The purpose of this blog is the creation of an open, international, independent and free forum, where every UFO-researcher can publish the results of his/her research. The languagues, used for this blog, are Dutch, English and French.You can find the articles of a collegue by selecting his category. Each author stays resposable for the continue of his articles. As blogmaster I have the right to refuse an addition or an article, when it attacks other collegues or UFO-groupes.
Druk op onderstaande knop om te reageren in mijn forum
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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!!!
Een interessant adres?
UFO'S of UAP'S, ASTRONOMIE, RUIMTEVAART, ARCHEOLOGIE, OUDHEIDKUNDE, SF-SNUFJES EN ANDERE ESOTERISCHE WETENSCHAPPEN - DE ALLERLAATSTE NIEUWTJES
UFO's of UAP'S in België en de rest van de wereld In België had je vooral BUFON of het Belgisch UFO-Netwerk, dat zich met UFO's bezighoudt. BEZOEK DUS ZEKER VOOR ALLE OBJECTIEVE INFORMATIE , enkel nog beschikbaar via Facebook en deze blog.
Verder heb je ook het Belgisch-Ufo-meldpunt en Caelestia, die prachtig, doch ZEER kritisch werk leveren, ja soms zelfs héél sceptisch...
Voor Nederland kan je de mooie site www.ufowijzer.nl bezoeken van Paul Harmans. Een mooie site met veel informatie en artikels.
MUFON of het Mutual UFO Network Inc is een Amerikaanse UFO-vereniging met afdelingen in alle USA-staten en diverse landen.
MUFON's mission is the analytical and scientific investigation of the UFO- Phenomenon for the benefit of humanity...
Je kan ook hun site bekijken onder www.mufon.com.
Ze geven een maandelijks tijdschrift uit, namelijk The MUFON UFO-Journal.
Since 02/01/2020 is Pieter ex-president (=voorzitter) of BUFON, but also ex-National Director MUFON / Flanders and the Netherlands. We work together with the French MUFON Reseau MUFON/EUROP.
ER IS EEN NIEUWE GROEPERING DIE ZICH BUFON NOEMT, MAAR DIE HEBBEN NIETS MET ONZE GROEP TE MAKEN. DEZE COLLEGA'S GEBRUIKEN DE NAAM BUFON VOOR HUN SITE... Ik wens hen veel succes met de verdere uitbouw van hun groep. Zij kunnen de naam BUFON wel geregistreerd hebben, maar het rijke verleden van BUFON kunnen ze niet wegnemen...
29-01-2024
Whitley Strieber’s Alien Abduction & Stranger Who Told Him ‘Mankind Is Trapped’
Whitley Strieber’s Alien Abduction & Stranger Who Told Him ‘Mankind Is Trapped’
Whitley Strieber, born in Texas, United States, is a famous author known for his thought-provoking horror fiction. Strieber wrote a novel called The Wolfen, which later became a popular film in 1980. However, it was his book Communion that garnered significant attention, particularly from the UFO community. His book changed this dynamic almost instantly, attracting widespread interest beyond the usual UFOlogy circles.
Strieber’s writings have been adapted into various movies and TV shows, contributing to his global acclaim as a best-selling author. However, his popularity soared after the publication of “Communion” in 1987, a non-fiction novel detailing his encounter with non-human intelligent beings. The book became a major success, reaching the No. 1 spot on The New York Times’ non-fiction bestseller list.
In 1989, a film adaptation of “Communion” was released, featuring actors Christopher Walken and Lindsay Crouse. The author’s real encounter with aliens happened on December 26, 1985, when he was sleeping alone in his cabin in the woods, upstate New York. That night, Strieber was awakened by an unusual noise. When he opened his eyes, he saw a small alien creature approaching his bed.
“Throughout the world, there is a certain type of face, a being that’s seen again and again and again. With a long, thin face and big black eyes, sometimes the head seems quite big, as in the Betty Andreas case. In others, like in my case, they seem smaller, and the beings are taller. But that basic configuration, that basic sort of non-human configuration, seems to be repeated again and again and again in experiences all over the world,” Strieber said.
The next thing Strieber remembered was finding himself sitting in the surrounding woods with fragmented memories of what had transpired. To uncover the truth and regain his memories, he decided to undergo regressive hypnosis administered by Dr. Donald F. Klein. He recalled he had been abducted and physically assaulted by someone whom he designated as “Visitors” to keep the possibility of extraterrestrials’ involvement low.
Under hypnosis, Strieber recalled being “floated” out of his bedroom and taken aboard a UFO. During this experience, he encountered four different types of alien beings: a small robot-like being, a short and stocky type, a slender one, and a weak-looking being. Whatever he had recalled in the hypnosis became the story of his best-selling novel. Since that night, he was full of curiosity about the unknown visitors.
Strieber described that one of the beings had captivating black slanted eyes, while the last being had black button eyes. He further said that he underwent medical experiments conducted by those extraterrestrial beings. The experiments included a needle being inserted into his brain and an object being inserted into his rectum. Additionally, the beings extracted a blood sample from him by making an incision in his finger, indicating a series of invasive procedures.
As a result of the bizarre incidents described, Dr. Klein diagnosed Strieber with “temporal lobe epilepsy,” a condition known to cause hallucinations. However, Strieber did not accept this diagnosis and continued to claim that his abduction was a real experience. In fact, he went on to establish a foundation to provide support for other individuals who claimed to have been abducted by aliens, forming a support group for alien abductees.
In 1998, Strieber had another strange encounter at the Delta Chelsea Hotel in Toronto. He was awakened at 2:30 in the morning by a knock at the door, expecting room service, but instead found a mysterious man. Stieber told the Huffington Post: “I got up to open the door, thinking it was the room service waiter. It was not. It was a man I described as about 5 and a half feet tall, older-looking, like someone in his 70s. He wore dark-colored clothing, a turtleneck, and charcoal slacks.”
Strieber described this encounter in his book “The Key: A True Encounter,” published in 2000. The stranger engaged Strieber in a conversation about life lessons, science, and ethics. He expressed a desire to help humanity escape from a cycle of violence and self-destruction. When asked about technology, the stranger mentioned that an intelligent machine would continually seek to enhance its intelligence for survival. The conversation touched upon various topics, including the existence of multiple universes and catastrophic events in Earth’s history.
During the 45-minute conversation, Strieber grew increasingly curious and asked many questions. However, at one point, the stranger offered him a drink, which caused him to fall asleep immediately. The stranger’s true identity remains unknown, leaving Strieber contemplating the future of humanity and the undiscovered realms of science.
While many people remain skeptical about Strieber’s claim of alien abduction, John B. Alexander, a former Green Beret Commander and weapons developer, has regarded Strieber as an intelligent and thoughtful researcher in the field.
Author Whitley Strieber approached the subject of alien abductions differently than his contemporaries in the 1980s. While others focused on the idea that extraterrestrial scientists were stealing human DNA, Strieber delved into the controversial aspects of his own experiences with what he called the Visitors. He used this term because he was not sure if his captors were truly alien in the conventional sense. Strieber believed they might represent something beyond human comprehension.
In his book “Transformation,” a sequel to “Communion,” Strieber explored traumatic encounters of abductees who believed the Visitors (also known as Greys) had the ability to extract the immortal human soul from the physical body. He received a response from the Visitors, explaining that they recycled souls and that Earth was like a school where souls learn, grow, and evolve through successive reincarnations.
Strieber’s realization that the abduction phenomenon was stranger than initially thought was shared by Harvard professor John E. Mack. Mack encountered abductees who believed the entities they encountered were soul-stealers. In Mack’s book “Passport to the Cosmos,” he recounted the story of an abductee named Greg who feared being separated from his soul, believing it would lead to the end of his consciousness and existence.
Evidence of ancient lake sediments at the base of Mars' Jezero crater offer new hope for finding traces of life in samples collected by NASA's Perseverance rover.
An illustration of Jezero Crater, the landing locale of the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover as it might have appeared billions of years ago when it was perhaps a life-sustaining lake.(Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)
Evidence of ancient lake sediments at the base of Mars' Jezero Crater offer new hope for finding traces of life in samples collected by NASA's Perseverance rover.
Perseverance touched down on Feb. 18, 2021 inside the Red Planet's 28-mile-wide (45 kilometers) Jezero Crater, which is believed to have once hosted a large lake and river delta. The rover has been scouring the crater in search of signs of past life and collecting and caching dozens of samples along the way for a possible future return to Earth.
Using the rover's Radar Imager for Mars' Subsurface Experiment (RIMFAX) instrument, researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Oslo revealed new clues about how sediment layers formed over time on the crater floor, according to a statement.
"From orbit we can see a bunch of different deposits, but we can't tell for sure if what we're seeing is their original state, or if we're seeing the conclusion of a long geological story," David Paige, first author of the study, RIMFAX's deputy principal investigator and UCLA professor, said in the statement. "To tell how these things formed, we need to see below the surface."
As Perseverance travels across the surface of Mars, the RIMFAX instrument sends radar waves downward at 4-inch (10-centimeter) intervals and measures pulses reflected from depths of about 65.6 feet (20 meters) below the surface to create a subsurface profile of the crater floor.
The RIMFAX data showed evidence of sediment deposited by water that once filled the crater. It's possible that microbial life could have lived in the crater at this time and, if such life existed on Mars, sediment samples from this area would contain signs of their remains.
Two distinct periods of deposition occurred, creating layers of sediments on the crater floor that appear regular and horizontal, much like strata layers seen on Earth. Fluctuations in the lake's water levels caused some of the sediment deposits to form an enormous delta, which Perseverance traversed between May and December 2022, according to the statement.
The radar measurements also show an uneven crater floor below the delta, which is likely due to erosion before sediments were first deposited. After, as the lake dried up over time, the sediment layers in the crater were eroded, forming the geologic features visible on the Martian surface today.
"The changes we see preserved in the rock record are driven by large-scale changes in the Martian environment," Paige said in the statement. "It's cool that we can see so much evidence of change in such a small geographic area, which allows us [to] extend our findings to the scale of the entire crater."
