Where SETI should search for intelligent life

ESO/M. KORNMESSER
Where SETI should search for intelligent life
ESO/M. KORNMESSER
NASA’s photos of Mars: Signs of life or imagination running amok?
The NASA photos taken by the Mars Orbiter and the Curiosity and Opportunity rovers sparked speculations of alien life existing on the neighboring planet. While there are continuous debates wherein alien hunters and UFO enthusiasts push the idea of proof of life on Mars (and elsewhere), while NASA continues to maintain that there has yet to be confirmed proof of alien life found on Mars (or anywhere).
Conspiracy theorists for years have been keeping a close watch on the photos that have been transmitted back to Earth by NASA probes and “discovering” strange objects that they say proves the existence of extraterrestrial activity on Mars. For example, lizards, mermaids, petroglyphs, artifacts, jelly donuts, traffic lights, and various other somewhat recognizable objects all appears to exist together in the open dusty spaces of the red planet.
The latest arrival, where the alien hunters cited that the evidence found is that of a crashed rock shaped miniature spaceship on Mars.
“I found this anomaly in the latest Curiosity Rover photo. The black object looks like a crashed UFO,” writes Scott C. Waring on the UFO Sightings Daily website.
The craft is only about 2.5-3 meters across, so it probably only held a few passengers. Since many of the figures we found on Mars are about 5-8 cm tall, then we can conclude that his [sic]ship could carry about 20-40 passengers.”
Perhaps too far sighted but not as far as the discovery of a giant Martian crab in early August or for that matter the “strange woman” appearing briefly at the Curiosity rover last month or like the levitating rock in June.
One NASA scientist says there’s a perfectly good explanation for these sightings. Speaking to CNN, Ashwin Vasavada, a scientist who works on the Mars rover project, said that much of “sightings” suggest a psychological process known as paradoleia, or the brain’s recognition as familiar objects or patterns things even though it’s not actually there. For instance, cloud-shapes, face of a man in the moon, seeing the image of the Virgin Mary in a grilled-cheese sandwich, or even a tiny woman wandering around Mars.
“We have color HD cameras on this rover that far exceed anything ever sent to the planet before, and yet in order to find these things that kind of trick your brain into thinking it’s a mermaid or whatever, you do have to zoom in where it’s kind of a fuzzy shadow at that point,” he added.
Remembering the photo of a tiny woman wandering around Mars, he said “That photo was up in a place we are studying, a place we call a ‘geologic contact’ where there is a lot of sandstone next to mud that formed at the bottom of an ancient lake.”
“Now, three billion years after that happened, little drifts of sand are following down the hill … when you zoom in and kind of look at the light and shadows, it does look like a little figure of a woman,” he admits. “But she would be a few inches tall and hasn’t moved in months, so we don’t think that’s what it is.”
It is very interesting to see how people’s imagination work claiming the things they see in Curiosity’s photos, Vasavada says. However, his team does not take them seriously, he adds hoping that NASA will discover signs of intelligent life on Mars in the future.
In fact, many of the “alien” objects found in the photos taken by other NASA explorers and Curiosity have been quite small. Ironically, a recent study indicated for those searching for alien life, particularly intelligent alien life, when found would be quite a bit larger than the average human being.
“There is no group that would be (happier) to see such a thing than the 500 scientists around the world who work on this Curiosity rover,” he says. “So far we haven’t seen anything that is so obvious that it would be similar to what these claims are.”
“We have no evidence of Martian iguanas or rats at this time,” he says. “One of the best things we found is that Mars could support life, (but) if anything we think it’s microbial life that’s possible at this time. Things like rats and iguanas would be way further up the food chain that we think Mars may have ever gotten to.”
Just the other day, Vasavada says someone on the Internet “found a place where a meteor had struck Mars while we were there roaming, so that is pretty fantastic.”
For Vasavada, the bizarre thing about the thousands of photos taken by Curiosity is how they are not really strange at all.
“The thing that keeps coming back to me every single day is how un-weird it is, how much it looks like Earth,” he says. “It’s just fascinating that (on) Mars, even today, you can see the landscapes formed in similar ways that deserts and other places on Earth formed. It’s kind of mind-blowing.”
It is not as a overwhelmingly impressive find as a Martian; however, Vasavada recommends patience.
“We are working our way to answering what is a very difficult scientific question,” he says. “It’s unfortunately not going to be as easy as seeing a mermaid in a picture.”
{ http://www.techworm.net/ }
10 Craziest Theories From Ancient Aliens
“I’m not saying it was aliens… but it was aliens.”

The Ancient Astronaut theory, first proposed in 1919, explores the possibility that Extra-Terrestrials visited our ancestors, perhaps even having a hand in our very creation. Since 1919 the theory has been popularized by authors like Erich Von Daniken (Chariots of the Gods?) and most recently by the History Channel hit Ancient Aliens.
Over the past 8 seasons the series has turned millions of curious viewers into loyal fans and has become a pop-culture phenomenon. However, the theory has received considerable criticism from some parts of the scientific community. The Smithsonian Institute bluntly classifies the whole subject as pseudo-science and renowned scientist Carl Sagan had this to say about Von Daniken:
- “I hope for the continuing popularity of books like Chariots of the Gods? in high school and college logic courses, as object lessons in sloppy thinking. I know of no recent books so riddled with logical and factual errors as the works of Von Däniken” – Carl Sagan
But are Von Daniken and the AA poster-boy, Giorgio Tsoukalos, really so crazy? What about countless other authors, radio hosts, even reverends, that appear on the show? Maybe not. In fact, the show has been lauded for offering an interesting alternative view of history.
AA does a good job highlighting unexplained evidence, but sometimes in an attempt to present their intriguing theory they go a little too far off the deep-end…
History
Is it a bird… is it a plane?
…It’s a bird.
The very first segment in the very first episode of Ancient Aliens features this example of ancient extra-terrestrial technology, so you would expect it to be extra convincing.
Supposedly, this wooden artefact is not the model of a bird at all (despite the beak and eyes); it is a small scale model of a glider or airplane, thus proving the ancient Egyptians had the power of flight. The show goes on to explain that many advanced tests, utilizing such space-age technologies as wind tunnels, have proven that with the addition of some important features, the “bird” is aerodynamic.
The show also successfully tested a larger-scale version and found that a model made out of different materials, and with a horizontal, stabilizing tail-wing, would fly.
The conventional analysis of this artefact is that it may have been a toy, a ceremonial object, or a weather vane. And that it is undoubtably the depiction of a falcon, a common representation of the Egyptian deities Ra and Horus.

Yes, that is an actual screenshot from an episode of Ancient Aliens.
