Laser mapping shows the surprising complexity of the Maya civilization

Ancient Guatemalan cities were larger and more interconnected than thought

BY  BRUCE BOWER 

 

SEE-THROUGH MAYA  Ruins at the Classic Maya city of Tikal in northern Guatemala poke out of dense forests that, thanks to aerial laser mapping, have revealed the unexpected size and complexity of this ancient American civilization.

ICKANDGAK/PIXABAY

A laser-shooting eye in the sky has revealed the previously unappreciated size and complexity of ancient Maya civilization, both before and during its presumed heyday, scientists say.

Maya people in what’s now northern Guatemala built surprisingly extensive defensive structures and roads as part of political systems featuring interconnected cities, starting at least several hundred years before the rise of Classic Maya society, an international team reports in the Sept. 28 Science. Classic Maya sites date to between around 250 and 900.

Aerial laser maps of northern Guatemala obtained in 2016 and map-guided ground surveys and excavations in 2017 compel a reevaluation of traditional assumptions about the ancient Maya, the team concludes. A long-standing idea that Classic Maya civilization, which covered parts of southern Mexico and much of Central America, once contained relatively small city-states ruled by warring kings has drawn increasing skepticism over the last decade (SN Online: 4/17/18). Laser technology shot down that scenario by gazing through forests and vegetation at 10 Maya sites — as well as in two areas with signs of Maya-era activity but no named sites — dating from a couple hundred years before the start of the Classic period to near its end. “Every Maya city was bigger and more populated than we previously thought,” says archaeologist Francisco Estrada-Belli of Tulane University in New Orleans. Estrada-Belli led the investigation along with archaeologists Marcello Canuto, also at Tulane, and Thomas Garrison of Ithaca College in New York.

A small plane carrying light detection and ranging equipment, or lidar, emitted laser pulses that gathered data on the ground’s shape across 2,144 square kilometers of northern Guatemala. Based on the more than 60,000 lidar-identified structures, the researchers estimate that a minimum of 7 million to 11 million people inhabited northern Guatemala near the end of the Classic Maya period.

UNVEILING TIKAL Dense forest surrounds the city center of this Classic-era Maya site (top). Laser mapping of the same view (bottom) revealed structures and causeways hidden by the jungle.

F. ESTRADA-BELLI/PACUNAM

Lidar views of the ancient Maya’s urban and rural infrastructure are particularly impressive, Estrada-Belli says. Water control was crucial. Much of the unsettled wetlands throughout northern Guatemala contain remnants of crisscrossing drainage channels that form grids within what must have once been agricultural fields. Some channels extend for one kilometer or more. Remains of stone terraces and low walls enclose many cultivation areas.

Drainage channels and terraces controlled water flow and eased soil erosion in heavily cultivated fields. “The ancient Maya were good stewards of their environment,” Estrada-Belli says.

Evidence of carefully irrigated agricultural fields challenges a popular view that Classic-era centers relied on food from soil-damaging, slash-and-burn farming. That practice eventually contributed to Maya civilization’s downfall, some researchers have argued.

Although sustainable cultivation techniques appear to have been standard for the ancient Maya, farmland near the largest Maya cities would not have provided enough food for local populations, the researchers say. Additional food was imported from distant sites belonging to common political networks, the team suspects.

Laser maps show that Maya cities varied substantially in population density and typically included less crowded zones in between city centers and rural areas. Most sites had a surprising number of defensive structures, Estrada-Belli says. Strategically placed bridges, ditches, ramparts, stone walls and terraces suggest military conflicts occurred frequently.

That didn’t stop cities from maintaining long-distance contacts and forming networks of politically aligned sites. Raised roads, or causeways, connected the earliest Maya sites, including three dating to a few hundred years before the Classic period, to nearby centers. These 10- to 20-meter-wide causeways run for as many as 22 kilometers. Later Maya cities primarily contain short causeways that served as entrances to public and ritual areas.

The new study builds on previous, smaller-scale lidar studies in and around Caracol, a Classic Maya city in western Belize (SN: 3/14/16, p. 22). Archaeologists Arlen and Diane Chase of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas directed that research.

“The new lidar data show that interconnected Maya cities go back to at least 300 B.C.,” Arlen Chase says.

Further lidar-guided surveys and excavations are planned, Estrada-Belli says. Some newly identified causeways extend beyond the edges of lidar maps, a sign that Guatemala’s forests hold further Maya revelations, he adds.

Citations

• M.A. Canuto et al. Ancient lowland Maya complexity as revealed by airborne laser scanning of northern Guatemala. Science. Vol. 361, September 28, 2018, p. 1355. doi:10.1126/science.aau0137.

Further Reading

• B. Bower. This ancient Maya city may have helped the Snake King dynasty spread. Science News Online, April 17, 2018.
• B. Bower. Lasers unveil secrets and mysteries of Angkor Wat. Science News. Vol. 189, March 14, 2016, p. 22.

{ https://www.sciencenews.org/ }

We’ve known for decades that black holes exist, and that matter sometimes falls into them, and now we have the first published evidence – from a team of UK astronomers – of matter falling into a black hole at 30 percent of the speed of light. This is much faster than what’s been observed in the past, but it isn’t unexpected. Recent computer simulations suggest a mechanism – via misaligned disks around the hole – by which gas can fall directly in at high speed. The team used data from the European Space Agency’s X-ray observatory XMM-Newton to make the discovery. The black hole is a supermassive one, located at the heart of a galaxy known as PG1211+143, about a billion light-years away.

Ken Pounds of the University of Leicester, who led the team that made the discovery, said:

We were able to follow an Earth-sized clump of matter for about a day, as it was pulled towards the black hole, accelerating to a third of the velocity of light before being swallowed up by the hole.

The velocity of light is 186,000 miles (300,000 km) per second.

Cool, yes? These results appeared in a paper published September 3, 2018 in the peer-reviewed journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

The XMM-Newton spacecraft, via ESA/ University of Leicester/RAS.

The researchers used XMM-Newton data to examine at X-ray spectra (where X-rays are dispersed by wavelength) of the galaxy PG211+143. This object was already known as one likely to have a supermassive black hole at its core (as most galaxies now are thought to do). The team’s statement explained:

The researchers found the spectra to be strongly red-shifted, showing the observed matter to be falling into the black hole at the enormous speed of 30 per cent of the speed of light, or around 100,000 kilometers per second [60,000 mps]. The gas has almost no rotation around the hole, and is detected extremely close to it in astronomical terms, at a distance of only 20 times the hole’s size (its event horizon, the boundary of the region where escape is no longer possible).

Most infall to black holes doesn’t move so fast, because, before it enters the hole, the material forms an accretion disk. The astronomers explained:

… black holes are so compact that gas is almost always rotating too much to fall in directly. Instead it orbits the hole, approaching gradually through an accretion disk – a sequence of circular orbits of decreasing size.

Why, then, did the material observed in galaxy PG211+143 fall directly into a black hole? The astronomers said the high velocity could have been the result of misaligned disks of material rotating around the black hole:

The orbit of the gas around the black hole is often assumed to be aligned with the rotation of the black hole, but there is no compelling reason for this to be the case …

Until now it has been unclear how misaligned rotation might affect the in-fall of gas. This is particularly relevant to the feeding of supermassive black holes since matter (interstellar gas clouds or even isolated stars) can fall in from any direction.

As it turns out, theorists at University of Leicester recently used the UK’s Dirac supercomputer facility to simulate the ‘tearing’ of misaligned accretion disks around compact objects. The astronomers explained:

This work has shown that rings of gas can break off and collide with each other, cancelling out their rotation and leaving gas to fall directly towards the black hole.

And now, as often happens, the theoretical work has been followed by an observation. Pounds commented:

The galaxy we were observing with XMM-Newton has a 40 million solar mass black hole which is very bright and evidently well fed. Indeed some 15 years ago we detected a powerful wind indicating the hole was being over-fed. While such winds are now found in many active galaxies, PG1211+143 has now yielded another ‘first’, with the detection of matter plunging directly into the hole itself.

Characteristic disk structure from the simulation of a misaligned disk around a spinning black hole.

Image via K. Pounds et al./ University of Leicester/RAS.

Bottom line: Astronomers used data from ESA’s X-ray space observatory XMM-Newton to discover a supermassive black hole, in a galaxy about a billion light-years away, into which matter is falling at some one-third of light speed.

Source: An ultrafast inflow in the luminous Seyfert PG1211+143

Via RAS

{ http://earthsky.org/ }

On the cusp of our atmosphere live a thin group of seasonal electric-blue clouds. Forming 50 miles (80 km) above the poles in summer, these clouds are known as noctilucent clouds or polar mesospheric clouds (PMCs). This summer, a NASA balloon mission observed these clouds over the course of five days at their home high in Earth’s atmosphere. The resulting photos, which scientists have just begun to analyze, will help to better understand turbulence in the atmosphere, as well as in oceans and lakes and the atmospheres of other planets, and may even improve weather forecasting.

Atmospheric turbulence – small-scale, irregular air motions characterized by winds that vary in speed and direction – is important because it mixes and churns the atmosphere and causes water vapor, smoke, and other substances, as well as energy, to become distributed both vertically and horizontally.

Noctilucent clouds or polar mesospheric clouds observed by NASA balloons as they flew over the Arctic in July 2018.

Image via NASA/PMC Turbo/Joy Ng.

On July 8, 2018, NASA’s PMC Turbo mission launched a giant balloon to study noctilucent clouds 50 miles (80 km) above the surface. For five days, the balloon floated through the stratosphere from its launch at Esrange, Sweden, across the Arctic to western Nunavut, Canada. During its flight, cameras aboard the balloon captured 6 million high-resolution images filling up 120 terabytes of data storage. The images include a variety of noctilucent cloud displays, revealing the processes leading to turbulence. Scientists are now beginning to go through the images and the first look has been promising.

Noctilucent (also called night-shining) clouds coalesce as ice crystals on tiny meteor remnants in the upper atmosphere. The results make brilliant blue rippling clouds that are visible just after the sun sets in polar regions during the summer. These clouds are affected by what’s known as atmospheric gravity waves — caused by the convecting and uplifting of air masses, such as when air is pushed up by mountain ranges. The waves play major roles in transferring energy from the lower atmosphere to the mesosphere.

Ruslan Merzlyakov in Denmark captured these noctilucent clouds on June 3, 2018. Learn more about noctilucent, or night shining, clouds, and see more photos here.

Dave Fritts is principal investigator of the PMC Turbo mission at Global Atmospheric Technologies and Sciences in Boulder, Colorado. He said in a statement:

This is the first time we’ve been able to visualize the flow of energy from larger gravity waves to smaller flow instabilities and turbulence in the upper atmosphere. At these altitudes you can literally see the gravity waves breaking – like ocean waves on the beach – and cascading to turbulence.