Their findings were published today (Jan. 26) in the journal Science Advances.
This animated artist’s concept depicts water breaking through the rim of Mars’ Jezero Crater, which NASA’s Perseverance rover is now exploring. Water entered the crater billions of years ago, forming a lake, delta, and rivers before the Red Planet dried up.
Joseph Simonton, a poultry farmer was sixty years old at the time of his encounter with a flying saucer. He reportedly received some pancakes as a gift from the ETs who were inside that craft. The farmer lived near Eagle River, Wisconsin, United States.
On April 18, 1961, Simonton was having breakfast in the late morning in his home when he heard a confusing noise near his farm. He looked out his window and stunned after seeing a silver disc hovering over his backyard. The UFO was four meters high and 10 meters in diameter.
Simonton was rather curious to check on the object than shocked. When he stepped outside, a hatch on the disc opened and three dark-skinned humanoid figures appeared. According to the farmer, they were mute and looked like the Italian. The aliens were about five feet tall, dressed up in tight clothes from head to toes.
The man said that one of the aliens had some vessel (like a bucket) and signaled him to fill it with water. He took the bucket, filled it with the water from the nearby pump, and returned it to the alien. Simonton noticed that inside the ship, it was totally dark and one of the ship’s crew was busy with the dashboard while others seemed to be prepared for cooking on a flameless grill. The creatures looked nice and offered him four pancakes that had tiny holes. After that, they closed the hatch, started the ship, slowly rose it some distance from the ground, and flew away tow ard the south. Simonton, holding four pancakes, watched this amazing scene with his eyes wide open.
Interestingly, at the same time, this incident caught one more witness. Savino Borgo, an insurance agent who was driving near Simonton’s farm, also saw a flying saucer.
Simonton tasted one of the pancakes but was not impressed by the friendly aliens’ cooking. According to him, it tasted like cardboard. Normally, such stories are called fake due to their bizarre nature but this one got the attention of the US authorities. After the neighbors spotted a UFO over Simonton’s farm, they called the US Air Force. They arrived with the members of Project Blue Book.
One of the aliens’ pancakes was given to a local judge by Simonton who vouched for his honesty and reliability. The second pancake was received by Dr. J. Allen Hynek, and the third one was handed over to the Food and Drug Administration by the Air Force. After some analysis, it was found out that the pancakes were made from completely earthy products.
Within a few days, this strange story turned from an interesting UFO encounter into a nationwide joke. The newspapers spoke of the incident in a derisive tone, but the people who had known Simonton for a long time believed him. When Dr. Hynek met Simonton for the first time, he was quite impressed by his behavior. He wrote in one of his Project Blue Book reports that Simonton knew that they would not believe him but he did not care. He simply assured that whatever he witnessed had happened in reality.
Simonton lived In the Eagle River which is surrounded by forests and lakes and is close to the Michigan border. In the following month of the incident, the area suffered a power failure and all the telephone lines were also affected. Besides, a fighter jet (B-47 bomber) crashed 60 miles from Eagle River on February 24 of the same year, and on May 2, another plane crashed near that area. The pilot in the second crash said: “I felt this weightlessness and I was hanging by my straps” just before the crash. The place had many strange UFO sightings from 1959 to 1963 but never got public attention.
The Eagle River UFO incident has been unsolved. The Air Force said that Simonton mistook a dream and considered it a reality.
A NASA-funded study that evaluated a key strategic location on the Moon with help from imagery obtained by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has revealed the presence of moonquakes and faults in areas near the lunar south pole, which the space agency plans to utilize for future crewed space missions.
The study found that the Moon’s interior is shrinking over time as it cools, a phenomenon that is giving rise to tremors and other seismic activity occurring near the vicinity of the Moon’s south polar region.
The findings could present complications for NASA’s Artemis program, particularly its third mission which will involve crewed lunar exploration that may use the Moon’s south pole for potential landing sites.
Tom Watters, a Senior Scientist with the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies of the National Air and Space Museum at the Smithsonian Institution, says current models reveal shallow moonquakes resulting from fault activity that could produce violent ground shaking in the Moon’s south pole region.
Watters, an expert on tectonic landforms on the Earth and the Moon and the lead author of a paper detailing the new findings, says the potential thrust fault activity in the region “should be considered when planning the location and stability of permanent outposts on the Moon.”
LRO image depicting the the Wiechert cluster of lobate scarps, as detailed with arrows pointing leftward, located near the lunar south pole
(Credit: NASA/LROC/ASU/Smithsonian Institution)
Currently, thousands of small, relatively new thrust faults have been detected in the lunar crust, as revealed in imagery collected by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). LRO Deputy Project Scientist Maria Banks, also a co-author of the new study, called the imagery “a good demonstration of one of the many ways in which LRO data is being used to assist planning for our return to the Moon.”
According to the team, these thrust faults detected in LRO imagery are the result of contractions driven by factors that include the Moon’s hot interior gradually cooling over time, which breaks the crust and misaligns the separate halves, producing steep banks resembling steps on a staircase.
Shallow moonquakes have also been detected in conjunction with the formation of these thrust faults by seismometers associated with the Apollo Passive Seismic Network, the strongest of which had an epicenter that was traced to the lunar south pole.
Based on models used in the recent study, the formation of a young thrust fault scarp in the de Gerlache Rim 2, a location NASA has identified as a potential landing site for Artemis III, could have been associated with a moonquake of comparable strength.
Also of concern is the potential for regolith landslides that may occur, which the recent study shows could result even from much milder seismic activity.
In the years ahead, NASA aims to work with its international and commercial partners to establish the first long-term human presence on the lunar surface under its Artemis program, in addition to landing the first woman and first person of color on the Moon.
However, Renee Weber with NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and a co-author of the new study, says that understanding seismic hazards that may potentially impact future human lunar exploration during the Artemis missions, as well as those further in the future, will require additional seismic data from regions around the Moon, and not just its south pole.
“Missions like the upcoming Farside Seismic Suite will expand upon measurements made during Apollo,” Weber said in a statement, “and add to our knowledge of global seismicity.”
The team’s recent paper, “Tectonics and Seismicity of the Lunar South Polar Region,” was published on January 25, 2024, in The Planetary Science Journal.
A series of UFO incidents occurred between 2007 and 2009 in the town of Kumburgaz, situated near Istanbul, Turkey. The events stunned the media and UFO enthusiasts after the images and videos of the sightings went viral on the Internet. The video evidence of UFOs shared by a nightwatchman named Yalcin Yalman could be another strong evidence of non-human technology.
Back in 2008, Yalcin Yalman worked as a night watchman at the Yenikent facility from where he shot all these amazing videos of UFOs, hovering over the Marmara Sea near Kumburgaz. He even showed his second-hand camera to the media in a press conference held at the Dedeman Hotel in Istanbul.
Yalman said he started recording the strange crafts as a hobby to pass his time in the night. Due to the shaky videos, some skeptics claimed that the mysterious objects over the skies of Turkey could have been a US stealth drone or other aircraft. However, numerous experts confirmed that the videos were authentic. Besides, many people witnessed the same unknown crafts in the sky. The sightings gained attention from locals, national media, and even CNN. Several videos were recorded between June 8 and 12, 2009, showing mysterious objects and lights.
Originally, the video was analyzed and made public by the Sirius UFO Space Sciences Research Center led by researcher Haktan Akdoğan. Haktan said the UFOs were often seen by civilians and military pilots during an International UFO Congress in 2009. (Source)
In 2009, after the conference, there were witnesses of 8-10 people including UFOlogist Dr. Roger Leir, who also witnessed and verified the Kumburgaz UFO sighting. Dr. Leir was present during the filming of one video on May 17, 2009, and confirmed that as the UAP turned, it was similar to the “Roswell” shaped craft (more boomerang-shaped) rather than a traditional disc. Dr. Leir discussed this incident that happened with him after the conference on Coast to Coast with George Knapp.
Dr. Leir told Knapp that he, Yalman and others went to Kumburgaz to film UFOs. The group stayed up from midnight to 4 o’clock in the morning to capture any possible sightings. The conditions were ideal, with clear skies and no obstructions. During the filming, they observed a bright object below the full moon, which initially appeared as a potential star or planet. As they focused on this object, they discovered a semi-circular craft with a multitude of lights, possibly shaped like a boomerang or a cylindrical saucer.
Dr. Leir said,
“You’d think, ‘Well, gee, a bright sky, bright moon, you’re not going to see anything.’ But in this case, the moon was a big help. It essentially lit up the exterior portion of the craft, which initially, when we saw it, looked a bit like a boomerang because we weren’t seeing it straight on, so we couldn’t tell the exact shape of the craft. But then we went to full film on it, and we could see that it was either a boomerang, or we were looking at a certain portion of a cylindrical craft or a saucer.
Till this day, I don’t know, and I don’t know what the analysts said about the shape. But it was either one of the two: either a boomerang shape with a round front or a complete saucer. It did turn a couple of times, so we were able to see the side, and it looked like it could have been saucer-shaped. But then we got the biggest shock of our lives because we could see light that was emanating from the internal portion of the craft in three areas. One was directly in front, and one was on either side.
This was a full-on front view, and folks can look at the Coast website and they can not only see the video but please go to the Chilean analysis because there are some still photos there which show what we saw when we looked in the central portion. That was a big shock to look and see, not a Rorschach-type thing, but actual entities that were, whatever they were doing, looking out the front of the craft, just the same as we were looking at them.”
Video Observation
From 2007 to 2009, Yalman recorded approximately 30 videos. The footage was taken with a MiniDV Canon DM-GR1-A based on the NTSC system with a diaphragm set at a maximum of 1.8. It is a 3CCD 20x optic 100x with a teleconverter mounted on a 58 mm adapter. The tele-objective is a Sony VCL HGD 1758 model lens, x 1.7. [2007 to 2009 Original Raw Footage]
The videos were examined by two influential state-sponsored organizations in Turkey, “The Scientific and Technology Research Board of Turkey” and “The TUG National Observatory.” Their objective was to identify any evidence of forgery, but the results supported the authenticity of the videos. The original film cassettes were also studied by individuals from Japan, Chile, Brazil, and Russia, and despite several attempts, no one has been able to conclusively demonstrate evidence of a hoax, fraud, or manipulation, leaving the case unidentified.