- “What we have here is not an extinction, but an extermination event.” – Tsoukalos
This episode, “Aliens and Dinosaurs”, features scenes like something straight out of a mashup of Jurassic Park and Independence day. It also enlists the help of young-earth creationist Willie Dye, billed on the program as an archeologist, to describe how humans and dinosaurs were alive at the same time (of course using evidence and arguments that have been proven false).
While there is some speculation in the scientific community as to what exactly caused the extinction of the dinosaurs the ideas put forward by the show are certainly not any of them.
Smithsonian Magazine took exception to this particular episode, pointing out the incorrect assumptions that aliens may have been running an experiment with the dinosaurs or that they directed an asteroid towards earth in order to make way for humans.
At a certain point the show decides that those theories might be too complicated, and that the aliens may have just nuked the dinosaurs.
Ancient astronaut theorists love analyzing old religious texts. The bible in particular, is an infinite well of inspiration.
While many bible stories are based on some kernel of truth, the story of Jonah being swallowed by a whale is one of the more impossible stories. In fact, some people believe the tale of Jonah to be a parody of earlier Greek myths. However not only do Ancient Aliens and Giorgio Tsoukalos believe the story of Jonah’s miraculous survival to be true, but that there is even more to it.
Tsoukalos points out that in some descriptions, Jonah notices that the “ribs” of the whale are gleaming bronze.
“Jonah was not, in fact, swallowed by a whale… but a U.S.O. An unidentified submersible object.”
That is, if it happened at all.
Tumblr
This is the kind of thing that people in the middle ages might have believed while the black death was still decimating the European population. They were willing to blame demons, witches, and at one point they even blamed the Jews. Though modern science blames fleas carrying the Yersinia pestis bacteria for the outbreak, ancient astronaut theorists, like author William Bramley, blame extra-terrestrials.
To explain how the aliens infected us the theory utilizes another fringe favorite: chemtrails. Basically, humans were sprayed with toxic fumes the same way farmers spray their crops with pesticides. Possibly for the same reason, or maybe just for the sake of experimentation.
People may also remember that the image of the “grim reaper” emerged around this time. Apparently some victims of the plague, in their delirium, hallucinated images of a dark hooded figure. In the hysteria people also reported hooded figures appearing in the wheat fields outside of towns right before the plague struck them. The Grim Reaper soon became the most iconic personification of death. Some theorist suggest that if it wasn’t chemtrails, perhaps the extraterrestrials elected for a more “personal” touch and gassed our food supply from up close, dressed in black cloaks.
According to theorists, period stories of lights in the sky or visitations from the Virgin Mary (an alien) offer more proof that Aliens were involved with the Plague.

K’inich Janaab’ Pakal was the ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque in the 7th century C.E. Upon his death he was placed inside an ornate sarcophagus and sealed in a tomb within the Temple of Transcriptions.
When archeologists uncovered his tomb they remarked on the decorative sarcophagus lid calling it an example of classic Mayan art. The common iconography made it easy for scholars to interpret the symbols and themes of the artwork. Everything from the background patterns to the posture of the subject was understood and accounted for.
On the other hand, ancient astronaut theorists consider this one of their best pieces of evidence. According to Erich Von Daniken the artwork is “Incredible… absolutely proof for extra-terrestrials”. According to other theorists the artwork on the lid of Pakal’s sarcophagus depicts an astronaut ascending into space on a rocket. Allegedly his hands are manipulating controls, his feet are on pedals, he is wearing a breathing tube, and there is exhaust firing out the bottom of the rocket.
The problem with the Ancient Alien theory is that each example was either a well known Mayan symbol or was just too far of a stretch. Also, would extra-terrestrials really be using a technology so primitive as a rocket?
But above all else, it just doesn’t really look anything like a rocket.
YouTube
Historically there has been no shortage of “mythical beasts”. Many stories tell of animals like the griffin (half lion, half eagle), or Medusa, a monster from Greek mythology whose hair was a tangles mess of venomous snakes. Ancient religious figures were often depicted as hybrid creatures. In fact, almost all of the Egyptian gods sported animal heads on top of their human bodies.
Some Ancient Astronaut theorists think these tales have an explanation; Ancient Alien genetic experimentation. Humans themselves have begun to dabble in genetic engineering, so, they claim, is it so crazy to believe ancient visitors would have done the same?
If the rest of the theory is true, it wouldn’t be a surprise. However, the theory rests on the fact that any of these creatures even existed at all. Even today we tell silly stories of creatures like “Nessy” or Big-Foot.
It is most likely that these creatures are the result of human imagination and not alien scientific experimentation. For example; even if the aliens were able to give the monster Medusa snake hair it was also reported that one look into her eyes was enough to turn anyone into solid stone… not quite sure how genetic engineering would have caused worked that part out.
Bethesda
Teotihuacan is an ancient Toltec city near what is now Mexico City. Much of the cite is devoted to religiously inspired temples and monuments, including the famous Pyramid Of The Sun.
Ancient Astronaut theorists believe it is also a giant computer circuit board. This is because, well, the layout “resembles one”. Numerous articles and documentaries from the community reference this fact.
“Oh my God, it looks like a little city.” – Anyone who has ever seen a circuit board.
What about Teotihuacan specifically looks so much like a circuit board? Actually, not too much. The theory also claims that some of the temples are “processors” without much of a reason why this is the case. But the theorists go further; pointing out that mica was incorporated into some of the structures and a few underground rooms were filled entirely with mica (an electrical insulator). However, many ancient civilizations were known to use mica.
Even though the mica rooms are a little curious almost nothing about Teotihuacan is even remotely circuit-like.

This one is very similar to “Pakal’s Rocket” in that the theory begins with an image that allegedly depicts modern technology. However, unlike Pakal’s Rocket, this one actually does look a lot like the modern artefact it is purported to depict: a light bulb.
But the problem here is that it also looks like something else… a depiction of Egyptian mythology using typical Egyptian symbols. Specifically, an Egyptian version of the “creation” myth. In the Heliopolitan version; Atum, (sometimes in the form of a serpent) emerges from a Lotus flower into the universe, or as it was thought, a bubble of air in a dark infinite ocean.
This mainstream view seems to match up, as the base of the bulb is a perfect example of an Egyptian depiction of a Lotus Flower. And upon closer viewing the “filament” quite clearly has a serpent’s mouth and eyes. Many other pieces of the image line up with the story as well. But beyond on that, the other evidence that suggests the Egyptians had the power of electric light also fall flat.
First of all, despite there being other relatable images of the creation story, this is the only image that looks anything like a light bulb. This would be surprising if the Egyptians possessed any knowledge of such an intriguing device, let alone used it to light their pyramids/temples.
But Ancient Astronaut theorists think that happened as well. Yet more evidence for the existence of these light bulbs, they claim, is that there is no evidence of soot on the roofs or walls of Egyptian temples/tombs. How then did they illuminate these places?
AncientAliensDebunked.com does a good job refuting this claim (and the whole subject). They point out that there is black soot in almost every Egyptian temple and tomb, even the temple where the image is found.