The balloons were equipped with seven specially-designed imaging systems to observe the clouds. Each included a high-resolution camera, a computer control and communications system, and 32 terabytes of data storage. The seven imaging systems were arranged to create a mosaic of wide views extending 100 miles (160 km) across, with each narrow view able to image turbulence features as small as 20 yards (918 meters) wide. A lidar — or laser radar — measured the precise altitudes of the clouds as well as the temperature fluctuations of the gravity waves above and below the clouds.

Learning about the causes and effects of turbulence will help scientists understand not only the structure and variability of the upper atmosphere, but other areas as well. Turbulence happens in fluids across the universe and the results will help scientists better model it in all systems. Ultimately, the results will even help improve weather forecast models.

Bottom line: In July 2018, a NASA balloon mission floated over the Arctic to study noctilucent clouds 50 miles (80 km) above the surface.

Read more from NASA

{ http://earthsky.org/ }

“If you build it, he will come.”

That may be true in movies about old baseball players, but when it comes to old plazas of the Mayans, a better saying might be, “If you build it, they will come and find it … eventually.” That’s the case in a Guatemalan jungle where researchers using airborne laser scanning (LiDAR) have located over 60,000 distinct Mayan structures hidden by dense vegetation too difficult to explore on the ground. Those structures include a pyramid complex and were surrounded by an extensive network of roads. Were they expecting us?

“Even though some earlier lidar studies had prepared us for this, just seeing the sheer quantity of ancient structures across the landscape was mind-boggling.”

In a study published in Science, Ithaca College archeologist and co-author Thomas Garrison, described the Lidar scanning which began in July 2016 in northern Guatemala near the Mexican border. In a 12 period, they flew over 800 square miles of jungle, firing three lasers at 300,000 pulses of light per second. Lasers that managed to penetrate the canopy and then bounce back were picked up by a detector, which collected enough data to create a 3-D map of the topography with one-meter resolution.

El Castillo before excavation, 1860

“Seen as a whole, terraces and irrigation channels, reservoirs, fortifications and causeways reveal an astonishing amount of land modification done by the Maya over their entire landscape on a scale previously unimaginable.”

Marcello A. Canuto, director of the Middle American Research Institute at Tulane and study co-author, described the unbelievable scenes the archeologists saw on the map (see a video here and map samples here). It shows that the area was much more densely populated than previously thought – possibly between 7 million and 11 million people in this Maya Lowlands area at its peak during the Late Classical Period (650 to 800 CE). The irrigation canals and farm areas indicate how necessary and important agriculture was to this Mayan civilization, and how they changed the topology to accommodate it without the use of plows – techniques that could help farmers today.

Mayan pyramid

The power of LiDAR was shown in the discovery of the pyramid, a large structure that has somehow not been found in previous other searches of the area. And the abundance of roads and fortifications indicates that the Mayans were militarized defensively and waging wars earlier than previously thought. However, the LiDAR mapping is limited in that it can’t identify what time period the various structures existed in, giving instead one picture covering centuries of existence, as Garrison explains to Gizmodo.

“Not everything was occupied all at the same time, and it is now our job as archaeologists to sort all of this out. But we’re certainly happy to have these new problems!”

Spoken like a true archaeologist. They built it and he will keep on coming.

{ https://mysteriousuniverse.org/ }

Rare triangle-shaped UFO caught over London, England

London England - 09-23-18 - The observer and videographer of this event states that he saw this triangle-shaped object flying above his head in London.

He states that he just had enough time to grab his 90x zoom camcorder and capture video and still frames of the enigmatic vehicle.

The object in question is seemingly unique in its color and shape in that the top or cupalo appears to be off-center as compared to other reports of triangle-shaped UFOs.

Of course with today's technology it is easy to create something like this and it is wise to be skeptical. 
You will see a blue color along with gray on the other side with the blue, off-centered top. Mufon case 95215.

  

{ http://ufosightingshotspot.blogspot.com/ }

Chilean Navy just released this UFO video

{ https://www.disclose.tv/ }

Is Earth ready for alien contact? IT IS NOW - Government UFO expert pens contingency plan

EXCLUSIVE: A UFO expert who investigated alien sightings for the UK Government has drafted a contingency plan for the day humans discover extraterrestrial life.

” Everything is in a process of investigation both in the United States and in Spain, as well as the rest of the world. The nations of the world are currently working together in the investigation of the UFO phenomenon. There is an international exchange of data.”

– General Carlos Castro Cavero (1979). From “UFOs and the National Security State, Volume 2,″ written by Richard Dolan.

Although the quote above comes from 1976, it also applies to decades prior. Fast forward to today and we now have thousands upon thousands of declassified documents (even though millions are still classified every year by the United States) that prove there was and still is a  high level of interest in the UFO phenomenon from governments and military agencies worldwide. Documents indicate that these objects are tracked often on air/ground radar, sometimes simultaneously, as well as visually confirmed by the pilots scrambling to check them out. These objects perform maneuvers that defy our laws of physics and are clocked travelling at speeds no known aircraft on our planet can travel, at least some of them.

Here is a great example of a declassified document detailing what happens when the military has an encounter with a UFO.

“As the F-4 approached a range of 25 nautical miles it lost all instrumentation and communications. When the F-4 turned away from the object and apparently was no longer a threat to it, the aircraft regained all instrumentation and communications. Another brightly lighted object came out of the original object. The second object headed straight toward the F4.” (source)

To compliment these documents, we also have hundreds of statements from high ranking officials from around the world, like this one:

“There is a serious possibility that we are being visited and have been visited for many years by people from outer space, by other civilizations. Who they are, where they are from, and what they want should be the subject of rigorous scientific investigation and not be the subject of ‘rubishing’ by tabloid newspapers.” (source)

– Lord Admiral Hill-Norton, Former Chief of Defence Staff, 5 Star Admiral of the Royal Navy, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee

Here you will find a video of an air force pilot sharing his particular experience.

What Happened In 1942? 

During the Second World War, UFO reports soared, especially after the atomic bomb was dropped. This is interesting given the fact that a number of the declassified documents indicate UFO incursions at several different military nuclear missile facilities around the globe. Perhaps the best and most well known example comes from 1967 at Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana. The base controls a giant network of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), where a number of highly trained military personnel witnessed a red, glowing UFO hovering outside the gate. At that time, all of the ICBMs shut down including the back-up generators. Just to be clear, this doesn’t ever happen.  A conference was held seven years ago at the National Press Club discussing this issue, you can view that here.

Here is a Wikileaks cable that discusses an incident in Algeria where flying “machines” that “obscure” their shape were spotted near military installations.  There are too many examples to list here.

But prior to World War 2, the UFO issue was still prominent. We even have historical records and artwork of UFOs in antiquity that are well documented, you can find out more about that here.  This particular article will focus on what happened above Los Angeles in 1942.

The picture you see above is of an object that hovered over Los Angeles in the early morning hours of February 25th, 1942. The small white dots around the object are artillery bursts.  This incident happened only three months after Pearl Harbour. At the time, there was a lot of attention placed on the US and the US was on high alert.

Here are the facts:

• Several radars detected an object about 120 miles west of Los Angeles

• Within minutes, anti-aircraft batteries went on high alert

• At approximately 2:20 am, the object was tracked on radar to within a few miles of the coast and a city blackout was ordered

• Shortly after 3:00 am, the object appeared right over the city and anti-aircraft batteries opened fire

• Approximately 1500 rounds were fired into the sky, not over the ocean but directly over the city

• Three citizens died from the shelling and three more from heart attacks attributed to the shelling

• A great deal of property damage was inflicted

• Dr. Bruce Maccabee, an expert in photographic analysis, believed the objects to be roughly 100 feet or more in diameter

• The event was witnessed by approximately 1 million people

Hearing from 1 of the million who saw this object

Below is some witness testimony from the event, his name was  Scott Littleton, a Professor of Anthropology, Emeritus, Occidental College, Los Angeles, CA

“The two of us stood side by side in front of the house, huddling together in the chill night air and staring up into the sky. The planes we’d heard were not in sight, but what captured our rapt attention was a silvery, lozenge-shaped “bug,” as my mother later described it, that was clearly visible in the searchlight beams that pinpointed it. Although it was a clear, moonlit night, no other details could be discerned, despite the fact that, when we first saw it, the object was hanging motionless almost directly overhead. Its altitude is hard to estimate, especially after all these years, but I’d guess that it was somewhere between 4,000 and 8,000 feet. This may explain why we didn’t see the orange glow reported by several eyewitnesses in Santa Monica and Culver City, where the object was apparently much lower. (One witness suggests that this glow may simply have been the reflection of shell bursts against the object’s “silvery” body.)”

The official explanation for the event ranged from “nothing happened” to “balloons,” but all those who’ve studied this phenomenon in depth know that it’s been wrapped in secrecy for a very long time and the lid is just beginning to blow. The only problem is, all of the witnesses described something very different from the official explanation.

“Behind the scenes, high ranking Air Force officers are soberly concerned about UFOs. But through official secrecy and ridicule, many citizens are led to believe the unknown flying objects are nonsense.” 

Former head of CIA, Roscoe Hillenkoetter, 1960 (source)

Source used:

• UFOs For The 21st Century Mind

Source 

• www.collective-evolution.com

More from Aliens

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SOURCE:

• alien-ufo-sightings.com

{ https://www.sightings.info/ }

Did Hundreds of UFOs Just Portal into Our Solar System? - Examining the Possibilities of Q Anon's 'Sky Event'

The title of this post alone may, if nothing else, throw some readers through a mental loop. If so, the topic of discussion may seem even more bizarre. But bear with it. This topic may be dense and to some, it may seem far-fetched. However, in truth, these subjects may have a significant impact upon our present and future lives.

Imagine, for a moment, if hundreds of spacecraft and giant, planet-size, cloaked spheres entered our solar system. What might the reaction be? Clearly, occurrences like this don't typically take place on a regular basis (at least not that we know of). Consequently, the images we are about to see may be particularly impacting for us.

Disclaimer
Before beginning, it's important to note that though all of what we are about to discuss is based upon scientific possibility, not everything stated here is verified fact. All information may only be relevant for our own personal speculation. Even still, if proven true, these disclosures could lead to several very significant changes on our planet and beyond. With that said, let's get things started.
To start the discussion, let's wind the clocks back to the year 2012.

Solar Tornadoes

Back in early 2012, scientists were busily observing our sun as it underwent its cycle of solar maximum. Naturally, numerous articles and commentaries were being published at the time on the subject of solar changes and various anomalies surrounding the solar cycle. Some of these publications came from official sources while others came from independent sources. In general, however, all of these publications piqued the curiosity of much of the American public.

One of these official sources—called Helioviewer—became particularly popular due to its ability to publish some of the most stunning close-ups of our sun from SOHO. Though many of these images were quite impressive, one of them appeared to reveal much more than mainstream astronomy might care to admit.

YouTube video including original footage -  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQ7RaOMHb5I

Do you remember seeing this image? Unfortunately, I was not able to find the original link it was published with. However, we do know the image originated from the SOHO telescopic array and came forward as official information at the time, though it appears the original link no longer functions.