Yalman’s camera was equipped with a zoom option which allowed him to even capture the pilots, sitting in one of the crafts. The image is shaky due to the hand movements while zooming. However, with the editing software, the video was stabilized, and the result shocked everyone. Two humanoid figures could be seen in the image with large black eyes and oversized heads.
Haktan Akdoğan noted that these are the most important images in Turkey and in the world, saying: “After doing all the necessary analysis which went on for several weeks, the board came to a definite conclusion with no doubt that these are 100% genuine videos. The objects sighted in the aforementioned footage that have a structure that is made of specific material are definitely not made up by any kind of computer animation nor are they any form of special effects used for simulation in a studio or for a video effect therefore in conclusion it was decided that the sightings were neither a mock up or hoax. It is concluded that these objects in the sightings that have physical and material structures do not belong in any category such as; planes, helicopters, meteors, Venus, Mars, satellites, fireballs, Chinese lanterns, fireballs, weather balloons, natural or atmospheric phenomenon etc. and but rather fall into the category of UFOs.”
“We see the heads of not only one UFO but also of two beings in the images. This is the first in the world.” He further added that those images would have a great impact on UFOlogy. He had been researching UFOs for 22 years and had never seen something like this. He stated: “These are the most remarkable images taken in Turkish history.”
[In translation] Akdoğan stated that “these beings are generally seen in areas rich with resources, volcanic areas, and historical places. They started to come more frequently after nuclear tests. Maybe the released radiation also harms the cosmic neighbors, we disrupt the balance in the universe. Maybe they observe this dangerous process.” (Source)
The images were recorded in digital NTSC format by the above-mentioned camera.
The date on the video indicates that the recordings were made during 2007, 2008, and 2009.
The footage images of the object that visibly have a certain configuration are not computer animations, special video effects or studio-re-created images or models. The footage is genuine.
The first observation made from the footage is that some of the images were recorded in the nighttime sky at a certain altitude from the horizon. The footage also covers images of the moon in some parts which proves that the video was shot in the nighttime and open air. But, the fact that digital date displays show AM in certain frames and PM in others, raises suspicion about the validity of the time in which the recordings were made.
Since in some parts, there is no other object that can be featured as a reference in the close-up frames and no observable differences were found on background examination, the actual location, distance, dimensions and nature of the objects could not have been determined.
Through the examination of shootings of multiple dates, it is a strong possibility that 2-3 different objects were captured. However, it is difficult to determine whether the objects are moving or not. Their movement is slow even if they do so.
The reflections of light on the objects are sometimes caused by the moon which was in a convenient location at that time, and sometimes produced by some other sources of light.
The light reflection from the left side of the object which is seen on the August 10th shootings is not produced by the moon. At that time, the moon was in a phase that was pretty close to the “new moon” phase and located approximately at a 10-degree proximity/angle to the horizon. Moreover, the image processing analysis conducted on some parts of the footage revealed that the center of the object has the same density as its background, namely is of a transparent nature.
Not Debunked
Adam Goldstack of UAP Media UK mentions that many debunkers try to explain the craft as cruise ships but according to former F-16 fighter pilot and researcher Chris Letho, it does not add up. Letho analyzed the videos and case and calculated the object’s size, horizon distance, plus visual angles from the Marmara Sea. He concluded the logistics of a cruise ship did not match the reported UAP. (Source)
Additionally, the triangulation of the UAP in most video cases was calculated to be too high to be a cruise ship or boat, by other researchers. Alternatively, in the fixed/stabilized camera videos (as shown below), we can see that the objects are motionless against a black background in the vast majority of videos. The motionless aspect of the UAP could also discount the “small-boat theory,” given that even on calm waters/oceans floating objects will still move and rock around slightly. Additionally, despite the mass mainstream media coverage in Turkey at the time, no person has ever come forward to state that the objects/boats belonged to them or that they were sailing off the coast in the middle of the night.
Goldstack writes, “From an analytical perspective, the Turkey Kumburgaz UFO case is unique with regards to the clear and multiple video footage obtained. Through this case, we also have sequential data that display behavioral patterns, times, and dates. We see all of the twenty-five video encounters/incidents at night-time/early morning (with one in the late evening), which is in keeping with the wider range of Ufology data that suggests UAP often appears at night-time.
We also see another significant pattern displaying the encounters around water – in this case, the Marmara Sea. The Sea of Marmara itself is a small sea with an area of 11,350 km2 (4,380 sq mi) and with dimensionsea of 280 km × 80 km (174 mi × 50 mi). The sea has a greatest depth of 1,370 m (4,490 ft). How significant the Sea of Marmara is to potential UAP has still not been explained. No connection to nuclr facilities or weapons has been linked in this case.”
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- Gemiddelde waardering: 0/5 - (0 Stemmen) Categorie:ALIEN LIFE, UFO- CRASHES, ABDUCTIONS, MEN IN BLACK, ed ( FR. , NL; E )
Top 10 Must See UFO Docs
Top 10 Must See UFO Docs
The enigma of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) and the possibility of extraterrestrial life has always fascinated humanity. With countless theories, eyewitness accounts, and unexplained phenomena, the quest for the truth remains a topic of intrigue and debate. For those drawn to the mysteries of the cosmos and the unexplained, here is a curated list of the top 10 must-see UFO documentaries that delve into these perplexing mysteries.
Westall ’66: A Suburban UFO Mystery This documentary takes us back to 1966 in a suburb where over 200 students and a teacher witnessed an inexplicable flying object. The film revisits this iconic event through eyewitness accounts, recreating the sense of wonder and bewilderment that enveloped the community.
Connected: The Hidden Science of Everything While not exclusively about UFOs, this series explores various topics, including a fascinating episode where a viewer spots what appears to be a UFO. The series broadens our understanding of how interconnected our universe really is.
UFOs and Nukes: The Secret Link Revealed Delving into declassified documents, this film uncovers the mysterious sightings of UFOs at nuclear testing sites. It’s a thought-provoking exploration of the potential relationship between UFO sightings and nuclear technology.
Curse of the Man Who Sees UFOs This documentary tells the poignant story of Christo Ropo and his encounters with UFOs, offering a humanizing perspective on the individuals who claim to have experienced these phenomena.
Alien Autopsy: Fact or Fiction? A controversial documentary that aired in 1995, it claimed to depict a real alien autopsy. Despite later being debunked, the film played a significant role in shaping public perception and debate about extraterrestrial life.
ove and Saucers This heartwarming documentary focuses on a 72-year-old man who shares his extraordinary experiences and encounters with aliens, depicted through his own paintings. It’s a unique take on the alien narrative, blending creativity with personal testimony.
The UnXplained Hosted by the iconic William Shatner, this series explores various mysteries, including several episodes dedicated to UFO phenomena. It provides a comprehensive look at government cover-ups and hotspots for UFO activity.
Out of the Blue Renowned for its compelling narrative, this documentary offers a comprehensive overview of UFO sightings globally. It combines scientific perspectives with eyewitness accounts to present a balanced view of the UFO phenomenon.
A Strange Harvest Investigating the bizarre and unsettling phenomenon of cattle mutilations, this documentary explores theories that attribute these occurrences to extraterrestrial activities. It’s a gripping tale that blends mystery with investigative journalism.
Alien Worlds This speculative documentary uses science as a foundation to imagine what life on other planets might be like. It’s a creative blend of science fiction and factual science, expanding our perception of potential extraterrestrial life.
Each of these documentaries offers a unique lens through which we can view the enduring mystery of UFOs. Whether you’re a skeptic, a believer, or simply curious, these films provide a compelling exploration of one of the most intriguing questions of our time: Are we alone in the universe?
The Moon is Still Shrinking, Explaining Why it Still Has Landslides
Although our Moon formed 4.5 billion years ago, it’s still evolving. The interior continues to cool and its orbit is slowly changing. As a result, the Moon has lost 150 feet of its circumference. That shrinkage contributes to near-constant moonquakes, and those trigger landslides and other surface changes. The Moon is currently uninhabited, but all that activity threatens future Artemis landing sites and missions at the South Pole.
In a recent paper, planetary scientists point out that the potential of strong seismic events from active thrust faults should be a top consideration when NASA and other agencies are planning permanent outposts on the Moon. This is particularly true as the Artemis mission planners plot exploration of the South Pole. “Our modeling suggests that shallow moonquakes capable of producing strong ground shaking in the south polar region are possible from slip events on existing faults or the formation of new thrust faults,” said the study’s lead author Thomas R. Watters, a senior scientist emeritus in the National Air and Space Museum’s Center for Earth and Planetary Studies. “The global distribution of young thrust faults, their potential to be active, and the potential to form new thrust faults from ongoing global contraction should be considered when planning the location and stability of permanent outposts on the Moon.”
The Moon is particularly vulnerable to the large-scale effects of moonquakes. That’s because its surface is very brittle and easily broken up during a quake. One of the strongest quakes in lunar history occurred in the 1970s and lasted for hours. Such a lengthy event does quite a bit of damage to the lunar surface. So, even a light moonquake could cause significant damage via landslides.
Our Shaky, Shrinking Moon
Moonquakes generally happen within a hundred miles or so of the lunar surface. On Earth, that might result in a fairly mild quake. But, since the Moon’s surface is so brittle, the effects of those “shakes” are much more noticeable. According to Nicholas Schmerr, a co-author of the paper and an associate professor of geology at the University of Maryland, this means that shallow moonquakes can devastate hypothetical human settlements on the Moon.
“You can think of the Moon’s surface as being dry, grounded gravel and dust,” he said. “Over billions of years, the surface has been hit by asteroids and comets, with the resulting angular fragments constantly getting ejected from the impacts,” Schmerr explained. “As a result, the reworked surface material can be micron-sized to boulder-sized, but all very loosely consolidated. Loose sediments make it very possible for shaking and landslides to occur.”
