Aliens in Alaska – They Walk Among Us S01E04

Ancient Aliens – They Walk Among Us

Season 1, Episode 4

19th April 2021, Discovery+

Hunters unearth new clues about Bigfoot’s cosmic origins. An Air Force veteran receives a shocking response when he reports UFO activity over Fairbanks. Piercing lights from above disrupt a late-night party near Wasilla, Alaska.

{ https://www.latest-ufo-sightings.net/ }

That Old “Second Sphinx” Chestnut Is Back – Is There or Is There Not A Hidden Sphinx?

A tourism official in Egypt has been ridiculed by his peers after claiming a second giant statue of the famous Sphinx awaits discovery. This supposed second sphinx is causing quite a stir amongst Egyptologists who argue that it is all just a hoax.

Putting the Second Sphinx Claims in Context

We will reverse into this story after I tell you a tale about UFOs. Perhaps nothing antagonizes career debunkers and skeptics more than when a supposed “expert” or “official” in any given field skips over to the perceived dark side. This happened in February 2021 after astrophysicist Avi Loeb, Director of the Harvard Astronomy Department, told the New Scientist that the space rock Oumuamua was “maybe a piece of alien technology.”

As almost the entire scientific community facepalmed, as they watched a U.S. icon of logic and reason dive down the scientific rabbit hole, Loeb doubled-down, telling Scientific American that “aliens have visited, and I am not kidding.” Loeb is now leading the Galileo Project , searching for “extraterrestrial technological signatures of Extraterrestrial Technological Civilizations (ETCs).”

• There Is More to the Sphinx Than You Find at Giza
• The Great Pyramid at Giza and Noah’s Ark: Are we coming closer to an understanding of the Ancient Mind? Part I

Returning to the story at hand, Reda Abdel Halim is the director of public relations for the Giza pyramids district at the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities. Causing similar waves to Dr. Loeb in the U.S., Halim has told Cairo Live that he discovered “a statue in the pyramids area that is of similar size to the Sphinx.” In other words, he claims to have found a second sphinx.

{ https://www.ancient-origins.net/general }

Archaeologist Discovers Swiss Roman Battle Site and 2,000-Year-Old Dagger

Sometimes experts can get it wrong. And that is what seems to have happened in the case of a Swiss Roman battle site from 2000 years ago. The new site was found between the towns of Tiefencastel and the Cunter thanks to the persistence of an amateur archaeologist. Using a metal detector, Lucas Schmid, who is a volunteer at the Graubünden Archaeological Service, found a Roman dagger in the remote south-eastern region of Switzerland near the Crap-Ses gorge, which was a solid piece of evidence for what was until then an unknown Swiss Roman battle.

Using a metal detector, Lucas Schmid, a hobby archaeologist, found a Roman dagger in the south-eastern region of Switzerland, which was a solid piece of evidence for what was an unknown Swiss Roman battle.

( Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen )

The Swiss Roman Battle Site: Revealed Artifacts for 20 Years

Although the site became known 20 years back and yielded many artifacts at the time, it was believed to have surrendered all its treasures over the years. However, local amateur archaeologist Lucas Schmid believed otherwise.

His tenacity paid off when, two years ago, he managed to uncover the well-preserved 2000-year-old Roman dagger . This alerted experts to the possibility that there were more artifacts at the site to uncover. The University of Basel then began a five-year research project with the federal government and the canton.

Swissinfo.ch reports that over the last two years archaeologists have found a rich haul of hundreds of artifacts including the dagger, well-preserved slingshot stones , coins, nails, and part of a shield that are assumed to have been left behind after a Swiss Roman battle between the Roman army and a local tribe. The battle took place between the Roman army and a local Rhaetian tribe in what is the present-day canton of Graubünden.

• Rare Roman Soldier’s Dagger Restored To Its Former Glory
• Whistling Sling Stones: Psychological Warfare and the Roman Army

“It looks like the locals have holed up and were shot at by the Romans with slingshots and catapults,” Peter Schwarz, professor of Provincial Roman Archaeology at the University of Basel, said.

A sling lead with an inscription that suggests that the twelfth Roman legion was involved in the Swiss Roman battle against the local Celtic Helvetii tribes.

( Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen )

The Roman Conquest of Switzerland Leads to Local Battles

The area of what is now Switzerland was populated by numerous tribes, most of which were Celtic, before the Roman conquest. The Helvetii were the most numerous but there were many others including the Rauraci in north-west Switzerland based around Basel, and the Allobroges around Geneva. South of the Swiss plateau were the Nantuates, Seduni and Veragri in the Valais region, the Lepontii in the Ticino and the Raetians in the Grisons area.

The first part of Switzerland to fall to Rome’s armies was southern Ticino, annexed after the Roman victory over the Insubres in 222 BC. The last obstacle in the path of Roman control of the Alps as a shield to northern Italy were the Raetians. After a first expedition against them by Publius Silius Nerva in 16 BC, a more consistent campaign by Drusus and the later emperor Tiberius brought Raetia, and with it all of Switzerland, firmly under Roman control.

And it is around this time that the battle in Graubünden must have taken place. This would make it even more significant, considering that it may have been one of the last few skirmishes between the Roman forces and local Swiss tribal forces before the Romans established control over the entire Alps region .

The carefully protected Roman dagger that led to the discovery of the Swiss Roman battle site.

( Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen )

The Battlefield in Graubünden

According to Arkeonews, archaeologist Thomas Reitmaier said 7,000 square meters (7,655 square yards) out of a total of 35,000 square meters (41, 859 square yards) have been combed so far and the process had led to several hundred Roman artifacts being found. “Among the objects found were hundreds of shoe nails, slingshots, coins, and fragments of a shield that could be assigned to a local,” Reitmaier added.

How many people died in the battle is not clear and to date no graves have been found. However, the area will continue to be searched over the next year for clues about what happened there 2000 years ago.

• Ancient Celtic Woman Emerges from Zurich Tree Coffin In Elegant Dress
• The Original Swiss Army Knife: Check Out This Must Have Gadget for Guys on the Go

Meanwhile, Lucas Schmid can take pride in what his efforts two years ago have led to: research on such a large scale with the involvement of the University of Basel as well as the federal and canton governments. “Of course, I’m glad that what I’m doing is making a difference” he said, Arkeonews reports.

It is to be hoped that as the battlefield in Graubünden yields up more of its treasures that serve as records of past events, archaeologists will be able to paint a clearer picture of those events.

• Top image: The Roman dagger found by an amateur archaeologist with a metal detector that revealed the “unknown” Swiss Roman battle site, where the twelfth Roman legion fought against local Celtic tribes.
• Source: Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen

By Sahir Pandey

{ https://www.ancient-origins.net/general }

Stonehenge Plaques Hold Secret Cultural Data, Says New Study

Four Neolithic “chalk plaques” were discovered near Stonehenge between 1968–2017. A new study has shown that the ancient illustrations on the Stonehenge plaques are much more than just abstract patterns. The Stonehenge plaques were buried in a pit about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from England’s most famous ancient monument. English Heritage scientists have dated the plaques to between 2900 BC and 2580 BC. The new study has called these four ancient art works “some of the most spectacular chalk designs ever discovered in Britain.”

The front side of the four Stonehenge plaques.

( Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society )

The Stonehenge Plaques Found In a Cursus Pit

According to an article on Silent Earth , the plaque pit in which the artworks were discovered is located directly south of an entrance to the famous Cursus monument at Stonehenge, in Wiltshire, England. This is probably no coincidence and suggests some kind of connection between the chalk Stonehenge plaques and the Cursus, which was in use 500 to 820 years before the plaques were deposited in the nearby pit.

Examples of two-dimensional Neolithic artwork is a rarity in Britain, and chalk incisions, like these, are truly unique and unusual. The ancient chalk images discovered on the surface of the plaques have now been mapped by researchers at Wessex Archaeology and the full findings of the study were published in the journal Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society .

• 5000-Year-Old Prehistoric Temple Discovered On Scottish Island
• Outside the Circle: The Ancient Stonehenge Landscape – A Wider Perspective

Since the first plaque was discovered in 1968, many archaeologists have been skeptical, maintaining that the chalk marks were mere random etchings. But now, using advanced imaging techniques, a team of scientists have revealed underlying “ geometric designs ” executed by artisans wielding “a range of artistic abilities,” according to the new study.

The reverse, back, side of the four Stonehenge plaques.

( Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society )

Ancient Art Works From A Neolithic Golden Age?

Aiming to “understand the creative process of these prehistoric artists,” professor of archaeology, Bob Davis, from the University of Cambridge, who led the new study, mapped the surfaces of each plaque using reflectance transformation imaging (RTI). This non-destructive scanning method means no physical contact with the artifacts was required, as it charted billions of data points pertaining to microscopic rises and dips of the surface texture of the plaques. The images show these points in different colors, representing highlights and shadows.

Plaque 1 shows the image of a twisted cord , which was the number one tool for farming, fishing, measuring, and building in the Neolithic period. The other three plaques demonstrate a kaleidoscope of apparently linear patterns. However, the new study demonstrates that these are interwoven with “deliberate, staged composition, execution and detail.” Having identified real world tools and conceptual elements (geometry) from Middle Neolithic culture, the paper suggests Late Neolithic Britain may have experienced a “golden age of chalk art .”

The lower part of Plaque 1 showing raw data under specular enhancement mode on the left and the engraved sequence on the right showing selected phases in red, dark blue, yellow, green, light blue and orange.

( Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society )

Neolithic Art Views Greatly Changed By the New Study

Until this new paper, archaeology was split over the content depicted on the chalk Stonehenge plaques. Many believed the linear patterns were random and contained no data whatsoever, while others maintained they were examples of hallucinogenic art under the influence of magic mushrooms . However, there has always been a faction of archaeologists that believed these plaques were much more than idle graffiti. Now, high technology has affirmed the last group’s suspicions demonstrating underlying meaning and “cultural significance” in the chalk Stonehenge plaques.

• Enigmatic Engraved Pendant from Stone Age Site is the Oldest in Britain
• Archaeologists uncover magnificent example of 3,500-year-old Neolithic art in Scotland

Co-author, archaeologist Phil Harding, first analyzed the plaques in the old analogue world, back in 1988. He said the modern analytical tools used in the new study offer deep new insights into the mindsets of the ancient people who made them, which they projected onto the ancient plaques with chalk.

Furthermore, another paper co-author, Matt Leivers, said the application of modern technology to the ancient artifacts allowed for not only a better understanding of the working methods of the Neolithic artists , but it also provided a rare glimpse into the artists’ “motivations.”