At the time, the subject which astronomers referred to as solar tornadoes was a hot topic. These spiraling formations appeared to have been the result of the increasing energies of the sun during solar maximum. These anomalies were quite impressive, as each was actually several times larger than the Earth itself. However, these tornadoes actually shared the stage with another remarkable phenomenon.

Take another look at the image. What is the tornado connected to? By all appearances, there looks to be an invisible and yet perfectly defined spherical object connected to the tornado. If this object is in fact, real, it would easily dwarf the Earth as well. It looks to be the size of Neptune or even Jupiter in comparison to the sun.

If this image is real, what could it be? Let's set this mystery aside for a moment and consider what we know about our present situation on Earth.

Closed Observatories

The day of September 6th began with a very strange incident involving the FBI suddenly shutting down a solar observatory in Sunspot, New Mexico. News reports of this incident gave no explanation as to why the FBI suddenly showed up and closed this university-operated observatory down. Authorities gave no comment, and the citizens who live adjacent to Sunspot appeared to be largely unaware of the possible reasons behind the closure.

See also - Project 'Brilliant Pebbles' and the Exploded Planet Hypothesis - The Unclassified History of the Asteroid Belt

The strangest part of this story was that even the local police were ordered to exit the premises along with all observatory personnel—again with no explanation. If this does not seem strange, we should note the fact that this facility—called AURA or the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy)—was not at all the only observatory to close suddenly around 9/11.

According to an online search, the live feeds to several solar observatories around the world all appear to have been cut on the exact same day—possibly only hours before or after the AURA Observatory in Sunspot. Below is an excerpt from a gaming forum in which a user posted evidence of these strange shutdowns of multiple solar observatories around the world.

National Solar Observatory Mysteriously Closed As Geomagnetic Storm Looms
There is no [timetable] for the Observatory to be re-opened[.] [T]he observatory is closed just as a massive hole has opened up in the Sun’s corona, which means we’re officially on watch for a geomagnetic storm....we note that all these solar/space cams down at the same time:

AXIS 232D Network Dome Camera located in Sydney Australia

Webcams located at SOAR Observatory

BRT Tenerife Telescope Webcam located in Spain

Webcam located at Mauna Kea observatory at the University of Hawaii Hilo

Webcam from the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope observatory in Hawaii

Webcam at JAT Observatory in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania

https://www.zerohedg...tic-storm-looms

National Solar Observatory shuts down over mysterious 'security issue' amid FBI activity and Blackhawk helicopters flying in and out as geomagnetic storm looms.
https://www.dailymai...torm-looms.html

http://forum.worldoftanks.com/index.php?%2Ftopic%2F586468-something-odd%2F

It might be understandable if one or two of these feeds was to go down periodically, seeing that regular maintenance to streaming hardware typically needs to take place. However, as things appear, the feeds from multiple countries all went down at nearly the same time (apparently within hours of one another) leaving many professional astronomers unable to take notice of possible changes within our sun.

Now going on for at least a day, we have little to no scientific data being recorded during what could be a significant geomagnetic storm. Under normal circumstances, there would be nothing of interest to hide with regard to a solar storm such as this. The storm was not that powerful and there did not appear to have been anything notable which an agency such as the FBI would care to hide. This may lead us to believe that something else might be taking place within or possibly around our sun.

Q Anon's "Sky Event"

For those who have kept up with the source, Q Anon, this subject might be somewhat familiar. However, for those who have not, we will give a brief review.

Q Anon came onto the public scene around October of 2017. At the time, this source was posting to the obscure website, 4Chan, and didn't seem to be very significant. It wasn't until Q began to post what appeared to be hinted predictions of major world events that more people began to take notice. Then when those predictions began to come true, much of the American public really started to catch on.

See also - MAINSTREAM DISCLOSURE: The Asteroid Belt Now Believed by Astronomers to be Remains of Several Planets (Or Possibly One)

Due to the tendency for the Q source to oppose the old establishment—i.e., corrupt American government and globalist elitists—the corporate media has done everything it can to smear and to squelch any interest the public has shown in Q Anon. However, many of these efforts have only backfired and have actually introduced mainstream audiences to this highly iconoclastic voice—a voice which appears to be a group of high-ranking, military-based patriots who are working tirelessly to oppose tyrannical globalists.

It is important to realize when reading Q posts, that not much of what this source says is stated in plain language. In fact, at times, much of these statements are so cryptic that they may not register as relevant at the time they are posted. However, in many cases, the immense significance of these statements is proven over time.

There was one term which Q repeated a number of times in early April and May of this year (2018). The post appeared to be very simple and yet full of implication. It simply read, "Sky Event."

Four instances of the mention of the sky event (including repeats)

As in many cases, no one knows for certain what this term means. As we can see, one other anonymous poster inquired about its meaning and included an image of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore. By Q's lack of direct response, it seems that this was not the actual reference to the sky-event statement. (Usually, Q gives affirmation to posters who make such inquiries and guess correctly.)

So if this sky event was not relative to a presidential meeting in Singapore or any other known event, what could it be? Does the statement have one or more meanings? Is it code, or could it be a prediction of some future occurrence?

The Sun's Portal

We all know the scientific discipline of astronomy. Though somewhat interesting, mainstream astronomy has a tendency to be dull, unchanging, and predictable. However, within the alternative community, astronomy often takes on a whole new dimension of possibility.
According to numerous whistleblowers who are quite popular within these communities, the universe does not only consist of electromagnetic energy. The universe also is founded upon electro-plasmic energy, and this energy has become the new basis for much of the cutting-edge, holistic version of astrophysics.

See also - Video - GRAB YOUR CAMERAS - UFO Sightings Set to Increase - Here's How to Prepare

In essence, stars are not merely balls of burning/fusing gases. They are electro-plasmic generators as well as sustained fields of what is referred to as torsion energy. We will not discuss torsion physics for the sake of time. For now, let's tackle this topic of electro-plasmic stars.

According to cutting-edge science, stars consist of a negatively charged core/black hole surrounded by a positively charge corona. These components interact with spacetime in a very interesting way. However, to keep the explanation simple, we will just say that the core and corona work together to create nuclear fusion on the surface.

In addition, this dynamic can actually behave as a hyper-dimensional gateway. According to whistleblower testimony as well as mainstream astronomic disclosures, high-energy connections between stars naturally exist and typically traverse great distances through space. This topic was covered by the website, the Daily Mail, among many others and is rather extensive in detail and implication. Let's examine.

Astronomers have exposed new proof that enhances the belief of interconnection between the planets and galaxies in the solar system.
Dr. Stephan Keller of the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics at Australian National University revealed the intricate details of the findings, that connects the entire Universe.
He said: 'By examining the positions of ancient groupings of stars, called globular clusters, we found that the clusters form a narrow plane around the Milky Way rather than being scattered across the sky.'


Cosmic beauty: The findings confirmed the filament that connects the Milky Way to the Universe
'Furthermore, the Milky Way’s entourage of small satellites are seen to inhabit the same plane.
'What we have discovered is evidence for the cosmic thread that connects us to the vast expanse of the Universe.
'The filament of star clusters and small galaxies around the Milky Way is like the umbilical cord that fed our Galaxy during its youth.'
Dr. Keller's study enforces the view that the structure of the cosmos is made up of long filaments of galaxies and vast voids that spans millions of light years.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2044260/Better-connected-Huge-cosmic-filament-link-galaxy-rest-Universe.html

Though mainstream astronomy can leave much to be desired, for the most part, it appears to prove the above point rather well. Stars, planets, and entire galaxies are actually connected through these cosmic filaments which may be as old as each of these galaxies themselves.
Though mainstream science commonly assumes the universe is in a constant state of imbalanced enthalpy or decay (which is largely inaccurate according to more recent scientific discoveries), the reality of this energetic connectivity within our universe suggests otherwise. Not only does our universe show evidence of sustained and balanced function, it displays an intrinsic and ubiquitous potential for evolution throughout the cosmos.

See also - Disclosure - Corporate Media Claims Asteroid Could be an 'Alien Space Craft'; Astronomers Search for Signs of 'Alien Technology' - Links and Commentary

According to multiple whistleblowers, these high-energy connections can be used as gateways through which energy and possibly even spacecraft can travel through space. In fact, according to one whistleblower, covert off-planet space projects have developed a way to use these hyper-dimensional gateways to traverse vast distances of space in unbelievably short periods of time.

Secret Space Program whistleblower, Corey Goode, is one of several who claims to have served in an off-planet space program called Solar Warden. Not only was this program confirmed to exist by a number of other whistleblowers, but Goode has consistently demonstrated a considerable amount of knowledge in astronomy, classified science, intelligence operations, and even psychic reconnaissance.

During one of his terms of service in these covert projects, Goode claims to have served on a space vessel which traversed the solar system as  type of security detail. While on these missions, he recalls how he and his colleagues passed downtime by perusing the database of information available to operatives and learning about multiple subjects in classified science. One of these subjects was that of heliophysics.

In addition to this research, Corey claims that either Solar Warden vessels or other types of ships were able to use cosmic filaments as shortcut gateways to travel the galaxy. According to his testimony, the feat is possible, but the technology and ingenuity necessary to accomplished such a feat may only be achieved through adequately technological (and consciousness) development.

These claims have been remarkable to hear. Yet, we may also be interested to know that Goode was not the only public figure to speak on these matters of advanced technologies.

Type II Civilizations

Many of us might be familiar with the work of one famed astrophysicist, Dr. Nikolia Kardashev. Kardashev may be best known for his breakthrough experiments in attempting to seek out intelligent ET life through various cosmic signals from deep space. Though he was born ahead of his time, Kardashev blazed several significant trails through the arena of astrophysics.

Nikolia Kardashev was also known for his theories on ET civilizations. In short, he developed a scale—now known as the Kardashev scale—which may help us determine the level of possible technological development of a civilization.

The Kardashev scale

Notice the various levels of development which Kardashev believed a civilization could achieve. Upon seeing these possibilities, we might wonder just what capabilities a species could achieve if they reached the level of Type II. To elaborate, here is an excerpt from the website, Futurism.com.

The next step up – a Type II civilization – can harness the power of their entire star (not merely transforming starlight into energy, but controlling the star). Several methods for this have been proposed. The most popular of which is the hypothetical ‘Dyson Sphere.’ This device, if you want to call it that, would encompass every single inch of the star, gathering most (if not all) of its energy output and transferring it to a planet for later use. Alternatively, if fusion power (the mechanism that powers stars) had been mastered by the race, a reactor on a truly immense scale could be used to satisfy their needs. Nearby gas giants can be utilized for their hydrogen, slowly drained of life by an orbiting reactor.

https://futurism.com/the-kardashev-scale-type-i-ii-iii-iv-v-civilization/

The ability to use the entirety of the energetic output of a star could yield some rather amazing technological developments. As a species achieved this feat, they would no longer need to rely upon limited fuel sources such as petroleum deposits or nuclear fission/fusion. In short, their version of solar power would take on a whole new meaning and would be worlds more superior to our own version here on Earth.