Quakes affect every part of the lunar surface. Global compressional stresses deform the surface, forcing splits and cracks to occur. These scarps—steep slopes and cliffs—exist everywhere there. In their paper, the team suggests that many are close to the epicenters of geologically recent quakes. And the regions where they occurred could still be active today. That includes the lunar South Pole.
Risks to Artemis
The team led by Watters examined data and images of the lunar South Pole and linked faults there to a major moonquake in the 1970s. The region is filled with scarps, which are prime evidence for moonquakes. Although they conclude that some regions in the area are probably safe enough for the Artemis missions, others are not. The team’s computer models show that the most dangerous areas are vulnerable to landslides triggered by seismic shaking. They continue to map the Moon and track its quakes to identify the riskiest areas for Artemis astronauts to land.
That mission could take place by the end of the decade, when NASA hopes to establish long-term habitations for research and exploration. Schmerr points out that the risks to safety from even the slightest quakes can’t be overestimated. “As we get closer to the crewed Artemis mission’s launch date, it’s important to keep our astronauts, our equipment, and infrastructure as safe as possible,” Schmerr said. “This work is helping us prepare for what awaits us on the moon—whether that’s engineering structures that can better withstand lunar seismic activity or protecting people from really dangerous zones.”
The Artemis missions essentially mark NASA’s return to human exploration of the Moon. The idea is to collaborate with both commercial partners and international agencies to make this happen. Teams of lunar astronauts will establish an Artemis Base camp, and depend on a lunar gateway to connect the mission to Earth. Eventually, what they learn there will inform the first human missions to Mars.
Watch a House-Sized Space Habitat (Intentionally) Burst
We live in an age of renewed space exploration, colloquially known as Space Age 2.0. Unlike the previous one, this new space age is characterized by inter-agency cooperation and collaboration between space agencies and the commercial space industry (aka. NewSpace). In addition to sending crews back to the Moon and onto Mars, a major objective of the current space age is the commercialization of Low Earth Orbit (LEO). That means large constellations of satellites, debris mitigation, and plenty of commercial space stations.
To accommodate this commercial presence in LEO, Sierra Space has developed the Large Integrated Flexible Environment (LIFE) habitat, an inflatable module that can be integrated into future space stations. As part of the Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program, NASA, Sierra Space, and ILC Dover (the Delaware-based engineering manufacturing company) recently conducted a full-scale burst pressure test of their LIFE habitat. The test occurred at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and was caught on video (see below).
Commercial space has become one of the fastest-growing businesses on Earth. In the past decade, the space economy has expanded by over 60% and is currently valued at around $400 billion. This is expected to grow considerably in the coming years as launch services increase, small satellites (CubeSats) become more affordable, and orbital stations are built. As the International Space Station (ISS) nears retirement, these commercial stations will provide opportunities for research and development, orbital manufacturing, and space tourism.
Sierra Space, the developer of the Dream Chaser reusable spaceplane, has demonstrated its commitment to the commercialization of LEO and the NewSpace economy. The first iteration of their inflatable habitat, LIFE 1.0, measures 6 meters (~20 feet) long and 9 meters (~30 feet) in diameter and can be launched using conventional rockets and inflates once in orbit. With a volume of 285 cubic meters (over 10,000 ft3), it can accommodate four astronauts, with additional room for science experiments, exercise equipment, and Sierra Space’s Astro Garden® plant-growing system.
The purpose of a burst pressure test is to gauge the structural tolerances of a component, be it a fuel tank or an inflatable module. The data gained from this test will assist engineers in simulating how the module will fare in the vacuum of space. Once development and testing are complete, the module will be used on commercial space stations like Orbital Reef, a collaborative effort between Blue Origin and Sierra Space. Future versions, like Life 2.0 and 3.0, will offer additional volume and be able to accommodate larger crews and more science operations.
According to their National Strategic Plan (released in 2022), one of NASA’s strategic goals is to develop a human spaceflight economy in collaboration with the NewSpace industry. In 2021, as part of a Commercial LEO Destinations (CLDs) project, NASA Space Act Agreements with three companies to design commercial space stations. This includes the Orbital Reef proposed by Blue Origin and Sierra Space, the Starlab space station by Nanoracks LLC, Voyager Space, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman’s free flyer commercial space station.
As per NASA’s plan, creating a human spaceflight economy will ensure continued research and development in space while “allowing NASA to focus Government resources on the challenges of deep space exploration through Artemis.” Another goal is to maintain the legacy of the ISS long past its retirement:
“Since its inception, industry, academia, and our international partners have used the International Space Station (ISS) as a testbed for research and the development and maturation of state-of-the-art systems that increase access to space. NASA is supporting new space stations from which we and other customers can purchase services and stimulate the growth of commercial human spaceflight activities. As commercial LEO destinations become available, we intend to implement an orderly transition from current ISS operations to these new commercial destinations.”
Our planet sits in the Habitable Zone of our Sun, the special place where water can be liquid on the surface of a world. But that’s not the only thing special about us: we also sit in the Galactic Habitable Zone, the region within the Milky Way where the rate of star formation is just right.
The Earth was born with all the ingredients necessary for life – something that most other planets lack. Water as a solvent. Carbon, with its ability to form long chains and bind to many other atoms, a scaffold. Oxygen, easily radicalized and transformable from element to element, to provide the chain reactions necessary to store and harvest energy. And more: hydrogen, phosphorous, nitrogen. Some elements fused in the hearts of stars, other only created in more violent processes like the deaths of the most massive stars or the collisions of exotic white dwarfs.
And with that, a steady, long-lived Sun, free of the overwhelming solar flares that could drown the system in deadly radiation, providing over 10 billion years of life-giving warmth. Larger stars burn too bright and too fast, their enormous gravitational weight accelerating the fusion reactions in their cores to a frenetic pace, forcing the stars to burn themselves out in only a few million years. And on the other end of the spectrum sit the smaller red dwarf stars, some capable of living for 10 trillion years or more. But that longevity does not come without a cost. With their smaller sizes, their fusion cores are not very far from their surfaces, and any changes or fluctuations in energy result in massive flares that consume half their faces – and irradiate their systems.
And on top of it all, our neighborhood in the galaxy, on a small branch of a great spiral arm situated about 25,000 light-years from the center, seems tuned for life: a Galactic Habitable Zone.
Too close to the center and any emerging life must contend with an onslaught of deadly radiation from countless stellar deaths and explosions, a byproduct of the cramped conditions of the core. Yes, stars come and go, quickly building up a lot of the heavy elements needed for life, but stars can be hundreds of times closer together in the core. The Earth has already suffered some extinction events likely triggered by nearby supernovae, and in that environment we simply wouldn’t stand a chance. Explosions would rip away our protective ozone layer, exposing surface life to deadly solar UV radiation, or just rip away our atmosphere altogether.
And beyond our position, at greater galactic radii, we find a deserted wasteland. Yes, stars appear and live their lives in those outskirts, but they are too far and too lonely to effectively spread their elemental ash to create a life-supporting mixture. There simply isn’t enough density of stars to support sufficient levels of mixing and recycling of elements, meaning that it’s difficult to even build a planet out there in the first place.
And so it seems that life would almost inevitably arise here, on this world, around this Sun, in thisregion of the Milky Way galaxy. There’s little else that we could conceivably call home.
Another Asteroid Discovered Hours Before it Impacts the Earth
What were you doing last Saturday? As it turns out, I was doing something rather unexciting… Trying to fix my washing machine (I did – in case you are interested). At the same time, Hungarian geography teacher by day and asteroid hunter by night Krisztián Sárneczky was out observing and detected a small asteroid which it transpired was on a collision course with Earth!
Spotting asteroids is a tricky business. Not least because they are typically dark in colour against a very black sky but the sky is quite a big place and spotting a tiny dark object against a massive black sky is worse than looking for a needle in a haystack!
Unperturbed by the statistics and likelihood of actually discovering one, Sárneczky regularly scours the sky looking for asteroids and supernova at the Konkoly observatory in Budapest, Hungary. He was engaged in this very task last Saturday night (20th January) at 22:48 CET (21:48 UT) when he spotted a new asteroid using a 0.6m Schmidt Telescope. Any discovery of this sort requires swift action to get the data over to the Minor Planet Center (MPC) who co-ordinate observations from astronomers around the World.
Sárneczky only had three observations when he submitted the data but continued to observe and over the course of the following minutes secured four more observations which he passed over realising it was heading straight for Earth. The actions that follow any such discovery like this are that the MPC alert others for follow up observations. Astronomers and automated impact monitoring systems including the European Space Agency’s wonderfully named ‘MeerKAT’ system sprang into action and more observations came in.
With more data, came more accuracy and thankfully the knowledge the the impactor was only about a metre across and due to impact just west of Berlin in Germany. It is not unusual for asteroids of this size to hit Earth indeed, we get them every couple of weeks but they generally burn up in the atmosphere and pose no threat. Larger asteroids that do pose a threat are thankfully much rarer. Larger objects are also easier to spot so the majority have already been spotted and are already being tracked but there are automated searches and individuals like Sárneczky who are always on the look out.
The asteroid, which is now known as 2024-BX1 hit the Earth’s atmosphere just a few hours after discovery at 01:32 CET (00:32 UT) on Sunday morning the 21st January, 50km to the west of Berlin. It burned up, leaving a fabulous streak across the sky which people witnessed as a fireball even being spotted over here in the UK.
Worryingly it is actually quite an unusual thing for asteroids to have been discovered before they impact our atmosphere. Only eight have been spotted with the first back in 2008. The difficulty of course is to find them early enough to give us time to understand their trajectory and size to understand what level of threat they pose to us. I should add there are no known asteroids on a collision course with Earth and fortunately there are people like Sárneczky and a number of automated search systems out there on the lookout for the next one.
US officials do not have the capabilities to defend America against a hypothetical alien invasion, internal Pentagon watchdogs have determined.
A newly declassified document found the Department of Defense (DoD) lacks comprehensive or coordinated effort to track and analyze UFOs - which have been rebranded Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) in recent years.
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) made the eerie conclusion that this blindspot in the DoD's defensive capabilities 'poses a threat to military forces and national security.'
