telescope, over the next year or so. By drawing comparisons, astronomers hope to get one step closer to providing brand-new insight into this 1,000-year-old cosmic explosion.
Picture this: you are an astronomer working the night shift at the observatory, where scientists scour the heavens for celestial wonders and potential signs of intelligent life from afar. Tonight, however, rather than peering through telescopes, you have prepared for a long evening spent pouring over data sets from various projects happening around the facility.
You step over to visit the observatory’s director, your friend John Kraus, in the office beside you to see how his night is going. John is reading a new paper about telescope design, and beside him is a pile of books scattered across the floor covering radio astronomy and antenna theory.
You glance at your wristwatch, and it’s getting close to midnight.
You walk down the dark hallway to make yourself a strong cup of coffee because you know you’ll be here for the long haul. Somebody has to get through all this data; it won’t sort itself.
As you start to pour your coffee, a tiny beeping indicator echoes in the distance. You think nothing of it at first, but suddenly, it is followed by a sound that catches your attention: one indicating a radio transmission 30 times louder than ambient sound. Your cup of coffee is left steaming on the counter as you bolt back down the hall to your desk.
You can’t believe what you’re hearing and seeing. The transmission lasts for over 72 seconds. Looking over at your data chart, you then wipe your eyes to make sure what you’re seeing is right.
Could this really be what it looks like?
You double-check all the information on the printout in front of you and confirm the narrowband radio transmission you’re hearing is being broadcast at 1,420 megahertz. Excitedly, you circle a portion of the code, a vertical orientation of letters and numbers that reads “6EQUJ5”, and write “WOW!” in the margin: it is the precise spot where your fellow scientists have predicted that a message from an alien civilization, if one were to exist, would likely be found.
The famous “Wow! Signal” (Credit: Big Ear Radio Observatory and North American AstroPhysical Observatory).
This, or something close to it, is how the events might have unfolded for you on the night of August 15, 1977, at 11:16 p.m., if you had been working the Big Ear radio telescope at Ohio State University Radio Observatory. For it was under circumstances like these that astronomer Jerry R. Ehman discovered what has since been remembered, appropriately enough, as the WOW! Signal.
Originating from the direction of Sagittarius, the famous signal seemed to possess the characteristics scientists would expect from a genuine signal from an intelligent alien civilization. However, the actual source of the signal remains undetermined, and scientists remain divided on whether it had been something mundane or if it might have actually been an alien message.
Regardless of its source, the Wow! Signal became highly influential in terms of galvanizing the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI). It inspired many to wonder what would happen if humans ever did receive a clear, unambiguous message from an extraterrestrial civilization.
Now, the idea of how and when we may receive alien messages from the stars has also served as part of the inspiration behind an innovative new SETI-themed artistic effort geared toward educating the public about some of the opportunities and challenges communication with extraterrestrials might present.
A SIGN IN SPACE
Daniela de Paulis, an interdisciplinary artist and licensed radio operator presently holding the title of Artist in Residence at both the SETI Institute and the Green Bank Observatory, has assembled a diverse team of experts from around the world that includes SETI researchers, space scientists, and artists, all collaborating on her most recent artistic venture, A Sign in Space.
Daniela de Paulis.
An innovative global theatre presentation, Paulis’s project aims to showcase how receiving, decoding, and interpreting an extraterrestrial message would work through the involvement of the worldwide SETI community. Drawing on professionals from various fields, as well as the general public, the project requires international collaboration to foster communication, including SETI space research, societies, and cultures from multiple disciplines.
“I presented this proposal to some scientists I’ve met through the SETI committee, and they reacted very positively. From a small core group of people, including myself and these scientists, we had the opportunity to talk with the European Space Agency.”
“The European Space Agency loved the proposal so much that they suggested using one of their spacecraft for this project,” adds de Paulis. The result was that on May 24, 2023, at 19:00 UTC / 12:00 pm PDT, the European Space Agency’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter sent an encoded message to Earth from its position in orbit around Mars, simulating a signal from a form of extraterrestrial intelligence.
DECODING A COSMIC CRYPTOGRAM
Three prominent radio astronomy observatories situated worldwide detected this encoded message, including the SETI Institute’s Allen Telescope Array, the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope at the Green Bank Observatory, and the Medicina Radio Astronomical Station observatory managed by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics.