If a species achieve a Type II status, they would no longer need to worry about solar imbalances, droughts, or severe weather. They could predict the output of a star and regulate its output in a way that is most healthy for the system and the inhabitants thereof. 

See also - DISCLOSURE - Scientists Say the Dream of Unlimited Clean Energy is about to Come True - Videos and Analysis

They could develop space-travel technology that would put ours to shame. Such a civilization could make achievements that may seem unimaginable, but one of these possible developments stands out.

If a civilization could use all of the energy of a star, this would mean that in some way, they were able to control the effects of the energy of the star and how it impacted their civilization at any given time. Eventually, their developments might include the ability to shield entire ships from the harmful effects of a star—allowing them to fly into stars to study them.
Perhaps at some point, the civilization would develop a shielding technology (along with cloaking ability) that would cause their craft to be impervious to any harmful effects from stellar energy. Such technology might even allow them to use these stars as gateways.

Sun Cruisers

In early 2005, well-known author and independent researcher, Richard C. Hoagland, reported a number of highly intriguing incidents with what appeared to be planet-sized, spherical UFOs entering and exiting from our sun. These UFOs were so enormous and yet so fast in their movements, that they were barely perceivable by Earth-based telescopes. Even still, NASA instruments were able to detect them—creating quite an interesting puzzle for independent researchers to solve.

Below is an excerpt from an early DTM article written on this very subject. The article refers to a number of images taken by Earth-based telescopes and published by official sources. These images were later included in Hoagland's research.

February 2, 2005... 

Anyone who understands particular movement in space knows that this is not at all space dust. Particles in space move at a single vector. They don't turn or change direction at all unless something causes this directional change artificially (hens the law of inertia).

This is a very large object. Again, it looks to be the size of the sun itself, and not only that, it is moving at an extremely high rate of speed. It is also making intelligent course corrections as it moves. It's moving fast enough to streak the lens, and far away enough that its trail drastically reduces in size.

This is not debris, and it is not space dust. It is likely a craft of some kind, which, at times, seems to be as bright as the sun.

[Above image] The gas giant on the left is normal. We can tell that it's a planet because it's on the elliptic, but the streak toward the lower left is most unusual.

[Above image] You can see a spiral structure in the trail of this object, which, according to Richard C. Hoagland, is evidence of accelerated electrons excited in a high strength magnetic field. This is most likely one of these spheres moving at incredible speeds.

July 31, 2002...

[Above image] There is a Mars-sized object on the right, but Mars is actually on the left. So there is another planet-sized object causing yet another CCD overload.

[Above image] Here is a closeup of the above slide. There is Mars on the left, and on the right is the sun-cruiser.

This image [above] was taken the next day. We can still see Mars, as it is a planet, and has a predictable direction, and a slower rate of travel, but the spec on the right is completely gone. Planets don't vanish or take off in less than 24 hours. That other sphere was no planet.

In this image [above], the object on the far right may be a planet. The two we see in the middle and on the left are both below the elliptic and moving too quickly to be planets. (These are stills from the original animation.)

 

This [above] is a coronal mass ejection in progress, but the interesting part is what happened just before this CME took place. In the animation on the "Cyberspace Orbit" website, two spheres can be seen rapidly approaching the sun, and entering into it. The subsequent CME irrupts immediately afterward.

http://www.discerningthemystery.com/2016/03/sun-cruisers-with-david-wilcock-and.html

As we might recall, the UFOs—due to their tendency to linger around the sun—were dubbed sun cruisers. These apparent vessels were believed to have been controlled by highly advanced ETs with the ability to use stars as gateways for travel. However, these phenomena are still shrouded in mystery.

If these were actual planet-sized spherical ships, the mere sight of them may cause unwanted concerns for any developed civilization. This may be why the alleged ships appear to be cloaked and transparent. To add, if several metallic planet-sized ships arrived in a solar system uncloaked, they would create an unhealthy amount of shadowing and could block out the sun from civilizations that depended upon it. This is one of several reasons why cloaking technology would be useful for travelers visiting our solar system.

If the above images do look somewhat familiar, they should. These are quite reminiscent of our images of interest.

The Images

There have been many sightings over the years of strange objects in the sky—both around the Earth and around our sun. These sightings have ranged greatly in shape, formation, frequency of sighting, and duration of the appearance of these craft.

Each of the thousands of sightings that have been reported or even those that have been classified and then declassified by the CIA have contributed to the very strong possibility that we are not alone in this universe. In fact, in all likelihood, we are not even alone in this solar system, on this planet, or even in our own neighborhood. So when we see these images, it is important for us to have that healthy amount of skepticism, but to also have a flexible mind so that we are able to adapt whenever we find the truth to be different than we originally thought.

See also - NASA Tweets 'First Alien Comet Up Close': Another Soft Disclosure of Interstellar Spacecraft? - Links and Commentary

Now, let's examine these images.

The following images come from several Facebook posts from a user who preferred to remain mostly private at this time, so I will refrain from mentioning their name. They seem to be a generous individual who came across something extraordinary and was courteous enough to share their hobby with the world. We are grateful for the gesture.

(A)                                                                                   (B)

At first glance, some may not notice what exactly they are looking at. Is this simply a dirty lens viewing the night sky? No. By my understanding, these images were taken during the daytime with an iPhone 8, telescopic/lens adapter, and possibly a solar filter. The glowing object in the center is a somewhat distorted image of the sun. There are also objects surrounding the sun which are unknown.

(C)                                                         (D)                                                        (E)

We may look at these small, spotty objects and simply assume they are dust particles on the lens. However, dust is typically random in shape and arrangement. These small objects are not.

They appear to be actual objects distributed throughout three-dimensional space. As we may notice, the objects in the center image above (D) all appear to have the same vanishing point within the image, causing me to suspect that the image depicts a highly voluminous area, such as outer space.

(F)                                                                                         (G)

The image F and G appear to depict the same or similar objects as the others. There is no way for us to determine size relationships, as we do not know what we are actually looking at. Nor do we know the distance of these objects from the sun. However, from the above image on the left (F), we do see what appears to be a sort of corona or what could be compared to a solar bow-shock surrounding each object on the sun-facing side of each object.
If these objects were advanced ships of some kind, we might expect to see something very similar—large ships traveling by their own power while being buffeted by the blast of the solar winds.
In addition to these smaller objects, we see what appear to be enormous transparent spheres distributed in multiple locations throughout each image. If these do not represent smudges on a lens, this would make sense. These images appear to depict the familiar transparent spheres we have seen images of in past official astronomic photography.
Notice how in some of these images, the light of the sun actually shines brighter on the side of the spheres closest to the sun—just as we might expect to see on a physical, transparent, and slightly opaque spherical object.
What could these objects be?

Exploring the Possibilities

We can only speculate as to what might be taking place in our solar system at present. However, according to these images, it appears that something quite significant has just occurred. Unfortunately, we do not have the scientific evidence to validate what we see here. Yet, the reason we do not have this evidence is that many of the astronomic observatories that would have been gathering said evidence were conveniently shut down in less than 24 hours of one another.

These images show what appear to be not simply one, but many enormous, possible planet-sized spheres along with what looks to be dozens—if not hundreds of craft of some kind. All of these objects appear to be emanating from our sun (or from an original point near the sun). According to the linear trajectory of the apparent ships, they all appear to have gated in through the sun or to at least be moving away from the same central point of origin relative to the sun.

See also - Trump Orders Establishment of 'Space Force' as 6th Branch of Military; Program Has Existed Since Mid-1900s, Whistleblowers Claim

The original image of the solar tornado was similar to these in that it was correlated with a small solar ejection. If we imagine a planet-sized ship gating in from within the sun, it would make sense that as it left the solar surface it would have a plasma trail or possible plasma vortex attached to it similar to the way in which reported USOs (unidentified submerged objects) do as they emerge from beneath the water's surface before taking to flight.

It could be that the small geomagnetic storm we experienced on September 11 was the result of not simply one large UFO leaving the surface of the sun, but the possible result of hundreds of craft of multiple sizes gating into the solar system through our sun.

Of course, we must take into account the possibility that all of these images are mere flukes and could be lens flares or some other photographic hiccup caused by questionable iPhone hardware/software. There is a chance this could be the case. However, this does not seem to explain the numerous other connections we've discussed here.
Why did so many solar observatories close in such a short period of time preceding what was claimed to be a mere geomagnetic storm? Why do the official SOHO images look so similar to these images recently taken of the sun? There appears to be some connection between these two occurrences.

Meeting the Neighbors

According to extensive research, there appears to be a particular consensus on the subject of the possibilities of ET contact. Many sources within alternative communities believe that the majority of ETs within the cosmos are largely benevolent and desire to assist humanity in whatever way they are able. Though there are reported to be a number of exceptions, for the most part, this appears to be agreed upon by most alternative sources of information.

Many are familiar with the text of the Law of One and the way in which it has impacted the truth community. According to this text, any being we meet within the universe can have a variety of different focuses and intentions upon meeting them. They could either be benevolent (or focused on serving others), malevolent (or negatively focused on selfish intentions), or they could be neutral and take a position of what we might consider scientific curiosity (or the position of an observer).
Those who serve others typically define themselves in their generosity and their willingness to meet the needs of others. Those who are negative will typically behave like narcissists, sociopaths, or psychopaths depending upon the severity of their self-focus. These negative beings behave as though they are the center of the universe, and they consider anyone who does not acknowledge their assumed superiority to be evil.
According to my understanding, the beings who are neutral must be discipline in their intent to avoid becoming involved in any opposition between the positive polarity and the negative polarity.
Under normal circumstances, any ET we might meet out in space will be far more advanced than Earth humans. As Earthlings, we could consider ourselves to be at what is called 3rd density (or in some cases 4th). This means that with regard to spiritual maturity, we are old enough to cause trouble, but not mature enough to handle independent life in the galaxy. Consequently, we are stuck on one planet for the most part.
When we evolve to a point where we can behave responsibly and respectfully toward all other beings we might encounter in our galaxy/universe, we might be able to travel outside of our solar system (though according to whistleblower testimony, various covert projects have already developed the ability to do so). In fact, according to research, many benevolent ET groups are interested in helping to assist us in achieving that level of maturity.

The Law of One text refers to this benevolent group as the Confederation. This group is said to consist of many different species of ETs all of which have matured to a point of self-sufficiency and balance in the galaxy. After they achieve this maturity, those within this group travel to different planets where civilizations are about to transition into hihger consciousness. These benevolent ETs may either observe the process of development or, at times, they render aid to ensure a smooth transition of the civilization into a state of independence.
The task is typically hands-off for the most part, as too much interference can actually hinder those who are learning to be self-sufficient. According to multiple sources, this is why we do not see ETs walking the streets on the regular (or at least we believe we do not see ETs).