To address the issues identified in this report, the OIG has made 11 recommendations, including the enforcement of protection policies and the development of new tools in the event of an extraterrestrial attack.
A newly declassified document determined the Department of Defense (DoD) lacks comprehensive or coordinated effort to track and analyze UAP, such as one spotted by the US Navy in 2004
'However, military pilots have continued to report UAP incidents despite the sporadic efforts of the DoD to identify, report, and analyze the events'
The 2023 report was a collection of evaluations on whether the Pentagon, military branches, defense agencies and counterintelligence organizations conducted actions 'to detect, report, collect, analyze, and identify UAP.'
'The DoD has not issued a comprehensive UAP response plan that identifies roles, responsibilities, requirements, and coordination procedures for detecting, reporting, collecting, analyzing, and identifying UAP incidents,' OIG concluded.
The agency conducted the work for the evaluation from May 2021 through June 2023 and interviewed Presidential and DoD policies, directives and guidance.
Those individuals are tasked with establishing requirements for intelligence gathering, counterintelligence, force protection, and civil liberty protections for
'As a result, the DoD response to UAP incidents is uncoordinated and concentrated within each Military Department.'
In July 2022, the Pentagon set up the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), to handle reports of UAPs.
AARO is responsible for synchronizing and standardizing the collection, analysis, and identification of UAP incidents.
Inspector General Robert P. Storch announced the declassification of the report on Thursday, noting it was released due to the 'significant public interest in how the DoD is addressing UAPs'
However, OIG has questioned the abilities of the nation to organize and defend itself in a summary of the classified report.
OIG found that due to a lack of DoD-level guidance, AARO has not developed a formal process to detect and report on unidentified object in US skies.
UAPs are designated as 'Special Interest Items' among military officials, who require aircrews to document and report sightings within 24 hours of shutting down the engines of their own aircraft.
Some of those unexplained observations have been sent to AARO, but the reported noted that the DoD does not require military services to do so.
'DoD Components have largely excluded geographic combatant commands, which are responsible for detecting, deterring, and preventing threats and attacks against the United States and its territories, possessions, and bases in their respective areas of responsibility, in developing UAP policies and procedures,' OIG determined in the 16-page document.
In July 2022, the Pentagon set up the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), to handle reports of UAPs. AARO is responsible for identification of UAP incidents such as this observation in 2023 above LAX
To address the issues identified in the report, the DoD OIG said they have made eleven recommendations to the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security.
For example, OIG recommended that the DoD issue a policy to integrate roles, responsibilities, requirements, and coordination procedures regarding UAP into existing intelligence, counterintelligence, and force protection policies and procedures,' the report reads.
The report also suggested the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff issue guidance to 'the geographic combatant commanders regarding unidentified anomalous phenomena detection, reporting, collection, analysis, and identification within their area of responsibility.
'At a minimum, the guidance should include tools to help commands determine the threats posed by unidentified anomalous phenomena.'
Inspector General Robert P. Storch announced the declassification of the report on Thursday, noting it was released due to the 'significant public interest in how the DoD is addressing UAPs.'
'We are releasing this unclassified summary to be as transparent as possible with the American people about our oversight work on this important issue,' Storch shared in a statement.
A new genus and species of temnospondyl amphibian has been described by a team of paleontologists from the Universidade Federal do Pampa, the Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco, Princeton University and Harvard University.
An artist’s impression of Kwatisuchus rosai.
Image credit: Márcio Castro.
The newly-identified temnospondyl species roamed our planet during the Early Triassic epoch, some 249 million years ago.
Named Kwatisuchus rosai, the ancient animal was approximately 1.5 m (4.9 feet) in length.
It belonged to Benthosuchidae, a small group of giant crocodile-like amphibians that lived during the Triassic.
These creatures were primarily aquatic, living in rivers and lakes. They were up to 2.5 m (8.2 feet) in length and have no direct living relatives.
“Kwatisuchus rosai can be confidently assigned to the Benthosuchidae, a stereospondyl clade with a distribution previously restricted to the East European Platform,” said Universidade Federal do Pampa paleontologist Felipe Pinheiro and his colelagues.
“Phylogenetic analysis confirms the relationship of the new genus to the trematosaurian lineage, being closely related to the genus Benthosuchus.”
The skull of Kwatisuchus rosai.
Image credit: Felipe Pinheiro.
The fossilized skull of Kwatisuchus rosai was found in August 2022 in the Sanga do Cabral Formation, a sedimentary rock formation found in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
“Kwatisuchus rosai was a survivor,” said Dr. Pinheiro, led author of a paper published in The Anatomical Record.
“It lived in an environment devastated by the greatest mass extinction in the history of the planet.”
“Since they were animals adapted to conditions of high environmental stress, temnospondyl amphibians became abundant throughout the world.”
“They help us understand how extinctions affected the planet and how we can understand their effects today.”
“This was the most diverse group of primitive tetrapods, recorded on every continent on Earth,” said Dr. Estevan Eltink, a paleontologist at the Universidade Federal do Vale do São Francisco.
“Temnospondyls survived the greatest mass extinction of all time.”
“They have a broad record across geological periods, and had several pulses of irradiation over the millions of years of their existence.”
Felipe L. Pinheiro et al. Interrelationships among Early Triassic faunas of Western Gondwana and Laurasia as illuminated by a new South American benthosuchid temnospondyl. The Anatomical Record, published online January 19, 2024; doi: 10.1002/ar.25384
Professor of Religion Gives Her Take on the UFO Phenomenon
In a recent episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience,” an intriguing dialogue unfolded, featuring Diana Walsh Pasulka, a respected Professor of Religion. The podcast delved into the enigmatic world of UFOs, offering a perspective that bridged the gap between the mystical and the empirical.
Pasulka, known for her in-depth research and scholarly approach, brought a unique lens to the topic. She emphasized the diverse nature of UFO phenomena, suggesting that these experiences, steeped in history, are more than mere sightings; they are interactions with something beyond our conventional understanding.
At the heart of Pasulka’s argument lies the idea of transformation. She posited that encounters with UFOs often lead individuals to seek justice and societal improvement. This pattern, illustrated through anecdotes from her research, points to a profound impact on human behavior and societal structures.
What stands out in Pasulka’s discourse is her holistic approach. She doesn’t shy away from considering interdimensional theories, proposing that some UFOs might be objects existing simultaneously in multiple dimensions. This hypothesis ties into the discussion of historical anomalies like the Shroud of Turin, suggesting a tangible intersection between the material world and unknown realms.
Pasulka also touched on the role of technology in shaping public perception of UFOs. With the advent of digital platforms, stories and experiences that were once isolated incidents have found a communal space, amplifying the phenomenon’s reach and impact. This digital age, as she notes, has allowed for a viral spread of information, akin to the rapid expansion seen in early religious movements.
In her conversation with Rogan, Pasulka navigated the complex web of government involvement, scientific inquiry, and public discourse surrounding UFOs. She hinted at a possible government acknowledgment of UFOs, a step that could lead to wider engagement in understanding these phenomena.
Moreover, Pasulka’s discussion ventured into the realms of historical parallels and religious implications. She drew connections between modern UFO experiences and esoteric traditions, suggesting a deeper, perhaps spiritual, dimension to these encounters.
Diana Walsh Pasulka’s appearance on “The Joe Rogan Experience” provided a nuanced, scholarly perspective on the UFO phenomenon. Her approach, blending historical insight with contemporary analysis, invites us to consider the broader implications of these mysterious encounters. It’s a conversation that not only piques curiosity but also encourages a thoughtful exploration of the unknown.
Unraveling the Mystery of the Cold War Era ‘Black Knight Satellite’
Unraveling the Mystery of the Cold War Era ‘Black Knight Satellite’
The Cold War era was a time of intense rivalry and technological race between the United States and the Soviet Union. Amidst this geopolitical tension, a curious incident unfolded that captured the imagination of the world: the discovery of an unidentified flying object (UFO) orbiting the Earth. This mysterious object, later known as the “Black Knight Satellite,” remains a subject of fascination and speculation even today.
Discovery and Initial Speculations
The story began in the late 1950s, a period marked by rapid advancements in space technology. In 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik 1, the first man-made satellite, signaling its lead in the space race. Around this time, the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory was operating a radar system called Dark Fence, designed to monitor space activities. In January 1960, Dark Fence detected an unknown object in a polar orbit around Earth – an orbit that was technologically challenging at the time.
The detection of this object caused a stir within the defense and scientific communities. The United States and the Soviet Union, the only two nations capable of such a feat, both denied responsibility for the mysterious satellite. This denial led to wild speculations: Was it a covert spy satellite, or could it be something more extraordinary?
The Black Knight Legend and Tesla’s Connection
The enigma surrounding this object fueled various theories, one of which linked it to the legendary Black Knight satellite. This legend proposed that an ancient, alien spacecraft was orbiting Earth, left behind by an extraterrestrial civilization. This theory found roots in an earlier claim by the famous inventor Nikola Tesla, who, in 1899, reported receiving strange radio signals that some later speculated might have been from the Black Knight.
The Discoverer Program and Corona Spy Satellites
The truth, however, was more grounded, albeit still shrouded in secrecy. Years later, it was revealed that the United States had indeed launched a series of satellites into polar orbit as part of the Discoverer program. This program, ostensibly for scientific research, was a cover for the CIA’s Corona spy satellite project. These satellites were designed to replace the U-2 spy planes and gather reconnaissance over the Soviet Union. The object detected by Dark Fence was likely a piece of debris from these covert operations.
Impact and Legacy
The Black Knight satellite story is more than just a Cold War anecdote; it reflects the era’s atmosphere of mystery, technological rivalry, and the penchant for conspiracy theories. While the object’s true nature was likely mundane, its legacy endures in popular culture as a symbol of the unknowns in space exploration and surveillance.