- “In fact a recent ceiling cleaning conducted at the Temple of Hathor, which is the same temple where the so-called light bulb relief is found, they uncovered a brightly colored ancient ceiling painting that had never before been noticed.
What was covering it up you ask? I will quote them directly, they said the ceiling was covered with “hundreds of years of black soot” That’s kind of funny, you have to admit.” -AcientAliensDebunked.com
Furthermore, archeologists are already sure of what kind of lighting Egyptians used (torches and oil lamps). And they are also very certain that no physical evidence of Egyptian use of electricity has ever been found.
AP
Did Adolf Hitler base his plans for world domination on secret extra-terrestrial knowledge? – Ancient Aliens actually asks that. This may sound way out there, however, the “Nazi UFO” theory has a lot of support.
As it turns out, the Nazi’s had some pretty advanced technology when it came to rockets. They developed both the V1 and V2 rockets during the war and used them with great success against England and France. According to Ancient Aliens: German rocket scientist, Herman Oberth claimed that this technology was only possible because they had help from “beings from another world”. This, of course, suggests that the Nazi’s had contact with Aliens. (However, the origin of this quote is under debate.)
The subject of the Nazis comes up in the UFO Community quite a bit. The term “Foo-Fighter” refers to the numerous stories of strange aerial phenomenon observed by allied pilots over German. And the idea that the Germans were trying to build a fleet of saucer shaped craft called “Haenebu” has been around for a while. According to these theories the technology for such a craft, was acquired when German engineers reverse engineered an alien spacecraft that crashed in the woods of Bavaria.
Furthermore, some suspect that the Nazis may have also decoded ancient religious texts, such as the Mahabharata, to help design their flying craft. Some of these ancient texts include depictions of godlike beings flying in heavenly thrones. These thrones, or “Vimanus”, are another Ancient Aliens favorite as these descriptions may actually depict extra-terrestrial aircraft, and they believe Hitler felt the same way. How can they be sure Hitler was using these old religious texts to help win the war?
Because the Swastika is an Alien symbol, of course.

The legend of the sword in the stone is one of the most famous tales of King Arthur. However, the Celtic legend of a magical weapon, only movable by one divine figure, is not necessarily an original. It is quite similar to the Norse god Thor’s hammer, and countless other folk-tales. In addition, historians have been hard pressed to find any evidence that King Arthur himself actually existed.
But according to some proponents of the Ancient Astronaut theory, not only is the story of King Arthur pulling a magic unmovable sword from a stone absolutely true, it also involved aliens.
- “I start thinking about some type of biometric security system” -Giorgio Tsoukalos
Tsoukalos points out that this kind of technology is within the realm of possibility because modern technology has the capability of creating concept firearms that function in a similar way.
Some other notable suggestions made along these lines include; Arthur’s sword Excalibur, as well as Joan of Arc’s sword, were “Alien laser weapons”, and that the arthurian figure Merlin may have been an alien.
{ http://whatculture.com/ }
Daily UFO Headlines 9/1/2015openminds.tv
VIDEO: NASA filmt ‘UFO die licht naar de aarde straalt’, waarna het beeld op zwart gaat
De NASA ontdekt steeds meer exoplaneten en wist in 1969 mensen op de maan te zetten. Volgens een aantal internetgebruikers houdt de Amerikaanse ruimtevaartorganisatie echter ook dingen voor ons verborgen. Dat meldt de Britse Daily Mirror.
In een filmpje dat op internet is gezet door YouTube-gebruiker Streetcap1 is een oplichtend object te zien dat is vastgelegd door een camera aan boord van het internationale ruimtestation ISS. Na de waarneming gaat het beeld plotseling op zwart.
“Hoe lang houdt deze schijnvertoning nog stand?” vroeg UFO-enthousiasteling Scott C. Waring zich af. Het feit dat het beeld op zwart gaat is volgens hem bewijs dat het ruimteagentschap geheimen voor ons heeft.
“Het ziet eruit als een vaartuig in de ruimte dat deels onzichtbaar is,” voegde hij toe. “Door de zon is een klein deel van de UFO toch zichtbaar. Goed gezien van Streetcap1. NASA merkte het object op en zette het beeld op zwart.”
[Mirror]
Astronomer Says Spiritual Phenomena Exist in Other Dimensions
The universe is full of mysteries that challenge our current knowledge. In "Beyond Science" Epoch Times collects stories about these strange phenomena to stimulate the imagination and open up previously undreamed of possibilities. Are they true? You decide.
Astronomer and mathematician Bernard Carr theorizes that many of the phenomena we experience but cannot explain within the physical laws of this dimension actually occur in other dimensions.

Bernard Carr (Wikimedia Commons)
Albert Einstein stated that there are at least four dimensions. The fourth dimension is time, or spacetime, since Einstein said space and time cannot be separated. In modern physics, theories about the existence of up to 11 dimensions and the possibility of more have gained traction.
Carr, a professor of mathematics and astronomy at Queen Mary University of London, says our consciousness interacts with another dimension. Furthermore, the multi-dimensional universe he envisions has a hierarchical structure. We are at the lowest-level dimension.
“The model resolves well-known philosophical problems concerning the relationship between matter and mind, elucidates the nature of time, and provides an ontological framework for the interpretation of phenomena such as apparitions, OBEs [out-of-body experiences], NDEs [near-death-experiences], and dreams,” he wrote in a conference abstract.
Carr reasons that our physical sensors only show us a 3-dimensional universe, though there are actually at least four dimensions. What exists in the higher dimensions are entities we cannot touch with our physical sensors. He said that such entities must still have a type of space to exist in.
“The only non-physical entities in the universe of which we have any experience are mental ones, and … the existence of paranormal phenomena suggests that mental entities have to exist in some sort of space,” Carr wrote.
The other-dimensional space we enter in dreams overlaps with the space where memory exists. Carr says telepathy signals a communal mental space and clairvoyance also contains a physical space. “Non-physical percepts have attributes of externality,” he wrote in his book “Matter, Mind, and Higher Dimensions.”
He builds on previous theories, including the Kaluza–Klein theory, which unifies the fundamental forces of gravitation and electromagnetism. The Kaluza–Klein theory also envisions a 5-dimensional space.
In “M-theory,” there are 11 dimensions. In superstring theory, there are 10. Carr understands this as a 4-dimensional “external” space—meaning these are the four dimensions in Einstein’s relativity theory—and a 6- or 7-dimensional “internal” space—meaning these dimensions relate to psychic and other “intangible” phenomena.
*Conceptual illustration of consciousness via Shutterstock
Top 10 Secret SUPER WEAPONS by Hitler
(SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO)
Secret Weapons developed SUPER style by the Nazi Party…Hitler’s technology was ahead of the time. See how big that tank is in the picture?