There are ETs which we might consider negative. Ironically, we do not actually need to worry about them coming to invade, necessarily. According to many sources, the negative ETs are already living here on Earth with us. These sources claim that these ETs are those behind the destruction of Earth's habitats, the degradation of human health, and the progressive imbalance upon the planet as a whole.

These negative ETs, with the help of psychopathic humans, have largely reduced the planet to desolation. However, thanks to humanity's process of natural and spiritual maturity (along with the assistance of multiple positive groups), this has not been allowed to occur.

Intentions

If there are hundreds of ET craft occupying our solar system at present, what could this mean? Why are they here?

These beings could intend to render aid when the act is most appropriate and beneficial for us. Alternatively, they may be here to simply witness the transition of humanity into a higher level of consciousness. According to multiple sources, this process of ascension is actually quite spectacular. In fact, in the case of present-day Earth humans, the transition we are said to be presently undergoing is completely unique in the universe. It has never happened before. Consequently, it is understandable that a large number of ET spectators would want to witness it.

See also - Is Something Otherworldly Going On in Outer Space? 4 Global Powers Hold Mysterious Rocket Launches within Days

I suppose there is a possibility that various negative ETs would want to take advantage of our transition or to perhaps stop it. However, considering the difficulties we appear to be having during this transition and yet the monumental levels of progress we are constantly achieving, I find it more likely that these negative beings are already on Earth and are throwing a few final tantrums before being completely defeated.

Full Circle

I have to say how bizarre it is to be able to write an article like this. To be honest, writing is not typically this easy for me. It takes time and quite a bit of mental and physical dedication. Mobility and lack of energy have been significant issues for me for several years now, as my friends will know. However, this post, in many ways, seems to have written itself.

The composition seemed to come to me automatically. The format, the subjects, sources, and even the images all seemed to simply pop into my head within in a matter of minutes. I stayed up until 3:00 am last night simply because the information was flowing so easily. Again this does not typically happen.

Even my dreams were out of the ordinary last night. I recall experiencing a conversation with someone who felt like family—possibly more than one person. I was consoling them and helping them to understand a difficulty they were experiencing. At the same time, I remember receiving some type of help or assistance from someone else. Though I can't remember too much detail about the interaction, I do remember the words of reassurance I heard as I woke up.

I heard a kind and gentle voice say, "Good luck," and as I opened my eyes, I realized that I had awakened at nearly the exact same time I would have, had I set my alarm. Also, I was in significantly less pain than I was the night before.

To be honest, I can't take full credit for writing in this way with such ease. I have to give credit where it is due, but in this case, I'm not sure where it is coming from. We could speculate, but I'd much rather evaluate the material for its informational content than go off on any tangents. I will say that the first time I wrote about the subject of sun cruisers, the experience was very similar.

There were numerous synchronizations and events that just seemed to work themselves out in order to help me finish the article. I experienced multiple numeric synchronizations including the numbers 9 and 1 as well as ascending numeric sequences both then and now.
There was also the fact that this particular post could very well be the 912th post for the Discerning the Mystery website (though technically the 913th), and this very article came to me and was completed for the most part on 9/12/18.

During my process, the words of this post seemed to type themselves. The composition felt as though it already existed before I put much thought into it, and the way in which the subject seemed to assist in the overall disclosure process made the experience a truly joyful undertaking.

Closing

It's an honor to explore these possibilities with you, the audience. Even if none of these developments turn out to be accurate and are proven bogus, I hope that these recent events can help each of us realize that we have a mission to accomplish here on Earth. To add, we should keep in mind that even if a benevolent group of ETs comes to visit our system as witnesses or assistants, it is we—WE—who have the power and the duty to free ourselves.

No one is going to save us from our problems and we do not and have never needed them to. We have always had the power to change this planet for the better, I believe. It may only be now and in the coming moments, that we finally realize the fact.

Other Related Topics...

• 'Project Blue Book 2.0' - Announcements of Official Program to Investigate UFOs, and the Mission to Search for "Alien Life" on the Planetoid Ceres - Links and Commentary
• Tom DeLonge and the Beginning of Partial Disclosure – Analysis, Links, and Commentary
• Sun Cruisers - with David Wilcock and Corey Goode: Slides and Commentary from the Conscious Life Expo
• Cosmic Disclosure with Corey Goode and David Wilcock - The Law of One and the Secret Space Program - Exploring the Striking Correlations between the Law of One and Past Testimonies of the SSP
  

{http://www.discerningthemystery.com/ }

September 27, 2018 Alien UFO Sightings

Are we alone? It’s a question that remains unanswered now for thousands of years, and given the vastness of space, it will only be answered with extraterrestrial contact—otherwise every uncharted nook of the universe could be harboring alien life.

Whereas some believe we must explore  out into galaxies to find biological brethren, countless others believe the life has come to us, mostly in the form of UFO, abductions, and other “conspiracy theories.”

But are the tens of thousands (or more?) eyewitness reports and video/photographic evidence just theories?

What about the countless military personnel who risk reputation and rank to testify on the shocking UFOs they’ve seen—so much so that some of them even convened at the National Press Club to discuss the matter?

Let this quote from Lord Admiral Hill-Norton, a Former Chief of Defense Staff, 5-Star Admiral, and Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, add credence to this otherworldly claim:

 With all the of the documented incidents, one particularly fascinating moment was witnessed by roughly 1 million people in Los Angeles in 1942.

This is a photo of the flying object that nabbed the attention of LA locals and even the military, which actually responded with military fire—approximately 1,500 bullets:

The UFO was, understandably, seen as a threat since it had only been 3 months since Pearl Harbor.

• “Several radars detected an object about 120 miles west of Los Angeles

• Within minutes, anti-aircraft batteries went on high alert

• At approximately 2:20 am, the object was tracked on radar to within a few miles of the coast and a city blackout was ordered

• Shortly after 3:00 am, the object appeared right over the city and anti-aircraft batteries opened fire

• Approximately 1500 rounds were fired into the sky, not over the ocean but directly over the city

• Three citizens died from the shelling and three more from heart attacks attributed to the shelling

• A great deal of property damage was inflicted

• Dr. Bruce Maccabee, an expert in photographic analysis, believed the objects to be roughly 100 feet or more in diameter

• The event was witnessed by approximately 1 million people.”

When multiple people end up dead and the United State military is forced to respond with violence, you know this isn’t just some fake news hoax.

Here is the eyewitness testimony from one of the roughly 1 million people who witnessed that night’s events, Scott Littleton, a professor from Occidental College in LA:

“The two of us stood side by side in front of the house, huddling together in the chill night air and staring up into the sky.

“The planes we’d heard were not in sight, but what captured our rapt attention was a silvery, lozenge-shaped “bug,” as my mother later described it, that was clearly visible in the searchlight beams that pinpointed it.

“Although it was a clear, moonlit night, no other details could be discerned, despite the fact that, when we first saw it, the object was hanging motionless almost directly overhead.

“Its altitude is hard to estimate, especially after all these years, but I’d guess that it was somewhere between 4,000 and 8,000 feet.

“This may explain why we didn’t see the orange glow reported by several eyewitnesses in Santa Monica and Culver City, where the object was apparently much lower. (One witness suggests that this glow may simply have been the reflection of shell bursts against the object’s “silvery” body.)”

Although the government ultimately tried to deny the incident by describing the UFO as anything but extraterrestrial life, many people are not so convinced.

Source  Collective-Evolution 

{ https://www.sightings.info/ }

UN OVNI SUR UN FILM APOLLO 15 DECOUVERT

Rédigé par internaaze et publié depuis Overblog

{ http://ufocenter.over-blog.org/ }

Japan zet twee rovers op planetoïde Ryugu

Caroline Kraaijvanger

De rovers zijn heelhuids geland, hebben al foto’s gemaakt én een keertje ‘gehopt’.

De Japanse ruimtesonde Hayabusa2 – die eind juni bij de planetoïde Ryugu aanmeerde – liet de twee rovers gisteren los, waarop ze langzaam maar gestaag naar het oppervlak afdaalden. En nu is het verlossende woord dan eindelijk daar: beide rovers zijn heelhuids op Ryugu geland en hebben inmiddels al foto’s gemaakt, data verzameld en verzonden. Daarnaast heeft de Japanse ruimtevaartorganisatie bekend gemaakt dat in ieder geval één van de rovers zich momenteel op het oppervlak van de planetoïde verplaatst. Dat doet de rover door te ‘hoppen’ oftewel kleine sprongetjes te maken.

Afbeelding weergeven op Twitter

HAYABUSA2@JAXA@haya2e_jaxa

"I cannot find words to express how happy I am..." Y.T.

The MINERVA-II1 rovers have successfully landed on asteroid Ryugu, snapped photos & taken the first successful hop! Have a read about this world first and hear the comments from our Project Members.

http://www.hayabusa2.jaxa.jp/en/topics/20180922e/ …

16:13 - 22 sep. 2018

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Opluchting
Het is ongetwijfeld een enorme opluchting voor de Japanse ruimtevaartorganisatie die 13 jaar geleden tijdens de Hayabusa-missie ook al een lander op een planetoïde probeerde te zetten. Dat mislukte. “Ik was ontroerd toen ik zag hoe deze kleine rovers met succes het oppervlak van een planetoïde verkennen, omdat we daar in de tijd van de Hayabusa-missie – 13 jaar gelden – niet in slaagden,” stelt Makoto Yoshikawa, namens JAXA. “Ik was met name onder de indruk van de beelden die van dichtbij van het oppervlak zijn gemaakt.” Hieronder zie je zo’n foto. Deze is gemaakt door Rover-1B. Het oppervlak van de planetoïde is goed zichtbaar. De vreemde vlek in de linkerbovenhoek is te wijten aan een reflectie van zonlicht.

Afbeelding: JAXA.

Hop!
Ook heel bijzonder: de foto hieronder. Deze werd gemaakt terwijl Rover-1A over het oppervlak van Ryugu hopte. “Met deze foto kunnen we de effectiviteit van dit bewegingsmechanisme op een klein hemellichaam bevestigen,” stelt onderzoeker Tetsuo Yoshimitsu, eveneens verbonden aan JAXA. “Het is het resultaat van talloze jaren onderzoek.”

Afbeelding: JAXA.

De landing van de twee rovers kan gezien worden als een mijlpaal. En er volgen er ongetwijfeld nog meer. Zo is het de bedoeling dat Hayabusa2 in oktober de MASCOT-lander naar Ryugu stuurt. En in 2019 moet de sonde een kleine krater op de planetoïde creëren, materiaal uit die krater halen en terug naar de aarde brengen. Zoals het er nu naar uitziet, zal Hayabusa2 eind 2019 afscheid nemen van Ryugu en het verzamelde materiaal ongeveer een jaar later op aarde afleveren.

Bronmateriaal:

"MINERVA-II1: Successful image capture, landing on Ryugu and hop!" - JAXA
Afbeelding bovenaan dit artikel: JAXA

{ https://www.scientias.nl/ }

View larger. | The HiRISE camera aboard NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) captured this image on September 20, 2018. The object centered in the square is the Opportunity rover, now visible again for the 1st time since a dust storm swept over it a little more than 100 days ago.