VIDEO:
The UFO Discovered Orbiting Earth During The Cold War | NASA’s Unexplained Files
The Black Knight satellite mystery encapsulates a fascinating period in history where space exploration was in its nascent stages, and the line between science and fiction was often blurred. It serves as a reminder of the lengths nations went to in the name of security and dominance, and how these efforts sparked the human imagination, leading to enduring legends and myths. As we continue to explore the cosmos, stories like that of the Black Knight satellite remind us of our perpetual quest to understand the unknown.
Wetenschappers zien het nog minstens net zo somber in als een jaar geleden: de doemdagklok blijft ook in 2024 hangen op 90 seconden voor middernacht. En daarmee bevinden we ons – net als in 2023 – nog altijd dichter bij de ondergang van planeet en mensheid dan in de zeven decennia hiervoor het geval was.
Dat heeft het Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists zojuist bekend gemaakt. De organisatie boog zich over de situatie in de wereld en kan niet anders dan concluderen dat deze in het afgelopen jaar nauwelijks verbeterd is en de dreiging dat we de planeet en/of onszelf vernietigen nog minstens net zo groot is als in 2023; het jaar waarin de doemdagklok (zie kader) op een ongeëvenaarde 90 seconden voor 12 werd gezet. En dus blijft de klok ook in 2024 op 90 seconden voor 12 staan.
Wat is de doemdagklok? De doemdagklok werd in 1947 in het leven geroepen om in één oogopslag weer te kunnen geven in hoeverre de mensheid erop afstevent de planeet (en misschien zelfs zichzelf) te vernietigen. Daarbij wordt de klok steevast op een aantal minuten voor middernacht gezet, waarbij middernacht dus symbool staat voor de apocalyps. In de tijd dat de doemdagklok geboren werd – kort na de Tweede Wereldoorlog – vreesde men sterk dat de inzet van kernwapens de apocalyps zou inluiden. En bij het bepalen van de tijd op de doemdagklok werd in beginsel dan ook vooral gekeken naar de ontwikkeling van die wapens en de mate waarin landen dreigden met inzet ervan. Het resulteerde erin dat de doemdagklok in het jaar van oprichting – 1947 dus – op 7 minuten voor middernacht werd gezet, maar in 1953 – de Koude Oorlog was toen in volle gang – op 2 minuten voor 12 kwam te staan. Inmiddels zijn kernwapens lang niet meer de enige dreiging die in overweging wordt genomen alvorens de wijzers van de doemdagklok worden verzet. Zo wordt sinds 2017 bijvoorbeeld ook de dreiging van de catastrofale effecten van klimaatverandering meegenomen. Waar de wijzers van de doemdagklok temidden van al het tumult in de wereld op uitkomen wordt met enige regelmaat besproken binnen een speciaal comité – het Science and Security Board van het Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists – waarin vooraanstaande wetenschappers zitting hebben.
2023 Vorig jaar zetten wetenschappers de doemdagklok dus op 90 seconden voor middernacht. Dat was ongeëvenaard: nog nooit hadden de wijzers zo dicht bij middernacht gestaan. Het was vooral te wijten aan de oorlog in Oekraïne en het feit dat Rusland in het kader daarvan met enige regelmaat met de inzet van kernwapens dreigt.
Oorlogen en kernwapens Met het aanbreken van 2024 hebben wetenschappers zich opnieuw over de wereldwijde situatie gebogen, om vervolgens te bepalen of de wijzers van de doemdagklok al dan niet voor- of achteruit moesten worden gezet. Die overwegingen werden opnieuw overschaduwd door de oorlog in Oekraïne, maar ook door de in oktober vorig jaar uitgebroken oorlog in Gaza, zo laat de onderzoekscommissie in kwestie weten. Die laatstgenoemde oorlog kan zomaar leiden tot een grootschaliger conflict in de regio, met alle gevolgen van dien. Daarnaast hebben de onderzoekers grote zorgen over het feit dat landen als China en en Rusland druk bezig zijn om hun nucleaire wapenarsenalen te moderniseren en uit te breiden. Een nieuwe kernwapenwedloop ligt op de loer, zo waarschuwen ze.
Klimaat en AI Maar er zijn meer zorgen. Bijvoorbeeld over ons klimaat: 2023 was het warmste jaar ooit, waarin overstromingen, natuurbranden en andere klimaatgerelateerde rampen miljoenen mensen troffen. Ook zijn de onderzoekers bezorgd over de razendsnelle opkomst van kunstmatige intelligentie (KI): een ontwikkeling die de mensheid ten goede kan komen, maar voor hetzelfde geld ook kan bedreigen en op dit moment nauwelijks door overheden gecontroleerd wordt. “Vergis je niet,” zo benadrukt Rachel Bronson namens het Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. “Dat de klok op 90 seconden voor middernacht blijft staan, wil niet zeggen dat de wereld stabiel is. In tegendeel zelfs. Het is de hoogste tijd voor overheden en samenlevingen wereldwijd om in actie te komen.”
Eerdere tijden In 2023 stond de klok op 90 seconden voor middernacht. En daarmee stond de mensheid er slechter voor dan in 2022 toen de klok op 100 seconden voor middernacht bleef hangen. Dat wetenschappers wel eens aanzienlijk optimistischer zijn geweest over het lot van de mensheid staat vast; in 1991 stond de klok nog op 17 minuten voor 12 en reflecteerde zo de rust die het einde van de Koude Oorlog had gebracht. Maar die rust was van korte duur. Want in de jaren die volgden, kropen de wijzers steeds iets dichter naar middernacht: van 14 minuten voor 12 in 1995 naar 7 minuten voor 12 in 2002. Nog eens tien jaar later staat de klok op 5 voor 12 en in 2018 komt deze op het niveau van het Koude Oorlogsjaar 1953, met een tijd van 2 voor 12. En in 2020 komt deze zelfs op een ongeëvenaarde 100 seconden voor middernacht te staan. Een droevig record dat in 2023 dus alweer verbroken wordt en ook in 2024 standhoudt.
Reële dreiging En zo schetst de doemdagklok al jaren een weinig rooskleurig beeld. Maar tegelijkertijd zijn we er gewoon nog. Het roept bij de wat sceptischer aangelegde geesten wellicht de vraag op of de angst voor de apocalyps eigenlijk wel terecht is. Wetenschappers kunnen er kort over zijn: die angst fluctueert misschien door de jaren heen, maar is zeker reëel. “Zolang kernwapens bestaan en gebruikt kunnen worden, is er ook een kans dat we onze beschaving vernietigen (…) En zolang het klimaat blijft veranderen, is er een kans dat we daar gevolgen van ondervinden die een bedreiging vormen voor de overleving van onze soort.”
Maar er is altijd hoop Maar de Doemdagklok is niet bedacht met het idee de mensheid een collectieve depressie aan te praten. Juist niet. Wetenschappers willen mensen aan het denken zetten, waarschuwen en in actie laten komen. “Mensen hebben zowel kernwapens als de door fossiele brandstoffen aangedreven machines die bijdragen aan klimaatverandering, bedacht. We weten hoe ze werken, dus is het aannemelijk dat we ook manieren kunnen vinden om de dreiging die ervan uitgaat, te verminderen,” zo is op de site van het Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists te lezen.
Titanic Vooralsnog lijkt het er echter niet op dat wereldleiders echt van de ernst van de situatie doordrongen zijn, zo moet Jerry Brown, voorzitter van het Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists vaststellen. “Net als op de Titanic sturen leiders de wereld richting een catastrofe: meer kernbommen, enorme koolstofemissies, gevaarlijke ziekteverwekkers en KI. Alleen de grootmachten zoals China, Amerika en Rusland kunnen ons nog redden. Ondanks grote vijandschap moeten zij gaan samenwerken – anders zijn we verloren.”
Het klinkt weinig hoopgevend. Maar de wetenschappers houden hoop, zo laat Bronson weten. “Wat ons hoopvol stemt en inspireert is dat we zien dat jongere generaties de leiding nemen.” Over een jaar moet blijken of dat in 2025 dan misschien genoeg is om de grote wijzer wat terug te draaien.
NASA has announced that the Ingenuity helicopter has formally concluded its mission on Mars, following dozens of successful test flights during its three-year tenure on the planet.
The small helicopter, specially designed for flight in the Red Planet’s thin atmosphere, made history as the first aircraft to perform a powered, controlled flight on another planet.
Although initially planned as a technology demonstration that would only conduct five test flights, Ingenuity went on to perform a remarkable 72 flights, many of which provided useful aerial reconnaissance for the Perseverance rover in advance of its movement to areas of interest for potential study.
“It is bittersweet that I must announce Ingenuity… has taken its last flight on Mars,” Nelson said in a statement.
Characterizing the small aircraft as “the little helicopter that could,” Nelson said the helicopter sustained damage to one of its rotor blades while attempting a landing.
NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter takes off above Jezero crater
(Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS).
“At least one of its carbon fiber rotor blades was damaged,” Nelson said. “We’re investigating the possibility that the blade struck the ground.”
The damage occurred during a vertical flight the helicopter performed to determine its location several days ago, following an emergency landing during its previous flight.
Although the aircraft achieved a maximum altitude of 40 feet, hovering for a total of 4.5 seconds before beginning its descent, Ingenuity lost contact with Perseverance before reaching the ground. Several days later the rotor blade damage was revealed.
“What Ingenuity accomplished far exceeds what we thought possible,” Nelson said.
“Ingenuity demonstrated how flight can enhance operational missions, and it’s helping us in the search for life on Mars.”
Ingenuity’s first flight occurred on April 19, 2021, after arriving on the Red Planet earlier that year with the Perseverance rover.
Laurie Leshin, director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, said Ingenuity was “an exemplar of the way we push the boundaries of what’s possible every day.
“I’m incredibly proud of our team behind this historic technological achievement and eager to see what they’ll invent next,” Leshin added.
Comparing Ingenuity’s operations to the pioneering flights of Wilbur and Orville Wright, Nelson said the Mars helicopter has set the pace for the future use of aircraft in space exploration.
“Ingenuity has paved the way for future flight in our solar system,” Nelson said, “and it’s leading the way for smarter, safer human missions to Mars and beyond.”
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has detected the presence of water in the atmosphere of a distant exoplanet, which astronomers say is the smallest planet of its kind to reveal such a discovery.