The Sonic Cannon: If you were hoping for a weapon which fired sassy, tiny blue hedgehogs then prepare to be equally disappointed and frightened. In the early 1940’s Nazi engineers developed a sonic cannon that could rip you apart without you ever knowing what the hell was going on. Tubes containing methane and oxygen were ignited to pulse-detonate two parabolic dishes at around 44Hz. Following me so far? Let’s simplify it. This machine could create sound waves so aggressive they would render your kidneys, liver and spleen into a human marinara. The rapid compression and release of organ tissue and fluids barely affected the heart, stomach and intestines, but that’s no great comfort when the rest of your inside parts are rapidly dribbling out of your anus.
Unfortunately for the Nazis this weapon was far too fragile to survive even a round from a potato gun. If only they’d waited 50 years, they could’ve achieved the same effect much easier with a boombox and a playlist of Kesha tracks.
Fiesler Fi 103r Reichenberg: Throughout the war V1 rockets rained down on Europe, but only 25% hit their target. How did the ever efficient Germans increase their accuracy?
V3 cannon: Based in Pas-de-Calais in Northern France, this giant supergun was to be used to bombard London using multi charge shells which used secondary propellants to extend their range. Imagine video-games where you get a huge mid-air boost to your jump, take that principle, but with firey boom-boom death at the end of it.
The X-Ray Gun: The Germans researched several types of energy directed weapon with the help of the technology company Siemens, who now direct radiation into your brain far more efficiently using mobile phones. So if the Germans had radioactive laser rifles back then, why aren’t they prevalent today?
Aggregat Rockets: The aggregate rocket family is even more destructive than that family of hicks who live two doors down and never mow their lawn. It’s most famous member was the V2 missile, responsible for 9000 deaths in three cities, and that was just the start. One of the next-generation in production was the A12, a massive upgrade capable of putting ten tonnes of payload in low earth orbit despite weighing in at 3500 tonnes fully fuelled. What was its range? Modern analysis suggests that if completed, it could have easily pounded the US mainland from a base in Europe. Making it potentially the worst European import since Piers Morgan.
The Sun Gun: If you’ve played Call of Duty or watched a few Bond films then this will look familiar. In a scheme worthy of Mr Burns the Nazis planned to create a space station mounted with a 100 metre wide mirror. But this wasn’t just a vanity project so Hitler could check out his sweet tache and parting on the go. The plan was to reflect the sun’s light into a concentrated beam of scorching heat capable of tearing through cities and armies.
The Vortex Cannon: I’m bored of firing regular old shells and bullets, said one Nazi scientist. Let’s just go mental and make a gun that fires hurricanes. Agreed mein freund. This ridiculous anti-aircraft cannon generated explosions in a combustion chamber, which were then guided down special nozzles towards their target. planes…thankfully.
Heinkel He 162: Designed and built in three months in 1944, this was actually a crowd-sourced design by the German public on an initiative set up by the Nazis to find a simple defensive aircraft that could be mass-produced. Really mass-produced…. With wooden wings and a cheap metal fuselage, around 100 were built and very few were flown successfully. So why was this crappy airplane so interesting?
The Rat Tank: Known to Germans as the Landkreuzer (land cruiser), this 1000 tonnes beast was as huge as it was impractical…essentially it was the Kim Kardashian of World War 2. Sure, its sheer size and use of submarine technology meant it would’ve crossed rivers with ease, but it couldn’t even traverse a basic road or bridge without obliterating it. A vehicle this size travelling at only 40 mph would’ve been a sitting duck for enemy bombers…so what did Hitler do? He proposed an even heavier tank, the Monster, weighing in at 1500 tonnes. I’m beginning to think he wasn’t all that smart.
The Bell: Near the Wenceslaus mine in Germany by the Czech border was a secret Nazi facility known as The Giant. Like David Hasselhoff’s mind we don’t know what went on in there, but Polish intelligence claimed to have found something horrifying. At first glance a metallic bell-shaped object no bigger than 3 by 5 metres wouldn’t seem too intimidating. Then they found the blueprints. Inside were two counter-rotating cylinders filled with a substance similar to mercury, code named Xerum 525, in addition to various peroxides.
Thanks : ufosthetruthisoutthere
The Deep Biosphere – Solid Reasons To Know Life Abounds In The Universe
There is a huge push in our society for the holy grail of UFOlogy , which is Full UFO Disclosure. Millions of people wait with baited breath for the government (for some reason) to come clean with what they know of Alien visitations to our pale blue dot. Not sure why so many people look with all their hopes and dreams to a cadre of professional liars and charlatans for the truth. Waiting for consummate liars to tell the truth is the height of insanity.
If your President or Prime Minister (which ever your country utilizes) came out and said “Yes” Aliens are here, they are here for our water and women, and will not leave our planet until the Winnipeg Jets wins the Stanley Cup (which is never). Who would believe them? Only the true believers who will believe anything would buy it. All others will chortle and go back to watching reality TV. Nothing would change.
Good thing we the thinking people of planet Earth have a ultimately more credible source of Disclosure. The high powered brains of our higher education institutions. True disclosure will come from Science not Politics.
A new study was published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It outlines that ancient rocks harbored microbial life deep below the seafloor, reports a team of scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), Virginia Tech, and the University of Bremen. This new evidence was contained in drilled rock samples of Earth’s mantle – thrust by tectonic forces to the seafloor during the Early Cretaceous period.

Credit: Illustration by Jack Cook, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Inset paleogeographic reconstruction by Ron Blakey, Colorado Plateau Geosystems
Scientists found mummified microbial life in rocks from a seafloor hydrothermal system that was active more than 100 million years ago during the Early Cretaceous when the super-continent Pangaea was breaking apart and the Atlantic ocean was just about to open. Buried under almost 700 meters of sediment, the samples were recovered by the seafloor drilling vessel JOIDES Resolution near the coast of Portugal. Hydrothermal fluids rich in hydrogen and methane mixed with seawater about 65 meters below the seafloor. This process supported bacteria and archaea in what scientists call ‘the deep biosphere’ in rocks from Earth’s mantle. Conditions for microbial life were nearly ideal, the study showed, in this seemingly inhospitable environment.

These remarkable rocks, recovered by the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) on board the drilling vessel JOIDES Resolution, are from the Earth’s upper mantle that underwent intense alteration by heated seawater.
Credit: Photo courtesy of Ocean Drilling Program
This study, which was a collaborative effort between Klein, WHOI scientists Susan Humphris, Weifu Guo and William Orsi, Esther Schwarzenbach from Virginia Tech and Florence Schubotz from the University of Bremen, focused on mantle rocks that were originally exposed to seawater approximately 125 million years ago when a large rift split the massive supercontinent known as Pangaea. The rift, which eventually evolved into the Atlantic Ocean, pulled mantle rocks from Earth’s interior to the seafloor, where they underwent chemical reactions with seawater, transforming the seawater into a hydrothermal fluid.