Image via NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona.

NASA said on September 25, 2018, that it still hasn’t heard from its Opportunity rover on Mars, which had been going strong on the red planet since landing there in early 2004.

But, NASA announced:

… at least we can see it again.

A high-resolution camera (HiRISE) aboard NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured a small object on the slopes of Mars’ Perseverance Valley. That object is Opportunity, which was descending into this valley on Mars when a dust storm swept over the region a little more than 100 days ago. NASA said:

The storm was one of several that stirred up enough dust to enshroud most of the red planet and block sunlight from reaching the surface. The lack of sunlight caused the solar-powered Opportunity to go into hibernation.

The rover’s team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, hasn’t heard from it since. On September 11, JPL began increasing the frequency of commands it beams to the 14-year-old rover.

The tau — a measurement of how much sunlight reaches the surface — over Opportunity was estimated to be a little higher than 10 during some points during the dust storm. The tau has steadily fallen in the last several months. On Thursday, September 20, when this image was taken, tau was estimated to be about 1.3 by MRO’s Mars Color Imager camera.

This image was produced from about 166 miles (267 km) above the Martian surface. The white box marks a 154-foot-wide (47-meter-wide) area centered on the rover.

Bottom line: An image of the Opportunity rover on Mars, which has not been heard from since dust engulfed it in June, 2018. Updates on Opportunity can be found here.

Via NASA/JPL-Caltech

{ http://earthsky.org/ }

Over the next several weeks, I’ll be conducting interviews with leading UFO researchers from countries around the world in an effort to paint a picture of global UFOlogy today.

This week, our global UFO trek takes us to New Zealand, and to Suzy Hansen, an author, researcher, experiencer, and former professional educationist. Suzy is the author of The Dual Soul Connection: The Alien Agenda for Human Advancement, with contributions by Dr. Rudy Schild, Emeritus Professor of Astrophysics, Harvard/Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, USA.

Suzy is also the founding Director of the UFOCUS NZ Research Network (NZ UFO sightings), and coordinator of Communicator Link (advocacy & support for experiencers/abductees). She was instrumental in lobbying for the release of the NZ MoD UFO Files in 2010/11. She has been lecturing internationally for more than 20 years and has featured in numerous interviews, articles and documentaries.

RG: Who have been the defining figures in New Zealand UFOlogy over the past 70 years (for better or for worse), and why?

SH: The most active and prominent researchers in my opinion were Fred and Phyllis Dickeson, Harold Fulton, Harvey Cooke (all gone now), and currently, the Dickeson’s son Bryan and I guess—myself!

The Dickesons were former NZ air force personnel who worked tirelessly to publicise UFO sighting investigation data. They established nationwide discussion groups and published the UFO magazines Satcu and Xenolog. They also hosted well-known UFO personalities to NZ, including author Erich von Daniken and contactee George Adamski.

Bryan Dickeson investigated UFO sightings throughout the ‘70s and ‘80s, and spoke at early New Zealand UFO conferences. He is also a trained regression therapist and investigated New Zealand’s first publicised abduction experience. Bryan now resides in Australia and has contributed significantly to Australia’s UFO research too. He has recently digitised some 6,500 New Zealand UFO sightings from his parents’ research material, which will soon be available to the public on UFOCUS NZ’s website.

The late Harold Fulton was also ex-air force and investigated some of New Zealand’s most significant UFO events along with the other researchers I have mentioned. His focus was on aviation sightings and his data was meticulous and scientific.

The late Harvey Cooke was perhaps the “Mr Personality” of UFO research here, and, although he never had a UFO sighting himself, his passion and enthusiasm for the subject was endless. Harvey contributed significantly through TV and radio interviews, organising conferences, and he ran one of the world’s longest-standing UFO groups for 55 years. His memory for names and dates was legendary.

RG: What do you consider to be the most compelling NZ UFO incident on record, and why?

SH: Without a doubt, the Kaikoura Lights sightings of 1978/79 are the most renowned NZ sightings. The two main sightings that occurred in December 1978/79 were captured on film, seen visually by pilots and a film crew onboard one of the flights, and appeared on Wellington Airport radar and the radar of the two Argosy aircraft involved. These anomalous lights were observed by many members of the public as well over a period of weeks.

One of the objects filmed during the Kaikoura Lights incident of 1978/79.

The Kaikoura Lights events effectively divided New Zealand society, as scientific groups and governmental departments carried out an attempted whitewash of the main sightings, attributing ever more ludicrous explanations to the events: it was Venus! It was the lights of squid boats reflected off the bottom of clouds! It was the streetlights of townships reflecting off the breasts of mutton birds flying south! The radar was faulty! (Not true).

In 2007 I was made aware of a piece of 16 mm television news footage by former a TV1 cameraman who had kept the reel concealed for years. It was digitised, and he told me it could settle the debate and silence skeptics for good, because it revealed a large light that split into two lights, both of which disappeared at speed in different directions. The footage was taken at the Clarence River mouth, where many sightings took place near Kaikoura. Unfortunately however, the footage was sold for a five figure sum to a documentary company in the States and has never been revealed to the public.

Dr. Bruce Maccabee, US optical data analyst, carried out an analysis of the film crew’s footage, and considers the Kaikoura sightings to be in the top 10 worldwide.

RG: What is the NZ government’s official stance on UFOs? When was the last time it issued a statement on the subject?

SH: The New Zealand government has generally refrained from making official statements about the UFO subject, with the exception of the Kaikoura Lights sightings, which attracted the attention of Sir Robert Muldoon, Prime Minister at the time. However the MOD UFO files released in 2010/11 revealed that as a result of investigations into the Kaikoura Lights, a number of governmental departments were involved in researching the event, including the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), Civil Aviation, Air Traffic Control, the Joint Intelligence Bureau, the Commissioner of Police, the Director of the New Zealand Meteorological Service, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), and the Director of Carter Observatory. Brief statements were made by government departments at this time in 1978/79. Any other official statements concerning the UFO topic have been made by the New Zealand Defence Force, the most recent being when the files were released.

‘The Beehive’ in Wellington, NZ, home to the executive wing of the NZ parliament.

RG: Does the NZ Ministry of Defence have an official UFO investigations unit?

SH: In September 1985, Wing Commander S. B. White, on behalf of Air Vice Marshal Ewan Jamieson, stated that New Zealand’s Ministry of defence has always claimed that it is not specifically charged with any formal responsibility for investigating UFOs, and neither is any other governmental Department, but that the Ministry does however take an active interest in all such reports and, within the limitations of its resources, conducts investigations as necessary.

However, the MOD UFO files revealed that although they did not have a funded UFO investigation unit, an official investigative committee was formed in the early-1970s and was disbanded in 1976. The members of this group included representatives of the Intelligence Service, the RNZAF, the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, the Meteorological Service, Air Traffic Control, the Ministry of Transport and Carter Observatory. The outcome of their investigations suggested that they decided the UFO problem was a scientific matter rather than a threat to defence.

UFOCUS NZ’s archives contain a number of significant sighting events that witnesses state were investigated by the Air Force on behalf of the Ministry of Defence, including witness interviews, investigation of ground markings and other physical details, and photographs of specific areas. The witnesses state they were told by the air force representative that if they went to the media or spoke publicly about the investigations, the Air Force would deny all knowledge of it.  Some witnesses report feeling intimidated.

RG: Has the NZ government shown more or less transparency on the UFO subject than the US, Australian, and British governments?

SH: Officially, the New Zealand government has refrained from involvement in UFO related matters, instead leaving such statements to the Defence Forces, on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

In a letter to me dated 28 April 2009, the New Zealand Chief of Defence Force, Lt Gen Jerry Maeparae stated, “in the longer term, recognising the ongoing public interest in this topic, I should like to see a summary of information held about UFO sightings produced, in much the same way as that which is produced by the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence. Given existing constraints however I cannot predict when that objective may be achieved.”

In December 2009, following a further several months of lobbying, I received a follow-up letter from Lt Gen Mateparae, which stated, “I am pleased to be able to inform you that two NZ DEF officers have become that the task of assessing classified files in relation to this topic, with a view of the classification.”

New Zealand is a small country with a population of less than 5 million with limited resources to investigate UFO sightings, and I believe, as evidenced by the Chief of Defence Force’s letters, that the New Zealand Government and Ministry of Defence have largely taken their lead from the US, Australia, and British governments in terms of limited transparency and information. It is important to note that the MOD files released in 2010/11 consisted of only the air force UFO files. There still exist unreleased Navy and Army files, and restricted intelligence files.

RG: Does NZ have a national UFO investigations organisation today, and how many smaller NZ UFO groups are you aware of?

SH: In 2000, after 25 years of independent UFO research, I established the UFO Focus New Zealand Research Network(UFOCUS NZ), a nationwide UFO reporting and investigation network. At present we have a staff of seven investigators throughout the country who gather UFO related information and investigate sightings in their areas. Our staff over the years has included to air-traffic controllers, a pilot, a scientist, and an astronomer. We have a particular interest in aviation sightings, as New Zealand has a rich history of aviation-related UFO sightings, with a number of pilots and air traffic controllers who have been willing to go public on their sightings. As a result of this, in December 2013, we signed a written agreement of cooperation with a Chilean aviation/military UFO investigation group to share data and sighting reports pertaining to aviation sightings, and sightings that occur around the time of seismic/volcanic activity. As previously mentioned, on behalf of UFOCUS NZ, I was instrumental in lobbying the New Zealand Chief of Defence Forces for the release of the New Zealand Air Force MOD UFO files in 2010/11.

From the 1950s through to the mid-90s there were a number of UFO groups throughout New Zealand, formed by some of the early veteran UFO researchers I have mentioned who liked UFOCUS NZ, actively investigated sighting reports. Throughout the ’60s and ’70s there were a significant number of UFO sightings in New Zealand, coinciding with the times of known UFO flaps worldwide. Today, UFOCUS NZ is the only active UFO sighting investigation and research group in New Zealand.

RG: What are the most active regions of NZ for UFO sighting reports (hotspots)?

SH: We receive UFO sighting reports from all around New Zealand, and of course the population distribution plays a part in how many reports we may receive from certain areas. New Zealand is a largely rural society, with large areas that are sparsely populated.

Rural New Zealand.

Having said that, there are certain areas from which we have regularly received reports over the years, including the Central North Island volcanic plateau, the mysterious dome Valley north of Auckland, and the Kaipara Harbour where well-known New Zealand pilot and author Bruce Cathie observed a USO as he flew his DC3 transport plane over the harbour back in 1965. A significant number of UFO sightings were reported beginning just 10 days before the massive Christchurch earthquake in 2011, and continuing through to several weeks after the after-shocks had settled down.

However, the most prolific UFO sightings occurred in the Gisborne/East Cape area of the North island during what came to be known as the ‘Gisborne UFO flap’ of 1977 to 1980, and of course the Kaikoura Light sightings of 1978/79, which occurred over the northern end of the South Island.