Having interpreted all of the lines and angles on the four plaques, the archaeologists concluded that they represent “an important cultural marker in the Neolithic period.” And with the twisted cord having been found marked on one plaque, it can be speculated that the Neolithic artists were inspired by everyday objects, trades and tools, just like today’s artists.

• Top image: Two of the Stonehenge plaques, make of chalk, analyzed with high tech in the latest study.   
•  Source: Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society

By Ashley Cowie

{ https://www.ancient-origins.net/general }

{ https://www.youtube.com/ }

Astrobiologists Call for New Framework in Search for Extraterrestrial Life

The question of whether we are alone in the Universe has been a source of wonder for humanity for millennia or more. Advances in planetary sciences, astronomy, biology and other fields now leave us poised, as never before, to address this question with scientific rigor. Numerous challenges confront this endeavor, including challenges of perception and communication. Evidence of extraterrestrial life may be subtle or unfamiliar, and reveal itself only in stages, as one observing campaign informs the next. However, the search for such evidence is often framed as an all-or-nothing proposition: either a mission returns definitive evidence of life or it has fallen short of its objective. In a new paper published in the journal Nature, astrobiologists from NASA and the University of Maryland aim to motivate and seed the discussion with basic considerations and offer an example of how such considerations might be incorporated and applied in a proof-of-concept-level framework.

“Having a scale like this will help us understand where we are in terms of the search for life in particular locations, and in terms of the capabilities of missions and technologies that help us in that quest,” said NASA’s chief scientist Dr. Jim Green.

“The scale contains seven levels, reflective of the winding, complicated staircase of steps that would lead to scientists declaring they’ve found life beyond Earth.”

As an analogy, Dr. Green and his colleagues point to the Technology Readiness Level scale, a system used inside NASA to rate how ready a spacecraft or technology is to fly.

“Until now, we have set the public up to think there are only two options: it’s life or it’s not life,” said Dr. Mary Voytek, head of NASA’s Astrobiology Program at NASA Headquarters.

“We need a better way to share the excitement of our discoveries, and demonstrate how each discovery builds on the next, so that we can bring the public and other scientists along on the journey.”

The field of astrobiology pursues some of the most profound questions that anyone could ask, regarding our origins and place in the Universe.

As scientists learn more and more about what kinds of signals are associated with life in diverse environments on Earth, they can create and improve upon technologies needed to find similar signs elsewhere.

While the exact details of the scale will evolve as astrobiologists, communicators, and others weigh in, the team’s paper offers a starting point for discussion.

At the first step of the scale, ‘Level 1,’ astrobiologists would report hints of a signature of life, such as a biologically relevant molecule. An example would be a future measurement of some molecule on Mars potentially related to life.

Moving up to ‘Level 2,’ scientists would ensure that the detection was not influenced by the instruments having been contaminated on Earth.

At ‘Level 3’ they would show how this biological signal is found in an analog environment, such as an ancient lakebed on Earth similar to Jezero Crater, the landing site of NASA’s Perseverance rover.

To add evidence to the middle of the scale, scientists would supplement those initial detections with information about whether the environment could support life, and rule out non-biological sources. For Mars in particular, samples returned from the planet could help make this kind of progress.

Perseverance will soon be collecting and storing samples with the goal of a future mission returning them one day.

Since different teams on Earth would have the opportunity to independently verify hints of life in Mars samples with a variety of instruments, the combination of their evidence could achieve ‘Level 6,’ the second highest step on the scale.

But in this example, to reach ‘Level 7,’ the standard by which scientists would be most sure they had detected life on Mars, an additional mission to a different part of Mars may be required.

“Achieving the highest levels of confidence requires the active participation of the broader scientific community,” the scientists said.

This scale would apply to discoveries from beyond the Solar System, too.

Detecting oxygen in the atmosphere of an exoplanet would be a significant step in the process of searching for life.

We associate oxygen with life because it is made by plants and we breathe it, but there are also geological processes that generate oxygen, so it is not proof by itself of life.

To move upward on the scale, a mission team could demonstrate that the oxygen signal was not being contaminated by light reflected from Earth and study the chemistry of the planet’s atmosphere to rule out the geological explanation.

Additional evidence of an environment that supports life, such as an ocean, would bolster the case that this hypothetical planet is inhabited.

Scientists who study exoplanets are eager to find both oxygen and methane, a combination of gases in Earth’s atmosphere indicative of life. Because these gases would lead to reactions that cancel each other out unless there are biological sources of both present, finding both would be a key ‘Level 4’ milestone.

To reach ‘Level 5,’ astronomers would need a second, independent detection of some hint of life, such as global images of the planet with colors suggestive of forests or algae. They would need additional telescopes or longer-term observations to be sure they had found life on an exoplanet.

The study authors emphasize that the scale should not be seen as a race to the top.

The scale emphasizes the importance of the groundwork that many NASA missions lay without directly detecting possible biological signals, such as in characterizing environments on other planetary bodies.

Upcoming missions such as Europa Clipper, an orbiter headed for Jupiter’s icy moon Europa later this decade, and Dragonfly, an octocopter that will explore Saturn’s moon Titan, will provide vital information about the environments in which some form of life may one day be found.

“With each measurement, we learn more about both biological and non-biological planetary processes,” Dr. Voytek said.

“The search for life beyond Earth requires broad participation from the scientific community and many kinds of observations and experiments.”