The hydrothermal fluid likely had a high pH and was depleted in carbon and electron acceptors,” Klein said. “These extreme chemical conditions can be challenging for microbes. However, the hydrothermal fluid contained hydrogen and methane and seawater contains dissolved carbon and electron acceptors. So when you mix the two in just the right proportions, you can have the ingredients to support life.
- “Colonies of bacteria and archaea were feeding off the seawater-hydrothermal fluid mix and became engulfed in the minerals growing in the fractured rock,” Klein said. “This kept them completely isolated from the environment. The minerals proved to be the ultimate storage containers for these organisms, preserving their lipids and proteins for over 100 million years.”
- “It’s exciting that the research team was able to go back and examine samples that had been collected years ago for other reasons and find new discoveries,” Shock said. “There will always be active new drilling, but this study raises the possibility of there being a lot more out there in the way of existing samples that could be analyzed.”
- “All the ingredients necessary to drive these ecosystems were made entirely from scratch,” he said. “Similar systems have likely existed throughout most of Earth’s history to the present day and possibly exist(ed) on other water-bearing rocky planetary bodies, such as Jupiter’s moon Europa.”
The study reinforces the idea that life springs up anywhere there is water, even in seemingly hostile geological environments – a tantalizing prospect as scientists find more and more water elsewhere in the solar system. But Klein contends that, while scientists have long understood many of the forces driving microbial life above the seafloor, there is still a great deal of uncertainty when it comes to understanding bio-geochemical processes occurring in the oceanic basement.
- “In the future, we’ll be trying to learn more about these particular microorganisms and what the environmental conditions were in the mixing zone in that location. We also plan to go to different places where we think similar processes may have taken place, such as along the Newfoundland margin, and analyze samples to see if we find similar signatures. Broadening this research could provide additional insights about Earth’s history and the search for life in the solar system.”
The more we learn about how vivacious and tenacious life apparently is, the more we can accept and have valid data to plug into our Astronomical models. It is becoming obvious to all the scientists involved that life must be ubiquitous.
There exists no logical reason to think Earth is the only source of life in the Universe. Now we have the data and reproducible experiments to show it to be true. This is bigger than any politician could understand let alone endorse.
Disclosure is already underway… stop looking to men and women in business suits and start to look to men and women in lab coats for the future advancement of UFOlogy. It truly is an amazing time we live in.
Source: http://phys.org/news/2015-08-evidence-ancient-life-mantle-deep.html
Source: http://www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1504674112
{ http://www.paranormics.com/ }
Monthly Statistical MUFON Report - for August 2015:CMS continues to amass sighting reports from around the globe. In August 2015 there were 1143 sightings reported to MUFON through CMS from the following countries;
| Country | Number of Reports |
|---|---|
| UNITED STATES | 827 |
| CANADA | 121 |
| UNITED KINGDOM | 61 |
| AUSTRALIA | 20 |
| MEXICO | 8 |
| SPAIN | 7 |
| PORTUGAL | 7 |
| GERMANY | 7 |
| INDIA | 6 |
| BRAZIL | 6 |
| PUERTO RICO | 5 |
| COLOMBIA | 5 |
| NORWAY | 5 |
| FRANCE | 4 |
| NEW ZEALAND | 4 |
| SWEDEN | 4 |
| GREECE | 3 |
| MALAYSIA | 3 |
| CROATIA | 2 |
| IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF | 2 |
| PHILIPPINES | 2 |
| FINLAND | 2 |
| POLAND | 2 |
| ECUADOR | 2 |
| GUAM | 2 |
| PAKISTAN | 1 |
| CHINA | 1 |
| ARUBA | 1 |
| URUGUAY | 1 |
| AFGHANISTAN | 1 |
| ROMANIA | 1 |
| KENYA | 1 |
| ARGENTINA | 1 |
| TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO | 1 |
| DENMARK | 1 |
| JAPAN | 1 |
| VANUATU | 1 |
| BAHAMAS | 1 |
| COSTA RICA | 1 |
| NETHERLANDS | 1 |
| LAO PEOPLE`S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC | 1 |
| RUSSIAN FEDERATION | 1 |
| ISRAEL | 1 |
| NIGERIA | 1 |
| CUBA | 1 |
| SOUTH AFRICA | 1 |
| EL SALVADOR | 1 |
| NEPAL | 1 |
| SWITZERLAND | 1 |
| BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA | 1 |
| SAUDI ARABIA | 1 |
| TOTAL: | 1143 |
Within the United States the distribution by State was as follows;
| State | Number of Reports |
|---|---|
| California | 112 |
| Pennsylvania | 50 |
| New York | 48 |
| Florida | 41 |
| Texas | 40 |
| Arizona | 39 |
| Ohio | 35 |
| Michigan | 32 |
| Washington | 30 |
| Illinois | 26 |
| New Jersey | 23 |
| North Carolina | 22 |
| Massachusetts | 18 |
| Oregon | 18 |
| Tennessee | 17 |
| Colorado | 16 |
| Indiana | 16 |
| Wisconsin | 15 |
| Utah | 14 |
| Minnesota | 14 |
| Kentucky | 12 |
| Missouri | 12 |
| Nevada | 12 |
| Virginia | 12 |
| New Mexico | 12 |
| Iowa | 11 |
| Alabama | 10 |
| Georgia | 9 |
| Connecticut | 9 |
| Kansas | 9 |
| Louisiana | 8 |
| Maryland | 8 |
| Oklahoma | 8 |
| Arkansas | 7 |
| South Carolina | 7 |
| West Virginia | 7 |
| Montana | 5 |
| Maine | 5 |
| Alaska | 4 |
| North Dakota | 4 |
| Wyoming | 4 |
| Mississippi | 4 |
| South Dakota | 3 |
| Nebraska | 3 |
| Vermont | 3 |
| Delaware | 3 |
| Hawaii | 2 |
| District of Columbia | 2 |
| Idaho | 2 |
| New Hampshire | 2 |
| Rhode Island | 2 |
If you are getting more sighting reports than listed here, please be sure to enter them manually into CMS. To make this happen automatically, make sure your local MUFON Website is pointing to the CMS Reporting form on www.mufon.com and direct all calls you get to the MUFON website so that witnesses can enter their own report directly into CMS.
ALL sighting reports received by CMS are already filled in by the witness, saving you and your investigators time. Each report is automatically sent to YOU, the State Director and Assistant State Director, for you to assign someone to follow-up and complete the report.
If a UFO sighting comes in over the phone, or by e-mail, and you want to enter it yourself, simply go to CMS at http://mufoncms.com (once logged in) and click on "ADD CASE" in the upper right hand corner of the screen. This gives you a blank sighting reporting form that you can fill out while the witness is on the phone. Once the report is filled out be sure to click "SAVE" and you will have easily added your NEW report to CMS.