The planet, GJ 9827D, was initially found in 2017 by NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope. Roughly twice the diameter of Earth and located approximately 97 light years away, the tiny exoplanet completes an orbit around its nearest star, a red dwarf, in a little more than six Earth days.
Laura Kreidberg with the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany, called the discovery of water on such a small exoplanet “a landmark discovery.”
Kreidberg, co-principal investigator in the new study that revealed the discovery, said that finding water on GJ 9827D “pushes [astronomers] closer than ever to characterizing truly Earth-like worlds.”
The new discovery represents the first time that an exoplanet of this kind has been found to exist around other stars, an observation made entirely possible through atmospheric detection of water made possible by the Hubble telescope.
“This is an important step toward determining the prevalence and diversity of atmospheres on rocky planets,” said Björn Benneke, an astronomer with the Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets at Université de Montréal, in a statement.
Hubble was used to observe the planet during eleven transits before its host star over three years. As the planet moves in front of its star, the light the stellar body produces is filtered through GJ 9827D’s atmosphere, which allows astronomers the ability to observe key spectra that indicated the presence of water molecules.
Right now, astronomers cannot tell whether the planet is a “water world” with an abundance of liquid, or if the atmospheric detections made possible by Hubble only point to the presence of water vapor in its hydrogen-rich atmosphere.
Pierre-Alexis Roy, also with the University of Montreal’s Trottier Institute for Research on Exoplanets and lead author of a new paper describing the discovery, said either of these scenarios would be exciting, “whether water vapor is dominant or just a tiny species in a hydrogen-dominant atmosphere.”
Although possessing water like Earth, GJ 9827D’s proximity to its star causes it to resemble Venus due more closely to its extreme heat. With temperatures nearing 800 degrees Fahrenheit, it seems unlikely that GJ 9827D would be a place where life could thrive, particularly if an abundance of water vapor exists in its atmosphere.
If, however, the planet still possesses an atmosphere rich in hydrogen but possesses a degree of water vapor, it could also be a mini-Neptune, or even similar to Juputer’s moon Europa, which astronomers have determined to possess roughly twice as much water as Earth has.
If there are equal parts water and rock on GJ 9827D, it could be that the water vapor exists above the planet’s smaller rock body, Benneke explains.
However, Benneke, Roy, and the team also say that if the planet initially formed farther away from its nearest star, then it could be that the water-richness of its atmosphere is residual and that the heating of the planet as it has moved closer to its stellar host has heated the water as the planet receives more radiation over time.
Thomas Greene, astrophysicist at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, likened the observation of water as a “gateway” toward additional discoveries, some of which may be made with NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.
“JWST can see much more with additional infrared observations, including carbon-bearing molecules like carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and methane,” Greene said.
“Once we get a total inventory of a planet’s elements, we can compare those to the star it orbits and understand how it was formed,” Greene added.
The team’s new paper, by Benneke, Roy, et al, titled “Water Absorption in the Transmission Spectrum of the Water World Candidate GJ 9827 d,” appeared in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
David Grusch, a key figure in the UFO mystery, has participated in consecutive interviews with mainstream media regarding the concealment of UFO information. Grusch has gained prominence following the July 2023 US Congress UAP hearings, thanks to his compelling and assertive testimony about non-human intelligence. He is consistently claiming we have alien crafts in double digits and also possess non-human biologics which implies Earth is in contact with or aware of species from other planets.
With each passing day, David Grusch is making efforts to reach a larger audience and share his story. This drew him to former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, a prominent figure in American media. Carlson, with over 10.9 million followers on Elon Musk’s X (formerly named Twitter), did a bombshell interview with Grusch published on December 14, 2023.
On X, Tucker Carlson posted this 66-minute interview with Grusch with the caption: “It’s becoming obvious that the US government has made contact with nonhuman beings.”
Grusch told Tucker that the U.S. government has retrieved “biologics” (bodies) from crashed UFO sites. When asked about the nature of these biologics, Grusch states that they are “non-human.” He emphasizes that this assessment comes from individuals with direct knowledge who are still part of the program. Grusch also mentions the existence of documentary evidence but suggests that details would need to be discussed in a secure location called a SCIF (Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility).
Tucker expresses surprise at Grusch’s sudden public involvement in the UFO topic, given his extensive background in military intelligence. Grusch recounts how he first became interested in the topic after seeing a New York Times article in 2017 about Lou Elizondo and programs like AATIP and AWASAP. Tucker notes that the government never confirmed or denied Elizondo’s involvement, to which Grusch clarified that he knew about Elizondo’s role. He recalls hearing that Elizondo was considered somewhat erratic by some officials. Grusch’s curiosity deepened when he saw news reports about Elizondo’s involvement in a UFO program, leading him to realize that the program was indeed real.
Grusch explains that it was a unique experience during his time in UAP task force because he started uncovering disturbing facts. He had access to classified archives from previous UFO programs and came across foreign intelligence gathered by clandestine human sources overseas. These sources, according to him, noted that the U.S. had a retrieval and reverse engineering program for UFOs. Notably, these assessments were from other countries.
Tucker questions Grusch about how the Pentagon, an entity that serves elected officials, could deny an elected official access to information. He emphasizes that the Pentagon works for politicians who are accountable to the people and compares Pentagon employees to household staff, highlighting that they’re not an independent entity.
Grsuch acknowledged the issue and pointed out that this is one of the reasons he decided to blow the whistle. He explains that even in the normal black Special Access Program (SAP) community, elected leaders are treated as second-class citizens. He mentions instances where reporting is waived, and Deputy Secretaries of Defense (Dep SecDef) can sign orders limiting briefings to certain committees.
“I can sign an order saying we’re not going to fully brief certain committees on, you see, on programs that are in Public Law 10 US Code Section 119, and that is congressional oversight of SAPS, is the title of that part of Public Law. But the department, which I find in retrospect, very weird, where the legislators authorize and appropriate these programs, but they’re not afforded full access. And occasionally the Gang of Eight will get those kinds of briefings. But literally, they could withhold, besides notifying a program that stood up the entire Congress, that we’re doing some kind of clandestine activity.”
Grsuch mentioned there are approximately 40 people, many with firsthand knowledge, some at the same level as Harry Reid. He explains that after realizing the reality of the situation, he and his team conducted interviews with individuals who had privileged information, even comparable to a high-ranking figure like Harry Reid.
Grsuch recounts a conversation with Harry Reid, where the former senator expressed deep concern about the topic. Reid, then planning to discuss it with President Biden, highlighted the challenges even someone of his stature faced in accessing information. David Grusch emphasizes that past administrations had varying levels of knowledge about these programs, and even presidents were not always briefed on all aspects.
When Tucker specifically asks about any connection between the secrecy surrounding the Manhattan Project (which developed nuclear weapons) and UFO programs, Grusch clarifies that there isn’t an overt connection. However, he speculates that the development of nuclear weapons might have sparked interest in unidentified objects.
David Grusch mentions that he can’t discuss many retrievals, and the only one he has publicly mentioned is the 1933 Italian event. He chose this event to highlight that the UFO phenomenon is not exclusive to the United States but is a worldwide issue.
Grusch explains that the Italian event involved the recovery of an object that looked like an acorn in Magenta, Italy, by the Axis powers (Italy and Germany) in 1933. He notes that information about this event surfaced in the early 2000s through Italian researchers who uncovered documents sent by Mussolini to the Gestapo.
According to a senior intelligence officer who briefed him, the recovered object resembled a lenticular disc, but the edges broke off when it hit the Earth, giving it an acorn or bell shape. The Italians kept custody of the artifact until the end of the war, and then the Americans recovered it. He adds that the Vatican and the OSS (Office of Strategic Services) communicated with FDR about the crash. Grusch said the 1933 Italian event is the only one he has cleared through DoD security.
Tucker questions Grusch about the timeline of the U.S. government’s knowledge of UFOs, pointing out that David mentioned the government didn’t take custody until the end of the war. David clarifies that this statement specifically refers to a particular case, but the government was aware of the UFO issue in the 1930s.
Tucker then raises a common question: Why do advanced technologies like UFOs crash so often? Grusch suggests that crashes may not necessarily be intentional. He introduces the concept of von Neumann replicating probes, where advanced civilizations might send throwaway probes that could crash accidentally. Grusch emphasizes that this is not just his theory but something discussed by scientists involved in the program.
Tucker follows up by questioning whether these objects truly come from a far distance. Grusch admits the uncertainty, highlighting that even certain directors of government agencies prefer using the term “extraterrestrial.” However, he leans towards the term NHI, meaning non-human intelligence. He notes that this term is also used in the Schumer amendment called the UAP Disclosure Act of 2023. The act is part of the fiscal year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act and is currently in conference. He underscores that he’s not the only one using terms like “non-human intelligence biologics” and points out that influential figures like Chuck Schumer are pushing for transparency in the matter.
Tucker questions why there is so much secrecy, and David suggests that excessive secrecy hinders national security. He draws a parallel with nuclear physics, explaining that while details about building nuclear weapons are classified, the broader study of nuclear physics is open to the public. David advocates for a similar approach to UFOs, where the subject should be “horizontally protected,” allowing broad academic study and public access to information, with only genuinely dangerous or classified aspects kept confidential. This way, he believes 95% of the subject could be open for study worldwide.
Tucker asks David about the truth behind these abduction claims. David responds by saying that he doesn’t have any first-hand knowledge on the phenomenon of abduction. He notes that, during his interviews, none of the individuals he spoke with had direct experience or knowledge about abductions.
“I don’t know. Nobody I interviewed had any firsthand knowledge of that phenomenon. I certainly believe people have experienced things like that. At least they believe it, because you look at Dr. John Mack, who was a Harvard-trained psychologist and psychiatrist. He examined the phenomenon of abduction in the early 2000s before his death and affirmed that the people he psychoanalyzed certainly experienced something real to them. But what is the abduction phenomenon? I really don’t know. I’m not sure.”