“Together, we can be stronger in our efforts to look for hints that we are not alone.”

_____

• J. Green et al. 2021. Call for a framework for reporting evidence for life beyond Earth. Nature 598, 575-579; doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03804-9
• This article is based on text provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

{ http://www.sci-news.com/ }

Department of Homeland Security Reports First-ever Known Drone Attack Against US Electricity Grid

© Photo : Department of Homeland Security

A modified drone which crashed near a Pennsylvania power substation in July 2020 was “likely being used…to specifically target energy infrastructure,” a law enforcement bulletin by the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and the National Counterterrorism Center has revealed.

The memo, obtained by ABC News and CNN, said that authorities still do not know what individual or group may have been operating the drone, which crashed on a roof close to the substation. No details were provided on which power facility was targeted, and no damage was reported. The memo did not specify the cause of the crash.

The drone was said to have been modified, and fitted with a tether supporting a length of copper wire –apparently meant to short-circuit the high-voltage equipment at the substation by coming into contact with it, potentially leading to plant shutdown and possible combustion. The UAV used was a DJI Mavic 2, a consumer-grade quadrocopter commonly sold for about $1,600 US online. The drone’s camera, memory card and serial number labels had been removed.

The bulletin, which aims to ‘raise awareness’ with law enforcement, state and local officials about the threats unmanned aerial vehicles could potentially pose to critical infrastructure, was issued on 28 October, and followed a review of security incidents involving drones over a four year period.

The memo was accompanied by a satellite photo showing the substation and the drone’s recovery location, with an analysis of local power facilities in the state indicating that the substation and building adjacent to it are situated near the old Hershey chocolate factory in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

The incident was the first reported use of a drone to target the US electrical power grid.

However, the Pentagon is known to have vast experience with the use of graphite bombs, also known as ‘blackout bombs’ – a cluster bomb weapon used specifically to target energy grids. The bombs, which disperse soda can-sized canisters by tiny parachutes over electrical substations, contain spools of highly conductive carbon webbing, which drapes over lines, causing circuit overloads and plant shutdowns. The bombs were widely deployed by the US in the First Gulf War against Iraq, and by NATO against Yugoslavia in 1999. In the latter instance, after Yugoslav engineers repeatedly restored power within a day after the attacks, NATO began using conventional bombs and missiles to attack powerlines and transformer stations, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to the Balkan country.

According to a recent Freedom of Information Act request by the Scientific Coalition for Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Studies, some 24 US nuclear reactors and fuel storage sites were subjected to 57 drone incursions between 2015 and 2019. Last year, the group reported that a tiny armada of between four and six unmarked UAVs flew over the Palo Verde Generating Station in Arizona –America’s largest nuclear power plant, in September 2019, with plant security proving unable to stop them and authorities uncertain as to who was operating them or why.

Earlier this year, Sputnik reported on the mysterious deployment of drones by an unknown actor or entity to conduct nighttime flights over US Navy destroyers near a sensitive military training range in California’s Channel Islands. FOIA documents revealed that as many as six unidentified craft at a time chased after and maneuvered around the warships in July 2019, with the incidents sparking probes by the Navy, the Coast Guard, and the FBI. Media were troubled at the time by the fact that the drones could lock onto and catch up with the fast-moving warships in the dead of night and despite poor visibility.

Small drones are known to have been used repeatedly by guerilla fighters in Third World battlegrounds, being deployed in the civil war in Libya, and by Yemen’s Houthi militia against the Saudi-led coalition. In 2019, an armada of Houthi drones severely damaged a pair of Saudi oil production facilities, temporarily knocking out as much as half of the kingdom’s oil output.

 

Drone Armada Buzzed US’s Largest Nuclear Power Plant and Authorities Still Have No Clue Why

{ https://sputniknews.com/ }

SpaceX's Endeavor capsule appears like a shooting star or 'donut UFO' over Louisiana and Alabama during the return trip to Earth that brought four astronauts home from the ISS

• SpaceX's Endeavor capsule brought four astronauts home last night

• The craft was spotted streaking across the night Monday evening 

• Reports of light show came from Alabama and Louisiana

• The capsule was traveling at least 17,000mph at the time 

By STACY LIBERATORE FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

A bright light streaked across the sky over parts of the southern U.S. on Monday evening that had some bystanders questioning if they saw a UFO.

Instead, it was the SpaceX return capsule.

The cosmic light show was a result of the Endeavour craft soaring through Earth’s atmosphere as it headed towards its designated splashdown zone in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Florida.

Carrying four astronauts, the capsule splashed down on time at 10:33pm ET, bring the, Crew-2 mission back to Earth after spending the last 200 days aboard the International Space Station.

The astronauts – NASA’s Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, along with the European Space Agency's Thomas Pesquet and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's astronaut Akihiko Hoshide – not only made headlines for coming home, but for having to complete the journey in diapers due to a faulty toilet in the capsule.  

Sightings of the SpaceX capsule were reported in Louisiana, Alabama and several other states along the gulf.

Scroll down for video 

The light show was a result of the Endeavour craft soaring through Earth’s atmosphere as it headed towards its designated splashdown zone in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida

Matt Kroschel, an anchor for a local news outlet in Huntsville, Alabama, urged residents to not call the newsroom with UFO reports if they spotted a streak of light in the night sky.

Twitter user Christopher of Mandeville, Louisiana shared a great image of the event on Twitter.  