Along with aviation sightings, UFOCUS NZ has a particular interest in sightings that occur around the time of seismic and volcanic activity in our country, which have been significant.

RG: Have you personally had any UFO sightings?

SH: Yes, I have had a number of UFO sightings, some of which I have documented in my book, The Dual Soul Connection. At age 8, in 1962, my family and I observed a long bright orange cigar-shaped light over a series of hills some 20 km away.  We watched the light for one and a half hours, during which time it flared and pulsed in the sky before eventually moving off south. It was sighted by hundreds of people that night, and was reported in our national newspaper. This event changed my life and I developed an intense interest in space, stars, and even aviation. My mind was blown by the fact that this was not a natural phenomenon or aircraft, therefore “something” had to be flying it!

Suzy Hansen and her book, ‘The Dual Soul Connection.’

In 1975 I was a young 20-year-old teacher working in the Hawkes Bay region of New Zealand. While driving home to the city from a rural farming area my friend and I observed an unusual light in the sky which at first we thought was a helicopter or agricultural aircraft. However, the light suddenly “switched off” and reappeared over the hills adjacent to us, before repeating sequence two more times. After a few seconds the light disappeared and, having stopped the car to watch, we felt we could continue our journey; but the light reappeared behind us. It approached our car at speed, a massive light wider than the road, and the last I recall is being blinded by the brilliant light, deafened by a loud noise, and feeling the car lifting off the road before I must have lost consciousness. My next memory is of the car hitting the road again, but now it was no longer in late afternoon sunshine, but in complete darkness. We had lost 90 minutes of time. This incident catapulted me headlong into UFO site investigation and contact research.

From 1978 to 1986 I lived in the Gisborne/East Cape area of the North Island during the time of the Gisborne UFO flap. While fishing at a remote beach on the Cape I observe a large green ball of light rise out of the water and fly over the nearby hills. On another occasion I saw a matte black egg-shaped object flying over a range of hills, and other witnesses reported the same object.

RG: How long have you been involved in the UFO subject; roughly how many cases have you personally investigated; and what conclusions, if any, have you drawn about the underlying nature of UFO phenomena?

SH: This is my 44^th year of research into the UFO and contact phenomena, and there is no sign of the workload lessening, or my interest waning. I have investigated hundreds of sightings and talked with hundreds of witnesses and contactees/abductees/experiencers in New Zealand and worldwide—thousands if you count my internet interviews. Of those sightings investigated, some twenty three or so were in-depth investigations involving sightings of actual craft, and, in some cases, entities/occupants associated with the craft. Now, some people may doubt the validity of those cases, but it is interesting that the witnesses were scientists, medical workers, emergency staff, pilots, along with farmers and truck drivers, who we consider credible witnesses who know their environments well. These are not the kind of people to hoax events or seek notoriety. It is through talking with these high calibre witnesses that one understands the enormity of the subject, the importance of critical thinking in investigation, the potential impact of possible contact in our future, and the extent to which these events changed the witnesses’ lives and worldviews forever.

My own sightings and experiences have led me to recognise there is a long-term agenda at play where UFO sightings are concerned. Although many sightings may be brief and random, those that are more in-depth, as I have described above, confirm my thoughts that just as many sightings and contacts are “by design,” meaning they occurred for a reason or purpose controlled by the occupants of the UFOs and this is evident in the way the events effect many witnesses, and in the prior sightings or paranormal incidents they often divulge to an investigator in the course of interviews. Of course, not all sightings are welcomed by witnesses, but there is much to be learned scientifically, socially, psychologically etc. from their descriptions.

Science is now validating the physics behind the descriptions UFO witnesses and experiencers have recounted for decades, and of course we now know there are plenty of habitable planets out there with similar attributes to Earth. I think it is only a matter of time until we truly understand why we have been observing “intruders” in our planetary airspace for decades, if not centuries and beyond. It could be that “disclosure” will occur under someone else’s timeline and control, not our own. As theoretical physicist Michio Kaku has said, we are not yet a united planetary civilisation, let alone an intergalactic civilisation prepared to meet our cosmic neighbours.

RG: How can NZ UFOlogy better itself?

SH: Well we are constantly working on this, and we continue to remain open-minded, but utilise critical thinking in investigations and research. Don’t be afraid to approach scientists and professionals for assistance and advice, and defer to greater knowledge (UFOCUS NZ utilises the skills of a number of professionals in our investigations). We should always do our homework. Keep abreast of worldwide research and network widely. Keep lobbying the MOD for further UFO files. And maintain a public profile.

For more information about New Zealand UFO research, visit: UFOCUS NZ. Suzy Hansen’s book describing her own personal UFO experiences is available here.

{ https://mysteriousuniverse.org/ }

Take one space object with a reflectivity number just slightly higher than charcoal. Notice that it arrived close enough to wake up the rarely-alert asteroid warning system workers on October 31st, the date of a popular worldwide holiday. Stare at pictures of its dark surface long enough to conjure up an image that relates to the holiday. Throw in comments from astronomers that it’s “dead.” Stir it all together in a witch’s kettle and you have the Halloween Death Comet, a skull-ish Near Earth Object discovered days before Halloween in 2015 and returning just days after Halloween this year. Should we eat all of our candy quickly before the Death Comet destroys us the planet?

Do you really need a wild excuse like that to eat all of the candy quickly?

Asteroid 2015 TB145’s distance from Earth in 2015

Asteroid 2015 TB145 was discovered on Oct. 10, 2015 by the University of Hawaii’s Pan-STARRS-1 (Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System). Before its eerie pareidolic skull image was visible, 2015 TB145 was considered to be dangerous NEO because of its size (between 2,050 feet and 2,297 feet or .6 km to .7 km) and its projected close pass to the Earth — 300,000 miles (480.000) or just slightly beyond the orbit of the moon at 1.3 lunar distances. We’re still here, so The Great Pumpkin (NASA’s Halloweenish nickname before its scarier face was seen) didn’t get close enough for a hit. What about this time?

“Although this approach shall not be so favourable, we will be able to obtain new data which could help improve our knowledge of this mass and other similar masses that come close to our planet.”

That’s astronomer-speak for “close enough to justify our funding but not enough to cause a panic.” Pablo Santos-Sanz from the Institute of Astrophysics of Andalusia (IAA-CSIC) and other astronomers think the more interesting aspect of the asteroid is the fact that it’s NOT an asteroid. Vishnu Reddy, a research scientist at the Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, Arizona, explains why.

“We found that the object reflects about six percent of the light it receives from the sun. That is similar to fresh asphalt, and while here on Earth we think that is pretty dark, it is brighter than a typical comet which reflects only 3 to 5 percent of the light. That suggests it could be cometary in origin — but as there is no coma evident, the conclusion is it is a dead comet.”

Comet with coma

“Coma” is that blurry aura seen around comets as they make their tight turn around the Sun. No coma means no more ice – the definition of a dead comet killed by the Sun – but better conditions for imagining the dead comet looks like a revolving skull glaring with its dead eyes at us Earthlings as it passes. (See how easy pareidolia is?)

2015 TB145 or the Death Skull Halloween Comet Asteroid Great Pumpkin will be closest to Earth on November 11th. It’s a safe bet that you will have no more candy to gorge on by then.

{ https://mysteriousuniverse.org/ }

Unmarked black helicopters hold a special place in UFO and conspiracy lore. Since the 1960s, mysterious helicopters lacking any identifying markings or color have been reported near the sites of UFO sightings, alien abduction claims, men in black, and even cattle mutilations. There are all sorts of conspiracy theories about the origins of these unidentified aircraft including that they belong to various agencies of some secret shadow government or the UN, that they are demonic in nature, or that they might be shapeshifters.

Of course, US law enforcement agencies such as the DEA, U.S. Marshals, and FBI are known to use black helicopters for surveillance and transportation, so there could be some truth behind alleged black helicopter sightings. There usually is some truth to all conspiracy theories, however small it may be. To add fuel to the black helicopter conspiracy theory fire, an unmarked black helicopter recently appeared flying low over Chicago rooftops, thoroughly freaking out confused Chicagoans below. The helicopter was seen dropping soldiers and equipment onto a roof before flying away.

According to aviation sleuth Tyler Rogoway writing at The War Zone, “the UH-60M Black Hawk photographed and filmed all over Chicago does not appear to belong to the United States Army. The configuration of its antennas is unique and it does not have any Army titles or serials on it.” Rogoway points outthat over the last several years, the Department of Defense has transferred many of its Black Hawk helicopters to other federal agencies, so it’s likely this was some sort of drill or training operation conducted by a federal agency.

However, the Chicago Police Department, Illinois Military Department, and National Guard have all been tight-lipped on the matter and have not given any information about who might have been conducting these exercises or for what purpose. Naturally, that has left the mind of the collective internet to wander to the most conspiratorial It’s perfectly possible – and probable – that this was a drill to offer special forces the opportunity to train in a real urban environment.

Of course, there’s also the chance, however small, that something stranger or perhaps more nefarious just went down in Chicago in broad daylight and plenty of witnesses got it on camera. Given the ubiquity of cameras today, it’s likely harder for Them to hide or disavow operations in public places. If there is a Them, that is.

We all know there is. They don’t even try to hide it anymore. Still, without any more knowledge, all we’re left to do is sit on the internet and spin theories about what we all just saw. 

{ https://mysteriousuniverse.org/ }

The almighty tussle over whether we should talk to aliens or not

Astronomers can't decide whether messaging ET would bring interstellar chaos or a new era of galactic collaboration. And what would we say?

By MATT REYNOLDS

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credit: David Clapp/Barcroft Images/Barcroft Media via Getty Images

In November 1962, at a radar station overlooking the Black Sea at the western edge of Crimea, humankind sent its first message to extraterrestrials. It consisted of just three Russian words in Morse code, bounced off of Venus and ultimately headed towards HD 131336, a star almost 2,160 light years away. The first word, Mir, can be variously translated as ‘world’ or ‘peace’. The other words, Lenin, and SSSR, (the Latinised Russian acronym for the Soviet Union), were a little less ambiguous.

Unsurprisingly, we have not heard back from any extraterrestrial intelligence just yet. But since the Morse message, a handful of projects have sent messages beyond the confines of Earth. Some are ambitious attempts to condense human knowledge into a message decipherable by ET. The 1974 Arecibo message, composed by Frank Drake and Carl Sagan, sent graphics of DNA, humans and the solar system to a star cluster 25,000 light years away. In 1972 the Pioneer 10 spacecraft launched, carrying with it a plaque etched with a schematic of hydrogen and the spacecraft’s trajectory around Jupiter and out of the solar system. Five years later, Voyager 1 carried its own interstellar missive, in the form of a golden record carrying images of humans, maps and music by Bach, Mozart, Blind Willie Johnson and Chuck Berry.