DavidGrusch tells Tucker Carlson about Rep. Mike Turner’s efforts to block the UAP Disclosure Act and destroy Tim Burchett’s career “Mike Rogers & Mike Turner, two of the dumbest people in Washington. Pure tools of the national security state.” Additionally on Newnation, he said, “Mike Turner probably has no business being the (House Intelligence Committee) Chairman… Mike Turner has never been an intelligence officer. He’s never served in the military.” “We need to get these people out of office.”
Physical Harm
Tucker raises a sensitive issue about the potential harm or killing of individuals connected to the U.S. government’s UFO programs. He specifically asks Grusch if he has reason to believe that the government has hurt or killed anyone, particularly American citizens, in connection to these programs.
Grusch responds by acknowledging concerns that were raised by individuals who approached him, expressing worries about potential harm. He emphasizes that he took these concerns seriously and reported them to the Inspector General of the intelligence community, directing the individuals to law enforcement.
Tucker pushes further, specifically mentioning the allegation of murder, to which Grusch confirms that the concerns included both murder and physical harm. However, he refrains from providing specific details due to the ongoing investigation and potential risks to his safety.
Grusch discloses that he felt his life was in jeopardy, and he reported the threats and surveillance to a counterintelligence element and law enforcement. He reveals that these threats not only affected him but also impacted his wife. He states that he doesn’t know the identity of those involved, ruling out the possibility of it being a foreign entity.
Previously on the Joe Rogan Experience, Grusch talked about the fundamental questions related to UFOs, such as the existence of extraterrestrial life and the nature of human consciousness. Grusch asserted with confidence, based on conversations with high-level individuals like Harry Reid, that we are not alone, and the UFO phenomenon is real.
“You know for humanity. Are we alone or you know what happens when we die? Well, I don’t know about that, but are we alone? Well, the answer is we’re not alone. And I know that with 100% certainty, which as an Intel officer, you never say 100%, but all things pointed towards based on the people I talked to…The phenomenon is real. It’s been going on for thousands of years. People have been seeing strange things and not everybody’s mass hallucinating. So that’s kind of my long diatribe about what’s happening.”
The UK Ministry of Defense (MOD) has announced the successful test firing and downing of an aerial target using its high-powered DragonFire laser weapon. The exact power and range of the combat laser remain classified, but an official statement says DragonFire can hit a £1 coin-sized object from a kilometer away.
While there are no immediate plans to deliver the laser system to troops, the MoD says they are currently evaluating DragonFire and that this successful test was a critical next step toward actual deployment.
DRAGONFIRE JOINS GROWING LIST OF DIRECTED ENERGY WEAPONS
In the 1980s and 1990s, using lasers to down aerial targets remained firmly in the realm of science fiction. The U.S. Defense Department first tested a combat laser prototype in 1995, but that system required numerous buildings to operate and had limited target-destroying power.
In subsequent years more systems have been developed, with many sporting power ranges in the tens of kilowatts. Ranging from truck-mounted lasers and aircraft-mounted lasers to larger systems mounted directly on U.S. Navy ships, these lasers are not powerful enough to blast targets out of the sky. Instead, they have to stay locked on an incoming drone long enough to fry their electronics or burn off a wing.
More recently, advances in optical technology have allowed contractors like Raytheon and Lockheed Martin to steadily increase the power of these systems, with the most powerful coming in at 300kW. Dubbed the most powerful combat laser ever built, that system is currently undergoing an upgrade that will bring it up to as much as 500kW. It is possible that such a weapon could be strong enough to take down cruise missiles, something that smaller laser systems cannot do.
Perhaps the most well-known combat laser is employed by the Israeli armed forces. Dubbed Iron Beam, that system is mounted on the Israeli border to complement their Iron Dome system that uses conventional missiles to take down incoming drones and mortars. At 100kW, Iron Beam is the most potent combat laser in deployment anywhere in the world.
Now, it appears that the UK is joining the march toward adding lasers and other directed energy weapons that include powerful microwave emitters that can fry the electronics of a drone or missile to their arsenal. Along with the accuracy of these systems, the MoD is also hoping that laser systems can dramatically reduce costs.
SUCCESSFUL TEST SHOWS DRAGONFIRE IS MOVING CLOSER TO DEPLOYMENT
In that same statement, the MoD says, “This milestone demonstrated the ability to engage aerial targets at relevant ranges and is a major step in bringing this technology into service.” The latest test also builds on previous work that showed how DragonFire can effectively track both air and sea targets “effectively and at range.”
“These trials have seen us take a huge step forward in realising the potential opportunities and understanding the threats posed by directed energy weapons,” said Dstl’s Chief Executive, Dr. Paul Hollinshead.
The MoD also notes the potential financial advantages of using lasers instead of missiles, which can cost as much as 100,000 pounds, to counter the increasing use of low-cost drones.
“Firing it for 10 seconds is the cost equivalent of using a regular heater for just an hour,” they explain. “Therefore, it has the potential to be a long-term, low-cost alternative to certain tasks missiles currently carry out. The cost of operating the laser is typically less than £10 per shot.”
MOD FUNDING MULTI-MILLION POUND PROGRAM TO MAKE DRAGONFIRE READY FOR THE BATTLEFIELD
Following the successful downing of an aerial threat, the MoD says they are moving ahead with funding a multi-million-pound program “to transition the technology from the research environment to the battlefield.” They also say that both the Army and navy are evaluating using DragonFire and similar technologies as part of their future Air Defense capabilities.
“With our decades of knowledge, skills, and operational experience, Dstl’s expertise is critical to helping the armed forces prepare for the future,” said Hollinshead.
“The DragonFire trials at the Hebrides demonstrated that our world-leading technology can track and engage high-end effects at range,” added Shimon Fhima, Director of Strategic Programmes for the MOD. “In a world of evolving threats, we know that our focus must be on getting capability to the warfighter, and we will look to accelerate this next phase of activity.”
Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.
NASA recently revealed that a laser beam was fired from its Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) at a spacecraft on the Moon’s surface, in a technological first that could pave the path toward new methods of precision target location.
The American space agency says a laser beam was transmitted from the LRO’s laser altimeter instrument at a tiny device on the Indian Space Research Organization’s (ISRO) Vikram lander on December 12, 2023. The transmission occurred while the LRO was more than 60 miles away as it passed over the lunar South Pole when it fired a series of laser pulses at the spacecraft.
The LRO registered light from its laser bouncing back off a tiny NASA retroreflector positioned on Vikram, confirming that the technique was a success.
Xiaoli Sun with NASA Goddard, who led the team that developed the retroreflector placed on Vikram, was enthusiastic about the achievement resulting from the cooperation between the two space agencies.
“We’ve [shown] that we can locate our retroreflector on the surface from the Moon’s orbit,” Sun said.
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) successfully targeted a retroreflector on the exterior of the ISRO’s Vikram lander on December 12, 2023
(Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Arizona State University).
In principle, firing lasers at an object and measuring the time required for the light to bounce back to its point of origin is nothing new, and is commonly utilized for tracking Earth-orbiting satellites using ground-based laser systems.
However, the technique NASA recently demonstrated reverses this process, firing a laser from a moving satellite at a stationary object—in this case, on the surface of the Moon—and determining its precise location.
FIRING A LASER AT A COOKIE-SIZED RETROREFLECTOR
The special retroreflector NASA designed is tiny, at just two inches across. Roughly the size of an Oreo cookie, the device is formally known as a Laser Retroreflector Array and features a pattern of eight prisms fitted within an aluminum frame shaped like a tiny dome, which allows for a simple, but effective means of reflecting light coming from almost any direction.
The device also requires no power either, meaning that its durable design allows it to function for up to several decades.
This is not the first time NASA has used retroreflectors in novel ways. Since 1969, a technique known as Lunar Laser Ranging (LLR) has been used to measure the Moon’s distance from Earth-based observatories using retroreflectors that were placed on the Moon’s surface during the Apollo missions, as well as the Soviet Luna program.
However, more advanced retroreflector designs currently in use allow for a greater range of potential applications than their Apollo-era predecessors. Today, the devices are also fitted to the exterior of the International Space Station (ISS), which allows cargo-delivery spacecraft to measure their distance while approaching and autonomously dock with it.
In the years ahead, they may also provide several useful applications for Artemis astronauts working in locations where low light conditions would otherwise make landing next to existing spacecraft on the lunar surface difficult.
Right now there are plans for NASA retroreflectors to be carried to space on board several public and private Moon landers, including the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s (JAXA) SLIM lander, which powered down within just three hours of making its historic landing on the Moon over the weekend.
A LOOK AT THE LUNAR RECONNAISSANCE ORBITER’S LOLA
One problem that arises from the more widespread use of this technology in space exploration is that the LRO’s altimeter—currently the only laser instrument orbiting the Moon that could be used for such applications—has been operating for thirteen years longer than its original mission intended and was never designed for such applications. Because of this, the LRO’s instrument required eight attempts before it could successfully contact the retroreflector on the Vikram lander.
The laser in question is the LRO’s Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA). This instrument is primarily designed for precision measurements of topographic features on the lunar surface, which has helped NASA produce models of the Moon that are crucial for planning safe landings and lunar exploration, as well as increasing our understanding of the lunar environment overall.
LOLA functions with a small array of five laser beams, which are fired toward the Moon. The time required for each beam to bounce back to the LRO is measured, allowing the instrument to gauge the elevation of features on the lunar surface below.
Although LOLA’s capabilities are ideal for mapping the Moon’s surface features, there are large gaps between the beams it produces, meaning that the chances of hitting a cookie-sized target are fairly slim, especially when the beam is required to strike within one-hundredth of a degree of the retroreflector.
In the future, NASA plans to produce a laser that produces no gaps in coverage, and which can continuously beam against the lunar surface as it passes to ensure that it strikes any retroreflectors with maximum precision.
Until such lasers come into use, NASA’s best—and only—bet remains the simpler laser altimeter currently on board the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which the December experiment has already shown to be successful when used in this manner, although it may also require a bit of trial and error.
“The next step is to improve the technique,” Xiaoli Sun said in a statement, “so that it can become routine for missions that want to use these retroreflectors in the future.”
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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.
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