‘Holy cr** that was awesome,’ he included with the tweet.

The capsule traveled at least 17,000 miles per hour during deorbit as it fell towards the ocean. 

It eventually slowed down and released parachutes to help stop it from crashing.

One spectator joked on Twitter about the capsule potentially being a UFO when it streaked through the night sky

At 10:38pm ET on Monday, the green light was given for the rescue crews to approach the capsule that had just landed in the Gulf of Mexico.

'We were on the helipad watching the crew members streak through the atmosphere, and it looked like a meteor - it was truly incredible,' said Leah Cheshier, a NASA spokesman.

'We couldn't ask for better conditions and things are moving really smoothly here and happening as planned.'

At 11:14pm ET, the side hatch was opened, and the crew disembarked. 

Carrying four astronauts, the capsule splashed down on time at 10:33pm, bring the Crew-2 mission back to Earth after spending the last 200 days aboard the International Space Station

The astronauts – NASA’s Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, along with the European Space Agency's Thomas Pesquet and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's astronaut Akihiko Hoshide – not only made headlines for coming home, but for having to complete the journey in diapers due to a faulty toilet in the capsule

McArthur, the captain, was the first to leave, at 11:26pm ET.

She was followed by Commander Kimbrough, beaming as he was carried out of the capsule and put on the stretcher to be wheeled away. He waved for the cameras and made a V for Victory sign.

All four were out of the capsule by 11:33pm, with smiles and fist-bumps all round.

Their return was initially set for Sunday afternoon, but high winds delayed the trip by a day.

Matt Kroschel, an anchor for a local news outlet in Huntsville, Alabama urged residents to not call the newsroom with UFO reports if they spot a streak of light in the night sky

Another sighting was reported over Gulf Shores, Alabama. The capsule traveled at least 17,000 miles per hour during deorbit as it free-falls toward the ocean, all the while slowing its speed before releasing parachutes to help stop it from crashing before splashing down

The SpaceX capsule, named Endeavour, was without a bathroom, due to a faulty toilet design, forcing the crew to wear diapers for the trip back to Earth.

However, the rescheduled mission cut the trip from space by 12 hours - it was only eight hours long instead of the expected 20 hours - due to the path from the ship to Earth, so the team did not have to sport the protective undergarments for as long as previously expected.

The Endeavour capsule is not the first SpaceX craft to spark UFO reports upon returning to Earth.

In September, SpaceX's Cargo Dragon C208-2 was spotted streaking through the night sky over parts of Georgia and Florida.

The Cargo Dragon C208-2 undocked from the ISS at 9:12am Thursday, following a supply run to the ship, and splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean around 11pm ET on September 30.

In September, Cargo Dragon C208-2 was spotted streaking through the night sky over parts of Georgia and Florida

The Cargo Dragon C208-2 undocked from the ISS at 9:12am Thursday, following a supply run to the ship, and splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean around 11pm ET on September 30

SpaceX tweeted that the capsule may be visible in parts of Georgia and Florida – and the firm was correct.

Many residents shared the event on Twitter, showing images of the glowing craft with a long, illuminated tail as it soared over highways and neighborhoods.

Local news stations in Florida received numerous reports of a loud boom on Thursday night, which was heard by residents in the Jacksonville area and all the way down to St. Augustine.

Residents said the loud boom rattled dishes and windows, along with entire homes.

The loud noise was a sonic boom released from the capsule, Newsweek reports.

According to NASA, a sonic boom is the thunder-like noise that someone on the ground hears when an aircraft or spacecraft overhead flies faster than the speed of sound.

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/ }

ISS-astronauten na half jaar in de ruimte veilig geland in Golf van Mexico

De vier astronauten die eind april met een raket van SpaceX naar het internationale ruimtestation ISS vertrokken, zijn veilig geland in de Golf van Mexico. De landing in de zee bij de Amerikaanse staat Florida vond plaats om 22.33 uur lokale tijd.

 Bron: ANP

De bemanningsleden, twee Amerikanen, een Japanner en een Fransman die onderhoud aan zonnepanelen en allerlei experimenten hebben uitgevoerd, waren ongeveer acht uur onderweg. Het vertrek was met een dag vertraagd vanwege slechte weersomstandigheden.

Lees ook

• 

  Astronauten telen voor het eerst zelfgemaakte chilipepers en maken “beste ruimte-taco’s ooit"

Het viertal was gearriveerd met de Endeavour van het ruimtevaartbedrijf van Elon Musk. Niet eerder waren astronauten met een gebruikte raket en capsule de ruimte in gestuurd. Na 199 dagen waarin ze onder meer chilipepers hebben verbouwd en wormen hebben bestudeerd, was het tijd voor de terugreis.

Luiers

Ongemakkelijk was dat op de terugreis het toilet niet werkte, zodat de bemanning luiers moest dragen. Het systeem om afval te verwerken in de capsule kampte met problemen.

De vervanging van de crew ondervindt ondertussen keer op keer vertraging, door het weer en een medische kwestie, meldde de Amerikaanse ruimtevaartorganisatie NASA. De nu geplande vertrekdatum is woensdag. Dan moeten drie Amerikanen en een Duitser worden gelanceerd vanaf ruimtebasis Cape Canaveral in Florida. Ook zij verblijven volgens de planning een half jaar in het ruimtestation.