The precise content of the encoded message, developed by de Paulis and her team, remained a secret until the release date, allowing the public to contribute to its decoding and interpretation in a live Discord channel open to the public 24-7.
To encourage public involvement, a live social media event was organized by the SETI Institute, featuring interviews with crucial team members that included scientists, engineers, and artists, all of whom participated from different parts of the world.
After the signal was transmitted to Earth, it was made available to the public for decoding. Meanwhile, the A Sign in Space team followed up by hosting a series of Zoom panel discussions made available to the public, which focused on topics that explore the societal implications of detecting a signal from an extraterrestrial civilization.
The message generated for A Sign in Space, which remains undeciphered (Credit: A Sign in Space).
A CODED MESSAGE, UNSOLVED
As of now, the message has still not been decoded, and de Paulis and her team are unsure if ever will ever be.
“Some of us thought, okay, this is going to take two weeks. Other people said, Oh, this is not going to be decoded ever. So we simply have no idea,” de Paulis told The Debrief.
“It could be months. It could be years.”
If it remains unsolved, de Paulis hasn’t decided when the message will be revealed. However, she admits that she has considered not sharing the decoded version at all, an outcome that could also exist in real-life scenarios if an ET civilization does contact us.
“For me and my team, it’s really important not to give any spoilers because we want to really give the sense that, if we ever received an extraterrestrial message, we would have no one to ask, for help,” de Paulis says.
No one to ask for help, of course, except for each other.
“People now understood that it might be better to work with each other because the skills of one person would add to the skills of another person. And in general, there is, I would say, more self-reflection,” adds de Paulis.
One major takeaway for de Paulis has been watching the limitations that humans place on themselves, particularly as she observes the community Discord chat trying to decode the message.
“Knowing, of course, the content of the message, it’s really interesting to see how biased the human mind can be,” de Paulis told The Debrief, “and how we very quickly narrow down the options to something that we deem safer.”
“This dynamic seems to be really recurrent,” de Paulis says.
Regardless of how or when it occurs, receiving a clear and obvious message from an extraterrestrial civilization would be a profoundly transformational experience for all humankind.
However, for de Paulis and her team, what A Sign in Space has helped reveal is that before we can understand and potentially communicate with other intelligent forms of life in the cosmos, humanity must first consider how we can improve the ways we communicate with each other.
“We know how great we are, but also there are so many limitations, like exactly communicating with each other,” de Paulis explains. “Even solving human problems that, from the external side, seem to be solvable.”
Chrissy Newton is a PR professional and founder of VOCAB Communications. She hosts the Rebelliously Curious podcast, which can be found on The Debrief’s YouTube Channel. Follow her on X: @ChrissyNewton Or chrissynewton.com.
Human consciousness is quickly rising during these End Times bringing with it the last grasping effort by the Cabal and their Reptilian overlords to prevent extraterrestrial disclosure and humanity’s awakening by a contrived World War III. Humanity has a critical choice to make, allow itself to be manipulated into another devastating World War that involves nuclear weapons or welcoming extraterrestrial disclosure and the release of transformative technologies that would bring.
This is the trailer to Nov 25 Webinar: “The Exopolitical State of the Planet: The Ukraine & Israel-Palestine Wars, Manufacturing WWIII, the Battle over Consciousness & Extraterrestrial Disclosure.” To learn more or register, visit: https://www.crowdcast.io/c/exostateofplanet2023
“Monsters” lurk amidst the flickering lights from galaxy cluster MACS0416.
A new image published by NASA and the European Space Agency on Thursday shows a story from a long time ago. MACS0416 is located 4.3 billion light-years away from Earth. To reach the visible-light instrumentation onboard the Hubble Space Telescope and the infrared technology on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), its light made quite an odyssey. It began its journey at the tail-end of the formation of the Solar System.
Astronomers are learning more about this region, tucked away in the constellation Eridanus (the River), thanks to the two observatories. “The image reveals a wealth of details that are only possible to capture by combining the power of both space telescopes,” JWST officials wrote in a Thursday image description.
Galaxy cluster MACS0416 is seen in this composite image that uses Hubble and JWST data.
Astronomers took this latest view of MACS0416 to hunt for transient objects or things that change in brightness over time.