Other interesting data points in CMS during August 2015 are the shape of the UFOs reported which were as follows;
| Shape of Object | Number of Reports |
|---|---|
| Sphere | 214 |
| Star-like | 113 |
| Triangle | 102 |
| Other | 99 |
| Disc | 97 |
| Circle | 96 |
| Unknown | 79 |
| Fireball | 57 |
| Oval | 49 |
| N/A | 40 |
| Cylinder | 38 |
| Square/Rectangular | 31 |
| Cigar | 26 |
| Diamond | 19 |
| Flash | 19 |
| Boomerang | 18 |
| Egg | 11 |
| Bullet/Missile | 11 |
| Cone | 6 |
| Teardrop | 6 |
| Chevron | 5 |
| Blimp | 3 |
| Saturn-like | 3 |
| Cross | 1 |
as well as the distance from the observer;
| Distance from Witness | Number of Reports |
|---|---|
| < 100 ft | 206 |
| 101-500 ft | 165 |
| 501 ft - 1 Mile | 234 |
| Over 1 Mile | 301 |
| Unknown | 340 |
| NO VALUE | 40 |
Most impressively there were 38 Landings, Hovering, or Takeoffs reported and 1 Entities observed.
To review the CMS data yourself go to www.mufon.com and click on "UFO Case Files" to 1.) Easily look at the Last 20 Sightings, or 2.) Do a customized search of the CMS database by date and/or location, or 3.) Logon to CMS for even more detailed UFO sighting information about your State and the World.
I hope you are enjoying our new internet based Sighting and Reporting System. For questions regarding its use please refer to the User Guide available on your CMS main menu screen. Please send your questions and/or suggestions to Jan Harzan atjanharzan@hotmail.com.
Thank you!
Life Might Spread Across Universe Like an 'Epidemic' in New Math TheoryIf life can spread from star to star, researchers should see a characteristic pattern of overlapping …
As astronomers get closer to finding potential signatures of life on faraway planets, a new mathematical description shows how to understand life's spread — and to determine if it's jumping from star to star.
If life arose on other planets, did it spontaneously grow from raw materials every time? Or did it dart from planet to planet and star to star, spreading across the universe? Telltale mathematical patterns of where life signatures appear could reveal the answer, authors of the new research said.
"Life could spread from host star to host star in a pattern similar to the outbreak of an epidemic," study co-author Avi Loeb of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) said in a statement. "In a sense, the Milky Way galaxy would become infected with pockets of life." [10 Alien Planets That May Support Life]
The concept of life spreading across different planets and stars is called panspermia — whether microscopic organisms hitch a ride on an asteroid or intelligent beings plot a course for new horizons. Mathematically, both of those situations would show the same basic pattern, the new research shows.
"In our theory, clusters of life form, grow and overlap like bubbles in a pot of boiling water," the study's lead author Henry Lin, also at CfA, said in the same statement. With that kind of growth, life would fill the universe much more quickly than if it arose only through spontaneous development.
As telescopes increase in power and researchers learn more about the substances and conditions, spotted from afar, that would herald extraterrestrial life, scientists get closer to potentially identifying such signs of life on other planets. And if life appears in distinct clusters that contain many different stars, it makes it much more likely that organisms can proliferate across the galaxy.
The tricky part is identifying those patterns while embedded inside them, only able to see a certain selection of stars. According to the new research, humans could get lucky and be on the edge of a bubble of life; if that were the case, astronomers would glimpse many instances of life on one side of Earth, and few to none on the other. It would be clear that life is spreading instead of growing spontaneously each time. But even if Earth was in a less favorable location, statistical analysis of the life-filled spots discovered could still reveal the characteristic pattern.
The transfer of life from star to star, through a species' exploration or by natural events in the galaxy, would drastically speed up the transition from an empty galaxy to a life-filled one, the researchers said in the paper. Then, it might be only a matter of time before humans ran up against something otherworldly.
The research was recently accepted for publication by The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
Email Sarah Lewin at slewin@space.com or follow her @SarahExplains. Follow us@Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
{ http://news.yahoo.com/ }
Former Defence Minister Says Governments Are Hiding Aliens
{ http://7tales.net/index.php }
‘There is no group that would be happier to see such a thing’: Nasa hits out at UFO hunters who say they have found strange creatures on Mars
“Beings Are Visiting Us From Other Dimensions” – Confirms The FBI



1. Part of the disks carry crews, others are under remote control2. Their mission is peaceful. The visitors contemplate settling on this plane3. These visitors are human-like but much larger in size4. They are not excarnate Earth people, but come from their own world5. They do NOT come from a planet as we use the word, but from an etheric planet which interpenetrates with our own and is not perceptible to us6. The bodies of the visitors, and the craft, automatically materialize on entering the vibratory rate of our dense matter7. The disks posses a type of radiant energy or a ray, which will easily disintegrate any attacking ship. They reenter the etheric at will, and so simply disappear from our vision, without trace8. The region from which they come is not the “astral plane”, but corresponds to the Lokas or Talas. Students of osoteric matters will understand these terms.9. They probably can not be reached by radio, but probably can be by radar. if a signal system can be devised for that (apparatus)Addendum: The Lokas are oval shape, fluted length oval with a heat-resistaning metal or alloy not yet known the front cage contains the controls, the middle portion a laboratory; the rear contains armament, which consists essentially of a powerful energy apparatus, perhaps a ray.
Source: http://www.ufointernationalproject.com/
UFO Shoots Beam Towards Sun-diving Comet (Video)
On August 28, 2015 the SOHO camera captured remarkable images which show a sun-diving comet when suddenly a UFO appears between the sun and the comet. Then the UFO shoots a beam towards the comet.
Check out more contributions by Jeffery Pritchett ranging from UFO to Bigfoot to Paranormal to Prophecy
Weird Manta-Ray Shaped Object In The Sky Over Ciudad Colon In Costa Rica (Video)
At first he thought it was a drone then he grabbed the camera and started capturing the object as he was not sure what it was, because as the witness said, he could not see propellers, like the ones on a drone.
The winged object had a manta-ray shape and it did not reflect too much sunlight despite it was a bright morning. The object ended up near a hill where the witness lost sight. Mufon case 69884. March 22, 2015.
Could it be just a drone or the witness has made photos of something extraordinary like a flying humanoid or winged creature?
Check out more contributions by Jeffery Pritchett ranging from UFO to Bigfoot to Paranormal to Prophecy
Norwegian Couple Captures Close Encounter With UFOs in Åfjord, Norway (Photos)
This was the case this time, far from the car I saw beautiful clouds, with weird shapes and the lights were extremely nice, so I started to take several pictures from different angles.