Beeld uit een NASA-video waarin te zien is hoe de capsule aan parachutes hangt voor hij in de Golf van Mexico plonst.  © AP

{ https://www.hln.be/ }

‘Astounding’ Roman Statues Found Under Medieval Church in Britain

Archaeologists digging at the site of a Norman-era church north of London received quite a surprise recently. Their ongoing excavations unearthed the well-preserved remains of three large Roman statues that must have been buried there for more than 1,000 years. The find included three detached statue heads - of a man, woman, and child - along with two intact busts (neck, shoulders, and chests) that matched the heads of the adults.

The archaeologists who made this shocking discovery were carrying out excavations below St. Mary’s Church, a 900-year-old structure located in the village of Stoke Mandeville adjacent to Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire county. They were working under the authority of the HS2 high-speed railway project, which is currently sponsoring excavations (as required by law) along the rail line route that will eventually connect London with the West Midlands.

In an HS2 press release , Dr. Rachel Wood, the lead archaeologist for HS2 contractor Fusion JV, referred to the Roman statues as “utterly astounding finds.”

Male head and torso of Roman statue discovered during a HS2 archaeological dig at the site of old St Mary’s church in Stoke Mandeville, Buckinghamshire.

( HS2)

“To find one stone head or one set of shoulders would be really astonishing,” she said, “but we have two complete heads and shoulders as well as a third head as well.”

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Getting it Right the Second Time

This incredibly rare discovery has generated a lot of excitement among the HS2 archaeological team. It has also forced them to reconsider their initial interpretation of an earlier discovery at the St. Mary’s site.

Just last month, the archaeologists found the ruins of a large stone building buried directly beneath the Medieval church. The Normans had built a compacted dirt foundation on top of the rubble of that building, before beginning construction on St. Mary’s in the year 1080.

“The team working at St Mary’s discovered flint walls forming a square structure underneath the Norman levels, enclosed by a circular boundary ditch, and a small number of associated burials,” an HS2 spokesperson announced in September . “Archaeologists believe this to be an Anglo-Saxon church.”

HS2 archaeologists excavating Roman artifacts.

( HS2)

“The flint foundations are about one meter wide,” the spokesperson continued, “which indicates it would have been a tall structure, although its footprint would have been small.”

The archaeologists were finishing excavations in and around the building at the time they discovered the Roman statues . Reaching the bottom layer of the hidden church site, they thought they were digging into the foundations of an old Anglo-Saxon tower. But when they saw the Roman busts, they realized the site’s history went back even further than they’d imagined.

The Statues and Other Finds that Link the Site to Roman Settlers

The statue heads and torsos were all in excellent condition. It was possible to make out precise facial details, and also to identify the types of clothing and head coverings they were wearing.

Female head of Roman statue discovered during a HS2 archaeological dig at the site of old St Mary’s church in Stoke Mandeville, Buckinghamshire.

( HS2)

While the Roman statues are the most notable find at St. Mary’s, they were not the only artifacts that linked the site to Roman settlers.

The HS2 archaeologists also unearthed the remains of a hexagon-shaped Roman glass jug, which was in excellent condition and could easily be reconstructed with no missing pieces. Only one other vessel of this kind is known to exist. It is presently on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Other distinctive Roman artifacts were also found during the latest excavations, including large roof tiles, pieces of painted wall plaster, and Roman cremation urns.

Rare Roman glass jug found at the site.

( HS2)

The last discovery seems especially significant, as revealed by the contents of the HS2 press release about the discoveries at the site.

“Archaeologists now believe the square building that pre-dates the Norman church is a Roman mausoleum,” the release said. “Roman materials found in the ditch around are too ornate and not enough in number to suggest the site was a domestic building.”

If the stone tower was in fact a mausoleum, or large tomb, it may have hosted the cremated remains of the three individuals (members of a wealthy and important family?) who were depicted in the statues.

A few pieces of Saxon pottery and a Saxon coin were found in the circular ditch that surrounded the large structure. But the archaeologists now believe the Saxons only occupied or modified pre-existing Roman structures, rather than building something new and original on their own.

How Lost and Forgotten Artifacts Reveal the Truth about History

The Romans remained in Britain for nearly 400 years after conquering the lands in the first century AD. They would have occupied the land on which St. Mary’s Church was built sometime during that time period, when the statues and mausoleum were created.

• New Date for Chedworth Roman Villa Mosaic Changes English History
• Powerhouse of the Roman Navy: The Classis Britannica

It is likely that the Roman statues were intentionally damaged by future occupants before being abandoned, which would explain why the heads were disconnected from the bodies.

“The disfiguration of the Roman busts, namely the removal of the head of each, is not entirely unusual as it is common for statues such as these to have been vandalized in some way before being torn down,” the HS2 press release explained. “These are early examples of how statues and historic artifacts have been discarded as society has evolved over time.”

Of course, archaeological ventures are launched primarily to search for such abandoned and forgotten objects, which can dramatically enhance our understanding of past eras.

“These extraordinary Roman statues are just some of the incredible artifacts uncovered between London and the West Midlands,” said Mike Court, the HS2, Ltd. lead archaeologist. “As HS2 builds for Britain’s future, we are uncovering and learning about the past, leaving a legacy of knowledge and discovery.”

The HS2 archaeological initiative has given archaeologists access to vast tracts of land that had been largely off-limits before. They are taking full advantage of the opportunity, learning many new and exciting facts about the United Kingdom’s complex and colorful history in the process.