Other messages, if they are ever intercepted, may leave ET rather underwhelmed about the prospect of intelligent life elsewhere in the Universe. In 2008, Doritos beamed a 30-second advert towards a solar system in the Ursa Major constellation, just 42 light years away from Earth. Three years earlier, the online classified adverts site Craigslist sent over 100,000 posts into outer space, on the off chance that someone in a far off galaxy was in need of an IKEA Billy bookcase in perfect condition (collection only).

Amongst this hodgepodge of messages, there has never been a sustained, scientific attempt to send a message to aliens. While the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) has coalesced around a handful of well-funded and significant projects, such as Breakthrough Listen at the Berkeley SETI Research Centre and the China’s FAST telescope, the scientists and amateur astronomers committed to messaging ET have mostly been left to go it alone. But why has the task of composing a message on behalf of the entire human race fallen to the handful researchers who are determined enough to push ahead with the project under their own steam? The problem, it turns out, is that no one can quite agree on the best way to message ET, or even if we should be doing it at all.

In the summer of 1997, just after finishing his dinner, Seth Shostak got the call that SETI researchers spend their lives waiting for. The SETI Institute, a not-for-profit organisation based in California that explores the origin of life in the Universe, had detected a signal from outer space directed exactly at the Earth. On the other side of the country, in West Virginia’s Allegheny Mountains, an antenna was picking up a narrow-band signal – the kind that only transmitters can emit – that appeared to be coming from a fixed spot in space.

As Shostak, who is a senior astronomer at the SETI Institute, waited for his colleagues to check the signal against the frequency of known Earth satellite, conversation at the Institute turned to “the protocols”. These are a set of principles that set out what should happen if researchers detect a sign of ET from outer space. The protocols, agreed by the International Academy of Astronautics in 1989, are brief – a little over 1,000 words that tell us what to do if we discover that we are no longer alone in the Universe.

There are nine parts to the “Declaration of Principles Concerning Activities Following the Detection of Extraterrestrial Intelligence”. The first three deal with confirming that the signal is indeed a sign of extraterrestrial life and include sharing data data about the finding with the UN and a long list of arcane-sounding bodies including the International Astronautical Federation, the International Institute of Space Law, Commission 51 of the International Astronomical Union and Commission J of the International Radio Science Union.

The next few points deal with the dissemination of the announcement, which should be made “widely through scientific channels and public media”, although the discoverer has first dibs on make the announcement public. The data, too, should be made available to other scientists in papers and through conferences so that they can verify the findings themselves.

“The most important responsibility that we have as scientists that are engaging in this field is to verify and follow-up on any discovery that we make,” says Andrew Siemion, director of the Berkeley SETI Research Centre in California. Working out whether we should respond – and deciding what to say if we do respond – is a much bigger question, says Siemion, and one that most scientists just haven’t got around to thinking about yet.

The reason for this is simple, Siemion says. Sending messages across space takes a really, really long time. Even if we found aliens on a planet orbiting Proxima Centauri – the closest star to us apart from the Sun – tomorrow, it’d still take almost four-and-a-half years for a message to reach the Earth and the same time for our return message. There just wouldn’t be any need for us to have a message ready to go, Siemion says.

Which brings us to point eight of the protocols. No response should be sent, it reads, until “appropriate international consultations” have been taken place. In 2010, this section of the protocol was updated to specify the United Nations as the kind of international body that should be consulted before any response is sent. Shostak and his colleagues, however, never got this far. The message they were tracking was actually a telemetry signal from SOHO, a solar research satellite operated by Nasa and the European Space Agency.

Still, the false alarm highlighted one thing – when it comes to messaging ET back, there is no consensus on what we should do. For Siemion, that’s simply a reflection of how young the SETI movement is. Breakthrough Listen, the most comprehensive search for extraterrestrial communications ever, only kicked off in January 2016 after the Israeli-Russian entrepreneur Yuri Milner provided $100 million in funding for the scheme. “There is an awful lot of searching left to do,” says Siemion, who is also the principle investigator for the Breakthrough Listen project. “Before we get into the game of transmitting messages we should at least take a few years or perhaps a few decades to do a little bit of listening before we do speaking.”

In 2015, Siemion was one of 28 signatories who warned of the possible dangers involved in messaging extraterrestrial intelligence (METI). Since humans have only just acquired the capability to send interstellar messages, it’s very likely that extraterrestrial civilisations, if they exist, will be much more advanced than we are. “We know nothing of [ET’s] intentions and capabilities, and it is impossible to predict whether [ET] will be benign or hostile,” wrote the authors of the letter, including Elon Musk. Stephen Hawking, too, has warned of the dangers of contacting an alien civilisation that may be much more advanced that us.

But Doug Vakoch, an astrobiologist who left the SETI Institute to set up METI International – an organisation that focuses on sending messages to outer space – isn’t convinced that messaging ET does pose that much of a risk. Television and radio broadcast already leak signals into space, and any civilisation a few hundred years or so more advanced than us is very likely to be able to detect those signals across interstellar distances, says Vakoch. “It’s not a case of making ourselves known to a civilisation for the first time, if they get our signal they have already detected our leakage.”

For Siemion, this cuts both ways. Since ET can overhear us anyway, why worry about sending a message to say hello? Would-be METI-ists might be better off picking up their phone and calling in to their local radio station, he points out. But there’s always the danger that if we do leave the extraterrestrial messaging down to a handful of renegade enthusiasts, that they might end up sending a message that doesn’t go down well with the aliens. It’s all very well sending Doritos adverts to the stars, but what if ET hates tortilla chips?

There’s also the problem of knowing what to say. The 1974 Arecibo message was remarkable for the amount of information crammed into its 210 bytes. The transmission included the numbers one to ten, the atomic numbers of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and phosphorus (the components of DNA), the formula for the sugars and bases in DNA nucleotides and a graphic of the double helix structure as well as graphics of a human, the Solar System, and the Arecibo radio telescope itself.

This approach, Vakoch says, might not actually be that useful if we’re trying to start a conversation with ET. “If you try to send them everything in a very condensed message, you may end up getting nothing across,” says Vakoch. For METI International’s 2019 messages, Vakoch is planning on sending messages containing references to the periodic table. The idea being that certain elements, such as hydrogen, are abundant across the Universe so any receiving civilisation is likely to recognise a reference to the chemical signature of those elements.

Another important requirement is making sure that whoever is on the receiving end of the message knows what they’re tuning into, says Jacob Haqq-Misra, a researcher at the Blue Marble Space Institute of Science. “The basic idea is to define some sort of mathematical language,” he says. Initial messages might establish some basics. One is not equal to zero, but one is equal to one, for example. “And now we've established a common language, we can talk about physics with each other.”

In 2013, Haqq-Misra was involved in a short-lived project called Lone Signal that aimed to use a network of dishes to let people on Earth beam their own messages into space. The project, co-funded by the French cosmetics executive Pierre Fabre and the fashion photographer Greg Kadel fell apart after only transmitting for a short while.

“Their idea was you have this big celebrity launch party and it takes over the world,” Haqq-Misra says. “That was not what happened.” It costs thousands of dollars just to power a radio transmitter for a few hours, and Lone Signal just didn’t have the funds to make it happen. Not long after the glitzy launch party, the money ran out completely. The lack of funding into METI means that Haqq-Misra and many others like him now only dabble in METI alongside full time jobs, often elsewhere in research.

But for people like Haqq-Misra and Vakoch, the pull of METI remains palpable. While researchers are no closer to reaching a consensus on whether we should be messaging ET or not, Vakoch is already thinking about the messages he’ll be helping to send in 2019. The potentials gains from doing so, he says, are just too big to ignore. “This finally holds a mirror up to ourselves by another form of intelligence,” he says. “We just have an opportunity to reflect on ourselves differently.”

Want to know more about the future of space exploration?

• This article is part of our WIRED on Space series. From the global fight over how we handle first contact with aliens to the endless search for dark matter and the inside story of China's top-secret space ambitions, we're taking an in-depth look at humanity's future amongst the stars.
• The unending hunt for Planet Nine, our solar system's hidden world
• The weird history and terrifying future of mutiny in deep space
• Follow the hashtag #WIREDonSpace on Twitter for all of our coverage.

{ https://www.wired.co.uk/ }

Examining the decline: Another look at the data on UFO sighting reports

By Cheryl Costa

I have previously reported that UFO sighting reports have been on a steep decline for three years. 2018 is continuing this steep dropoff.

I have previously reported that UFO sighting reports have been on a steep decline for three years. 2018 is continuing this steep dropoff.

Please note that I said “UFO sighting reports” and not sightings. I’ve been getting considerable mail that sightings are still up in North America and in Europe. It just seems that folks aren’t showing an enthusiasm for reporting their recent sightings. One UFO researcher commented, “We see so many, who has time to report them all!”

After my last report about the decline, I observed two things. One was a volume of mansplaining why this decline is occurring. The other was a host of copycat articles being posted, some with the most absurd numbers.

The numbers in this article are a snapshot as of Sept. 20. Keep in mind that people do report sightings years after the event. So a sample I take today might be off by 50 or 100 for a particular year, if I sample three to six months from now.

I’ve come to understand that the UFO sighting report databases are, in a sense, living documents and seem to have a creeping growth. If we were studying farm reports or the census from a particular year, the numbers, for the most part, are solid with a small margin of error. So please keep this in mind when I do a year-end report because the numbers may be slightly different.

Let’s look at an eight-year snapshot of National UFO Reporting Center data. Note that 2017 is displaying a seven-year low for UFO sighting reports. The decline from 2014 to 2015 was 1,788 reports. The decrease from 2015 to 2016 was 1,231 reports. Interestingly, the shrinkage from 2016 to 2017 was only 680 reports. Ordinarily, one might assume that the UFO sighting report deterioration might be leveling out to an average baseline.

Yet if we examine the first eight months of the past six years, including 2018, except for a spike in 2014, we generally see a steady downward trend. Where it will all settle out is anybody’s guess.

But let’s consider some of the possible reasons that have been offered by many readers. Some blamed the announcement of Space Force; sorry, the declines in reports started four years before the announcement.

Others blamed too many people with their heads down and focused on their pads and phones. Maybe.

Quite a few people suggested that the ETs may have run out of interest (or perhaps galactic grant funding) to continue their studies here on Earth. Still others expressed boredom with reporting UFO sightings, especially since Disclosure seems to be stalled. The mood was “Why bother?”

Some suggested that there’s a general apathy in the country given our chaotic political situation. Finally, there are many who wonder if the falloff in UFO sighting reports is the calm before a storm. Who knows?

ON THE ROAD

• Michigan UFO Con-Tact. Sept 20-21
• CNY UFO Club. Sept. 29, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Jamesville-Dewitt Community Library, 5110 Jamesville Road, Jamesville, New York
• Greater New England UFO Conference. Oct. 4-5
• UFO MEGA CON. March 24-30. Laughlin, Nevada
• Ozark Mountains UFO Conference. April 12-14. Eureka Springs, Arkansas
• Pine Bush UFO Festival. May 18. Pine Bush, New York

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