Later on, when I was downloading the pictures in the computer I realized that in the edge of the mountains, there were several big UFOs, but because of the distance I didn`t see them at the time I took the pictures. Mufon case 69842.
Note: Please check out the images below, the several UFOs are clearly visible.
Check out more contributions by Jeffery Pritchett ranging from UFO to Bigfoot to Paranormal to Prophecy
Alleged Alien Spacecraft Shot Down In Iran – The Kickoff Of The September 2015 Events? (Video)
According to this report, the near catastrophic meteor impact occurring in Iran on 31 July which set off a 5.2 magnitude trembler was, in fact, a coordinated Federation-Iranian “successful intersection” of an “identified” alien spacecraft whose extraterrestrial entities are known to be working with certain elements of the United States military against both Russia and Israel.
The identification of this alien spacecraft, this report continues, was made by the newly created Aerospace Defence Forces (VKO) on 29 June after it attempted to “attack and destroy” another spacecraft entering the atmosphere of our Earth over the State of Texas.
While maintaining constant surveillance, since 29 June, of this “known to be hostile” spacecraft, VKO experts in this report state, analysts calculating its orbit determined it could be “intersected” in its orbital path by Kosmos 2491 and 2504 on 31 July as it passed over Iran.
Upon the determination that this spacecraft could be “intersected”, this report says, Federation “leadership elements” contacted their Iranian counterparts who then dispatched to Moscow the head of the IRGC, Major General Qassem Suleimani, on 24 July, to coordinate the taking down of this “hostile entity”.
With a coordinated plan in place to take down this spacecraft over Iran, MoD analysts in this report state, Kosmos 2491 and 2504, on 31 July, made a “successful intersection” of it causing it to break into numerous fragments…the majority of which fell into the Iranian regions of Eshtehard, Kerman and Bandar-e Mahshahr.
After a Security Council of Russia meeting, President Putin authorized the removal and transportation back to Federation territory of the debris collected by both Russian and Iranian military and scientific specialists from the alien spacecraft shot down over the Republic of Iran.
Two Caspian Flotilla warships currently docked in the Iranian port of Anzali to pick up the spacecraft debris, this report notes, are the Volgodonsk and Makhachkala, both of which are now operating under the command of the Aerospace Defence Forces (VKO).
MoD report further identified this spacecraft as being a part of the suspected (underwater/underground) alien fleet being monitored by the US military off the coast of Aguadilla Puerto Rico, from the former Strategic Air Command (SAC) Ramey Air Force Base, now known as Rafael Hernández Airport.
In 2013, this report continues, Federation “assets” were able to obtain a Top Secret US Homeland Security video of an alien spacecraft operating over this former Puerto Rico SAC base, which the Federal Security Services (FSB) then forwarded to the Scientific Coalition of Scientists for UFOlogy (SCU) for further examination.
Equally concerning to the MoD, they explain in this report, are the growing observations from “neutral observers” all over the world reporting an increase of alien spacecraft above our Earth’s atmosphere, which even the International Space Station (ISS) video feeds are unable to censor fast enough.
And as to how these latest events relating to the shooting down of this alien spacecraft over Iran tie into the Obama regimes September-October “Grand Event” we are still attempting to fully analyze.
However, with the Washington Post’s 14 March 2011 “pre-warning” article exploring the possibility of a massive tsunami striking the American east coast, when coupled by previous warnings of the same catastrophe being caused should the suspected alien base in Puerto Rico be attacked.
With the alleged shoot down of the alien spacecraft, resulting in an increase of alien spacecraft above our Earth’s atmosphere, the possibility of an attack on the suspected alien underwater base, which the main stream media will explain as a natural disaster, ad all the other things that we know will happen in September (Read here the complete list of 33 events in September) and without a doubt, we are going to witness a convergence of events during this month that is quite remarkable. By Whatdoesitmeans.
Check out more contributions by Jeffery Pritchett ranging from UFO to Bigfoot to Paranormal to Prophecy
Butler organization seeks answers for unexplained phenomenaDan Hageman talks about UFOs and aliens as matter-of-factly as others might talk about a rare bird sighting or an unexplained plane crash.
For Hageman, 62, of Butler, the existence of extraterrestrials is a rather simple fact.
“There are an estimated 100 to 200 billion galaxies in our universe,” said the president of the Butler Organization for Research of the Unexplained (BORU). “It's ludicrous to believe that we're the only ones to exist.”
He's not alone in that line of thinking.
A 2013 Harris Poll found that 36 percent of Americans believe in UFOs — the same percentage that said they believe in creationism. And a National Geographic market research poll found that 10 percent believe they've spotted an unidentified flying object.
BORU, founded more than 30 years ago, is focused on providing information and understanding to those seeking to find out more about something they've seen or experienced.
“We offer a clearinghouse for people who have had sightings and want to discuss it and get a better understanding of what they saw,” said Hageman, a Harbor Freight employee, who has been BORU's director since 1982. “There's a lot of ridicule when it comes to this kind of phenomenon. We're not here to label them.”
The group holds monthly meetings that anyone can attend to talk about whatever they've seen or heard, including ghosts, aliens and strange creatures like Bigfoot.
Attendance varies from as few as 10 to 30 or more, Hageman said. The organization also hosts an annual Paranormal Conference in Lyndora, Butler County.
The group's presentations at the South Butler Community Library have been popular, library director Mandee Williams said.
“Any time they've come, we've had standing-room-only attendance,” she said. “They are just the most personable people. They're just doing this because they're genuinely interested and want to educate people about it.”
Hageman said he has been convinced of the existence of extraterrestrials since he was 5 or 6, when he said he saw “funny lights” in the sky on the car ride home from his family's weekly Sunday dinner at his grandparents.
His uncle was driving on Route 38 to Butler when others in the car spotted the lights too, he said.
“My uncle pulled over and got out, and I was watching two orange-red, saucer-shaped lights,” Hageman said. “They were spinning in opposite directions of each other, but it looked like they were connected.”
He said in the sky, they looked to be about the size of two dinner plates.
“My uncle jumped in the car and started driving, and right by Oneida Dam he stopped and got out again. These things stopped and hovered right over the vehicle,” Hageman said.
Everyone got nervous so they drove home, he said. The next day, he said, other residents talked about seeing the unidentified objects.
‘NO CREDIBLE EVIDENCE'
Despite Hageman's and others' certainty that aliens exist and have visited our planet, skeptics such as Robert Sheaffer have dedicated just as much time and effort debunking sightings.
He said he attends conferences held by some of the largest UFO organizations, like the Mutual UFO Network, to see their evidence. He said he has reviewed documents and accounts.
So far, there has been nothing convincing.
“I've looked at what they consider their best evidence, and they have these tired old photos — that's the best that they have,” said Sheaffer, a fellow and science writer with the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, which promotes scientific and critical investigation of unusual claims.