The galaxy cluster is packed with enough of these flickers to earn a special nickname.
“We’re calling MACS0416 the Christmas Tree Galaxy Cluster, both because it’s so colorful and because of these flickering lights we find within it,” Haojing Yan, associate professor at the University of Missouri and lead author of a paper accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal, said in NASA’s announcement.
The body of this imaginary tree is made of two colliding galaxy clusters that will eventually form one heftier object. The soft glow throughout the center of the image acts like a trunk of sorts. According to Hubble officials in 2018, this light comes from stars scattered throughout the hodgepodge cluster, pulled out of the galaxies they once called home.
Left: Hubble Space Telescope’s optical light observations of galaxy cluster MACS0416. Right: James Webb Space Telescope’s infrared observations of the same region.
The tree’s ornaments are varied and abundant. Thanks to a phenomenon called gravitational lensing, the light from distant galaxies gets magnified. Although they are located much farther away than MACS0416, the lensing makes their light appear and spruces up the holiday visuals.
THERE’S A “MONSTER”
One distant ornament stands out. Incredibly, it's not a galaxy but something even smaller: a clutch of stars. “Among the transients the team identified, one stood out in particular,” NASA officials wrote in their Thursday announcement.
The stars, magnified by a factor of at least 4,000, come from an ancient place in space where light is just now reaching the telescopes. These stars are from just 3 billion years after the Big Bang when the universe was about a quarter of its current age.
This archaic visual behemoth received quite a name. “The team nicknamed the star system ‘Mothra’ in a nod to its ‘monster nature,’ being both extremely bright and extremely magnified,” NASA officials wrote. They added that Mothra “joins another lensed star the researchers previously identified that they nicknamed ‘Godzilla’” because both are names of giant monsters in Japanese cinema.
This image of galaxy cluster MACS0416 highlights one particular gravitationally-lensed background galaxy, from when the universe was about a quarter of its current age. It contains a group of stars, highlighted here, whose brightness varies over time. It’s nicknamed “Mothra.”
Mothra is one of 14 transient objects across this field of view. Remarkably, two of these very highly magnified objects are supernovas, explosions of stars visible to astronomers from exceptionally distant places.
With blues indicating relatively nearby galaxies and reds showing dusty places or distant galaxies, this visual cornucopia provides plenty of science to celebrat
NASA’s Curiosity mission has just passed a special milestone. On Monday, NASA announced that Curiosity has now surpassed 4,000 sols, or days on Mars.
The small-SUV-sized rover reached the Red Planet on August 5, 2012, to explore Gale Crater for signs that past or present life could have existed on Mars. To find glimmers of this evidence, Curiosity has sojourned across a sediment-rich landscape on the alien planet with its six wheels over the last 11 years.
Curiosity is the oldest active Martian rover, taking over the title in 2019 when the 15-year-old Opportunity mission ended. NASA personnel think Curiosity still has quite a bit of life left.
“Despite having driven almost 20 miles (32 kilometers) through a punishingly cold environment bathed in dust and radiation since 2012, Curiosity remains strong,” according to a statement published Monday from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, the hub for Curiosity and the fleet of NASA’s Mars explorers.
To commemorate Curiosity’s accomplishment, Inverse has compiled images that define Curiosity’s last decade.
BILLIONS OF YEARS OF HISTORY
Curiosity took the images that went to making this composite view of Mars on April 10 and 11, 2015.
On April 10 and 11, 2015 — Curiosity’s 952nd and 953rd sols on Mars — both of its Mastcam lenses worked together to create this expansive view of the alien landscape.
According to JPL’s image description, the sand ripples and gravel that appear in the middle and at the bottom of this image were the sort of terrain that Curiosity first traversed. The rover left behind its landing site to reach Mount Sharp, a 3-mile-high peak in the middle of Gale Crater.
"This may be one of the thickest exposed sections of layered sedimentary rocks in the solar system. The rock record preserved in those layers holds stories that are billions of years old — stories about whether, when, and for how long Mars might have been habitable,” Joy Crisp, Curiosity deputy project scientist at JPL, shared in a statement NASA published in 2011.
ALIEN SUNSET
Curiosity took the images for this sunset sequence on April 15, 2015.