• Top image: Complete bust of female Roman statue discovered at the site of old St Mary’s church in Stoke Mandeville, Buckinghamshire, England. Source: HS2

By Nathan Falde

{ https://www.ancient-origins.net/ }

Metal Detectorist Stumbles Upon a 2,000-Year-Old Swiss Battle Site

Hundreds of ancient artifacts revealing a Roman battle site from about 2,000 years ago have been unearthed in Switzerland. The items include well-preserved slingshot stones, nails, coins, a portion of a shield, and a dagger – they were believed to have been left behind after a battle took place between the Romans and a local tribe around the year 15 BC.

It was Lucas Schmid who made the first discovery of a dagger close to the Crap-Ses gorge which is between the towns of Tiefencastel and Cunter. It was actually rather surprising that he found anything as there wasn’t thought to have been any artifacts left after several people with metal detectors had previously gone over the property and found other items.

(Not the dagger mentioned in this article.)

In an interview with SWI swissinfo.ch, Schmid described how he found the dagger, “The signal from the metal detector was very inconspicuous and quiet. At first there was nothing to suggest such a large find,” adding, “As I dug deeper the tension rose – I knew it had to be an old object. When I exposed one end of the object I saw that it was a dagger. When I saw it was a complete dagger I was overjoyed.”

After Schmid found the dagger, a team of archaeologists from the University of Basel went to the site and unearthed several hundred more items within a 35,000-square-meter area. The items found at the site, which included shoe nails and coins, were from around 15 BC when the battle occurred.

As for the battle, the local Raetian tribe was living in the eastern Alps (this included portions of what is now Italy and Austria), but when the Romans conquered the area, they referred to it as Raetia under Augustus (in reference to the Roman Emperor Augustus). It is estimated that up to 1,500 soldiers were involved in the battle.

Peter Schwarz, who is a professor of Provincial Roman Archaeology at the University of Basel, told SWI swissinfo.ch, “This is the first time that remnants from a Roman battle site has been found in Switzerland,” adding, “It seems that the Romans attacked their enemy on one side of the valley and then drove them over a river to the other side, before attacking again.”

Interestingly, researchers have not found any graves at the battle site and it’s unclear as to how many of the estimated 1,500 soldiers died. Further excavations will be conducted next year so perhaps they’ll make even more discoveries at the site.

A picture of the dagger can be seen here.

A dagger is one of hundreds of objects uncovered on the ancient battlefield. 

Archäologischer Dienst Graubünden

(Courtesy Peter-Andrew Schwarz)

{ https://mysteriousuniverse.org/ }

ISS-astronauten met luiers op weg terug naar aarde

De vier astronauten die eind april met een raket van SpaceX naar het internationale ruimtestation ISS vertrokken, zijn op weg terug naar aarde. De bemanningsleden, twee Amerikanen, een Japanner en een Fransman die onderhoud aan zonnepanelen en allerlei experimenten hebben uitgevoerd, worden in de vroege ochtend verwacht in de zee bij Florida. Het vertrek was met een dag vertraagd vanwege slechte weersomstandigheden.

 Bron: ANP/AFP/DPA

Het viertal was gearriveerd met de Endeavour van het ruimtevaartbedrijf van Elon Musk. Nooit eerder waren astronauten met een gebruikte raket en capsule de ruimte in gestuurd. Na 199 dagen waarin ze onder meer chilipepers hebben verbouwd en wormen hebben bestudeerd, is het tijd voor de terugreis.

Enig minpunt is dat op de terugreis het toilet niet werkt, zodat de bemanning luiers moet dragen. Het systeem om afval te verwerken in de capsule kampt namelijk met problemen.

Ook de vervanging van de crew ondervindt ondertussen keer op keer vertraging, door het weer en een medische kwestie, meldde de Amerikaanse ruimtevaartorganisatie NASA. De nu geplande vertrekdatum is woensdag. Dan moeten drie Amerikanen en een Duitser worden gelanceerd vanaf ruimtebasis Cape Canaveral in de Amerikaanse staat Florida. Ook zij verblijven volgens de planning een half jaar in het ruimtestation.

Astronauten Thomas Pesquet, Megan McArthur, Shane Kimbrough en Akihiko Hoshide vertrokken in april naar het ISS.  © AP

© AP

© AP

{ https://www.hln.be/ }

Lazar's story about the secret underground facility S4 sounds fantastic but it is not a lie. S4 facility at Area 51 photographed during construction.

The location of S4 has been a mystery for decades. Bob Lazar worked at S4 from December 1988 till mid of 1989. All he shared with the public were a few sketches and a short description of nine hangars built in the slope of a mountain, located ten miles South of Groom Lake (Area 51) and near the Papoose Lake dry bed. 

So where is this base? With so little information finding S4 is searching for the needle in the haystack. 

31 Years passed and the location was still unknown. People found lines in the sediment in a mountain on the Eat side of Papoose Lake and UAP Research too believed to have found S4 (actually we now believe that it is the predecessor of S4) South of Papoose Lake but the evidence was still missing. 

Not anymore as a couple months ago while watching an old video from 1989 UAP Research saw something that dropped his mouth open. Was this the needle? Yes it was! 

The video below shows all the information, maps, satellite images, sketches related to the location of S4 'the underground UFO base.'