“There's absolutely no credible evidence that aliens have ever been here on Earth.”
Sheaffer, a retired computer software engineer, said debunking is a hobby for him, but he believes it's important to society.
“There's too much nonsense in this world in terms of ghosts and Bigfoot and alien encounters,” he said. “The world would be a better place if we were grounded in a bit more reality.”
Likewise, Sharon Hill, a geologist and author of Doubtful News, a website on which she critically reviews sensational news stories that appear online, said paranormal phenomena doesn't pass the scientific litmus test.
“Ever since I can remember, I've been interested in these mystery-type questions, and I began reading skeptical literature on it,” Hill said. “The presentation of the evidence was impressive and understandable, while the mainstream was just stories from people.
“You couldn't do anything with those. You went looking, and there was nothing there.”
But BORU members say the evidence believers have amassed is plenty of proof.
“There are scientists from all walks of life that belong to these organizations that lend their time to studying reports and going out into the field to do proper scientific investigations,” said Michele George, 65, of East Brady, vice president of the group. “Many of us have read a lot and been involved with this for years.”
She said even as a child she felt like she knew we weren't alone in the universe.
“From the time I was young, I would look up at the sky and I always felt that we were certainly not the only intelligent beings around,” said George, a former elementary school teacher and professional goldsmith.
“Having a support group of people who are interested in UFOs has really helped a lot of people,” she said. “People can get frightened because they don't understand it, but it's something they want to talk about and share.”
Jodi Weigand is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. She can be reached at 724-226-4702 or jweigand@tribweb.com.
{ http://triblive.com/Home/ }
Close encounter, nearly forgotten: Former deputy moved on with life after UFO report 36 years ago
At 1:40 a.m. 36 years ago, Marshall County Sheriff's Deputy Val Johnson was on night patrol along a rural section of State Highway 220 near Warren, Minn., when he drove into a ball of white light.
"I noticed a very bright, brilliant light, 8 to 12 inches in diameter, 3 to 4 feet off the ground," Johnson said in a taped police interview. "The edges were very defined."
Johnson drove toward the light, and woke up in the ditch a half-hour later with burns around his eyes. The windshield and one headlight of his 1977 Ford LTD were smashed. Both radio antenna were bent sharply back. The watch on his wrist and the clock on the dash both ticked 14 minutes slow.
The Aug. 26, 1979, incident turned Johnson into a local legend and national media sensation. And years later, people are still talking about it.
Johnson's squad car is preserved in the Marshall County Museum with a plaque that says: "U.F.O. Car." People still come from miles around to see it. It's an annual display at the Marshall County Fair.

September 11, 1979 Val Johnson, standing where he says he was engulfed by a flash of light.
Sometimes former Marshall County Sheriff Dennis Brekke gives talks at the museum about the car and the night his deputy drove it into a ball of light. Police investigated and never drew any conclusions.
But the incident's enduring fame has lingered far beyond Marshall County.
What's known as the "Val Johnson Incident" remains one of the top 10 most influential UFO encounters in history, according Jerome Clark, who wrote about it in his 1998 book, "The UFO Encyclopedia."
Paranormal TV shows like "UFO Files" and "Mysteries at the Museum" filmed reenactments. Even now, people debate the legitimacy of the encounter on online forums.
"It was an extraordinarily important case," Clark said.
Plenty of people have strange experiences on back roads late at night, Clark explained, but very few of them yield any tangible evidence. Fewer still are ever investigated.
But one thing is strikingly absent from the small town museum, the TV shows and online discussions: Val Johnson. When you try to track down Val Johnson, people tend to say he's hard to find, that he's still haunted by what happened to him 36 years ago. A 2013 Pioneer Press article said Johnson "quickly grew tired of interviews" after the incident and is "believed to now live somewhere in Wisconsin."
Sheriff Brekke's wife Louise said Johnson hasn't kept in touch with his old colleagues in Marshall County for three decades, aside from a letter he sent a few years back with no return address.
As it turns out, Johnson isn't that hard to find. He lives in Eau Claire, Wis., and he answers his phone.
At the first mention of UFOs, he laughed aloud.
"People don't call about that anymore," he said.
It becomes readily apparent that the details of the Val Johnson incident still enthralling UFO enthusiasts, just don't fascinate Johnson.
"I looked up at the sky and said, 'Well shucks, what happened?'" Johnson recalled. "And then I shuffled on with my life."
He had small kids to raise back then. Hitting a ball of light and ending up in a ditch wasn't close to the most important thing going on in his life.
For almost a year after the incident his phone hardly stopped ringing. He's quoted at the time by Associated Press writer Barbara Dewey saying his wife was "run ragged" by the constant calls. He appeared on Good Morning America, and in dozens of newspapers across the country. For a while, he was a very big deal.
"And then other stories came along and pushed me off the front page," he said. "Thank goodness."
Johnson stayed on as deputy for a while after the incident. Then he took a job as chief of police in the nearby town of Oslo, Minn. Locals, he said, never questioned his ability to enforce the law.
In 1982 he was hired to set up the Roseau, Minn., Police Department, but lost the job less than a year later over a funding dispute.
"Once you're a chief of police, and then you get fired," he said, "you're un-hireable."
He was working as a security guard in a Twin Cities mall when a friend got him a job answering the customer service line at 3M.
"He asked me how I'd like to take 60 angry phone calls a day," he recalled, "I said, 'Dang, I can do that.'"
A few years later he retired to 20 acres in Wisconsin. Even then, he said, people sometimes showed up on his front porch with theories about his experience in Marshall County.
"We'd sit in the back yard with lemonade and talk," he said. "They'd tell me what they thought happened to me and I'd nod at the appropriate times. Eventually they'd go away."
Johnson is 71 now. He has a short white beard and thinning white hair. He's retired, living in Eau Claire with his wife, Rosanne. No one has stopped by in years. No one calls about UFOs even when his name airs on television.
He has great-grandchildren.

November 9, 1979 Shattered Windshield on Squad Car Johnson was driving night of incident.
To this day Johnson won't speculate on what happened to him in 1979. He doesn't think the light he saw was an extraterrestrial — but also won't rule out the possibility. For years, he said, it just hasn't crossed his mind.
"I saw a ball of light," he said. "I drove toward it, and suddenly it was in the car with me. It's unexplainable, and will remain so. I'm happy with my mental stability."
If it seems Johnson's ambivalence could cast some doubt on the famous incident, those passionate about UFOs are unfazed. Clark said it's a textbook UFO encounter coping mechanism.
Clark talked to scores of people involved in UFO encounters for his books. Some became obsessed with what happened to them. Some plunged into denial. Others he said, found peace, refusing to allow an encounter to change their lives.
"If anything," Clark said, "It's a story to tell at the bar, and that's it."
{ http://www.grandforksherald.com/ }
Daily UFO Headlines 8/31/2015openminds.tv