To produce this view of a sunset on another planet, Curiosity’s team stitched together four images that Mastcam’s left eye captured over the span of 6 minutes, and 51 seconds. This sequence was captured on April 15, 2015, the mission's 956th sol.
This was the first time that the mission observed the Martian sunset in color. According to JPL officials, “Mastcam sees color very similarly to what human eyes see, although it is actually a little less sensitive to blue than people are.”
SAND DUNE SELFIE
Curiosity took 57 images on January 19, 2016, to produce this self-portrait (minus its robotic arm).
Curiosity is well-known for its selfies. The rover took this portrait from Namib Dune, located along the northwestern flank of Mount Sharp.
This image shows most, but not all, of Curiosity’s body. “The view does not include the rover's arm,” JPL officials wrote in an image description published on January 27, 2016. “The arm was positioned out of the shot in the images, or portions of images, that were used in this mosaic.”
The selfie is a mosaic of 57 images, taken on January 19, 2016 — Curiosity’s 1,228th sol — with a camera located at the end of the rover’s robotic arm called the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI).
DRILLING INTO BEDROCK
Curiosity captured the before and after of obtaining the Aberlady sample from Martian bedrock on April 6, 2019.
This Mastcam sequence shows the first time Curiosity drilled into the bedrock of a clay-bearing unit, a maneuver that the mission team had highly anticipated.
Curiosity is equipped with four spectrometers that can measure the chemical composition within rock samples. The one collected here on April 6, 2019 — the mission’s 2,370th sol — was called Aberlady.
CLOUDS OVER MOUNT SHARP
Curiosity captured images of clouds rolling over Mount Sharp on March 19, 2021.
To gather scientific data, sometimes Curiosity has to look up.
Each frame in this scene is a mosaic of six individual images. They show clouds drifting over Mount Sharp on March 19, 2021, the 3,063rd sol of the mission.
Curiosity Navigation Cameras Spot Twilight Clouds on Sol 3075: Using the navigation cameras on its mast, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover took these images of clouds just after sunset on March 31, 2021, the 3,075th sol, or Martian day, of the mission.
Curiosity Navigation Cameras Spot Twilight Clouds on Sol 3072: Using the navigation cameras on its mast, NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover took these images of clouds just after sunset on March 28, 2021, the 3,072nd sol, or Martian day, of the mission.
Cloudy days are rare on Mars because of the planet’s thin atmosphere, but they can appear seasonally when Mars is farthest away from the Sun in its orbit, according to NASA. Curiosity’s images of the clouds helped scientists realize that clouds were much higher than most clouds which hover around 27 miles above the surface. Their larger altitude indicates they are made of dry ice (or frozen carbon dioxide) rather than water ice.
ROLLING ALONG
This eight-frame movie comes from the Curiosity rover, captured on December 12, 2021.
These clouds rolling along the Martian sky appeared to Curiosity’s navigation camera on December 12, 2021, the 3,325th sol of the mission.
This wasn’t easy, according to NASA. “Martian clouds are very faint in the atmosphere, so special imaging techniques are needed to see them,” according to an image description from JPL.
To get a clear, static background, Curiosity had to snap multiple images. “That allows anything else moving within the image (like clouds or shadows) to become visible after subtracting this static background from each individual image,” JPL officials added.
AN EARTHLY PERSPECTIVE
Curiosity took this view of the Martian landscape on August 23, 2022. Its color has been adjusted to depict what the human eye would perceive on Earth.
Mission team members adjusted the color in this image “to match the lighting conditions as the human eye would perceive them on Earth,” according to an image description published in 2022.
This scene is a mosaic of 23 Mastcam images captured near a hill called Bolivar on August 23, 2022, the 3,572nd sol of the mission.
Soon after reaching its 4,000th sol milestone, Curiosity went offline. From November 6 to 28, the mission team will await the end of solar conjunction. This is when Mars passes behind the Sun. During this time, Curiosity cannot communicate with Earth because the star’s plasma could interfere with sending commands.
But in a few weeks, Curiosity will continue its explorations.
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Over mijzelf
Ik ben Pieter, en gebruik soms ook wel de schuilnaam Peter2011.
Ik ben een man en woon in Linter (België) en mijn beroep is Ik ben op rust..
Ik ben geboren op 18/10/1950 en ben nu dus 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.