 

RELATED VIDEOS, selected and osted biy peter2011

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

Aliens in Alaska – Night Stalkers S01E03

Ancient Aliens – Night Stalkers

Season 1, Episode 3

12th April 2021, Discovery+

An extraterrestrial stalker leaves a family frozen in fear outside of Juneau, Alaska. A maritime monster nearly capsizes an aircraft on Alaska’s famed Lake Iliamna. A hunter thwarts an attempted abduction by a fireball-spitting UFO.

{ https://www.latest-ufo-sightings.net/ }

NASA’s Perseverance rover spots Mars’ teeny tiny moon, Deimos

 By Georgina Torbet

NASA’s Perseverance rover doesn’t only spend its time looking down at the rocks and dust that cover the surface of Mars. It also looks up, and recently it captured an image of Mars’ tiny moon, Deimos, hovering overhead in the Martian sky.

Deimos is the smaller of Mars’ two moons, along with its bigger companion, Phobos, and measures less than 2 miles across. It is covered in impact craters from asteroid strikes, and it’s also covered in dust that gives it a smoother appearance than Phobos.

NASA shared the following image captured by the rover looking up, which zooms in to show the tiny bright white dot of Phobos passing through the sky:

A particularly intriguing concept about Mars’ moons is that they could once have been rings, like those around Saturn. Over thousands of years, the material in these rings condensed into the two moons we see today. And the moons might not be around forever — one theory states that eventually Phobos will come too close to Mars and break apart into tiny pieces, becoming a set of rings. This may even operate as a cycle, with Mars switching between rings and moons over millennia.

Rendering showing a planetary ring system over Mars. Demonstrates either the formation or destruction of Phobos and/or Deimos. Kevin Gill

Mars’ moons have also been in the news recently as Japanese scientists suggested that Deimos’ companion, Phobos, may be the ideal location to search for signs of ancient life. Although the moon itself lacks atmosphere and water, making it unsuitable for hosting life, it could carry evidence if there was once life on Mars. Asteroid strikes on the Martian surface have sent material flying onto Phobos, and its sterile environment could preserve these signs long-term.

We’ll learn more about Phobos and Deimos soon, as the Japanese space agency (JAXA) will be sending its Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) probe to visit them both. The plan is for the probe to land on Phobos and collect a sample to return to Earth, and it will also perform a flyby of Deimos on its way. The mission aims to launch in 2024.

Editors' Recommendations

• NASA gears up to launch a spacecraft that will crash into an asteroid
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{ https://www.digitaltrends.com/ }

Can SpaceX's Elon Musk help NASA get back to the moon by 2024 after all?

• Mark Whittington, who writes frequently about space and politics, has published a political study of space exploration entitled Why is It So Hard to Go Back to the Moon? as well as “The Moon, Mars and Beyond,” and, most recently, “Why is America Going Back to the Moon?” He blogs at Curmudgeons Corner.  He is published in the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, The Hill, USA Today, the LA Times and the Washington Post, among other venues.

RELATED VIDEOS, selected and posted by peter2011

Unearthed Recording Alleges that Einstein Was Enlisted to Examine Roswell Wreckage

By Tim Binnall

In a recently unearthed recording of an interview conducted nearly 30 years ago, a former assistant to Albert Einstein alleges that the famed scientist was enlisted to examine the Roswell wreckage, including the ET occupants of the downed craft. UFO researcher Anthony Bragalia uncovered the remarkable revelation when he tracked down ufologist Sheila Franklin, who interviewed Dr. Shirley Wright in 1993 about her time working with Einstein in the summer of 1947. As luck would have it, Franklin still had the tapes from her conversation with the former assistant and what she told the researcher was nothing short of stunning.

According to Wright, she accompanied Einstein to what had been dubbed a "crisis conference" that was hastily held in July of 1947 at a remote army airbase in the American southwest. Upon their arrival, the duo entered a hangar that was under heavy security and, when they entered the building, they discovered that it contained a rather curious craft that appeared to have sustained significant damage. "It was disc-shaped, sort of concave," Wright recalled, "its size stood up to one-fourth of the hangar floor." While her response to the strange scene was one of "wonderment, half curiosity and maybe half fear," she said that Einstein was "not disturbed at all" and, instead, was primarily concerned with what sort of insights about propulsion and the universe could be gleaned from the vehicle.

The strange event took an even weirder turn, Wright claimed, when the pair were then presented with the bodies of five nearly indistinguishable beings that had apparently been aboard the craft. The scientist's former assistant observed that they "were about five feet tall, without hair, with big heads and enormous dark eyes, and their skin was gray with a slight greenish tinge, but for the most part their bodies were not exposed, being dressed in tight-fitting suits." The duo were then taken to another area where there was a still-living being that was struggling to stay alive and making strange sounds, but no coherent words or communication.

Shortly thereafter, Wright told Franklin, she and Einstein were ushered away from the base and the famed scientist was tasked with writing a report about the event while "I was just told to keep my mouth shut." It would appear that she did just that, keeping the story a secret until 1993, when she finally felt an obligation to reveal it to the world. Alas, Wright passed away in 2015 and the decades-old recording appears to be her only telling of the jaw-dropping experience. Attempts to determine Einstein's whereabouts at the time that the "crisis conference" was held have, so far, proven futile as archivists have been unable to produce his exact schedule from the time period in question.

{ https://www.coasttocoastam.com/ }