Webb Refines the Bullet Cluster's Mass

{ https://www.universetoday.com/ }

Sprites are large-scale electrical discharges that occur high in the mesosphere, triggered by positive lightning strikes. 

Part of a group of upper-atmosphere events called Transient Luminous Events (TLEs), sprites are still not fully understood, despite decades of research.

A rare red sprite captured from the International Space Station posted on X (formerly Twitter) on June 20, 2024, showing an event earlier in the year. (Image credit: Matthew Dominick/NASA/X)

Sprites like the ones Pettit captured on video occur much higher than regular lightning. Their name is an acronym, short for stratospheric perturbations resulting from intense thunderstorm electrification.

Sprites are created when electrical discharges created by lightning shoot upward, creating bursts of plasma in the ionosphere, found around 50 miles (80 km) above Earth's surface. They were not captured on camera until 1989.

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

Net iets van ‘War of the Worlds’: astronaut fotografeert enorme rode ‘kwal-sprite’ tijdens omhoog schietende blikseminslag

Een NASA-astronaute heeft vanuit het ISS een straffe foto gemaakt van een gigantische, kwalvormige sprite van rode bliksem die omhoogschiet tijdens een onweersbui boven Noord-Amerika. Het gaat om een bijzonder en zeldzaam fenomeen waar eigenlijk nog best wat vraagtekens bij zijn, ook al wordt het al meer dan 30 jaar bestudeerd.

Het doet een beetje denken aan de bloederige scènes van de alienklassieker ‘War of the Worlds’, maar wat NASA-astronaute Nichole Ayers, die sinds maart in het Internationaal Ruimtestation ISS vertoeft, hier heeft vastgelegd, is gelukkig veel minder apocalyptisch. Maar cool is het zeker.

Lees ook

• 

  KIJK. Zo prachtig is het noorderlicht vanuit de ruimte

“Gewoon. Wauw.”

De astronaute maakte het straffe beeld toen het ISS afgelopen donderdag passeerde boven een grote storm die hing over delen van Mexico en het zuiden van de VS, waaronder de staten Californië en Texas.

“Gewoon. Wauw. Toen we vanochtend over Mexico en de VS vlogen, zag ik deze sprite”, schrijft Ayers bij de foto op X. “Sprites zijn TLE’s (Transient Luminous Events), die boven de wolken plaatsvinden en worden geactiveerd door intense elektrische activiteit in de onweersbuien eronder”, legt ze uit.

Blauw, rood, ringvormig

Transient Luminous Events (Transiënte Lichtgevende Gebeurtenissen) zijn spectaculaire, korte lichtflitsen die zich meestal boven onweersbuien voordoen in de hogere atmosfeer. In tegenstelling tot bliksem zelf speelt dit spektakel zich veel hoger in de lucht af, soms tot 100 kilometer boven de aarde.

NASA-astronauten Anne McClain en Nichole Ayers in het ISS.  © NASA

De lichtflitsen zijn van korte duur – van milliseconden tot seconden – en variëren in vorm en kleur. De meest voorkomende types zijn blue jets: blauwe, straalvormige uitbarstingen die omhoogschieten; sprites: rode, kwalachtige structuren; en UFO-achtige lichtringen die ook wel elves worden genoemd.

Sprites, zoals die gefotografeerd door Ayers, komen van alle TLE’s het vaakst voor. Ze worden beschreven als kwalvormig, omdat de rode lichtbundels die omhoogschieten zich als een soort tentakels uitspreiden. Dat is ook duidelijk te zien als je inzoomt op de foto van de astronaute. De sprieten worden ook wel eens wortels genoemd, omdat ze vergezeld kunnen gaan van zwakkere ranken op het einde in de omgekeerde richting, net als bij plantenwortels.

Een straffe kwalvormige sprite gefotografeerd vanuit het internationaal ruimtestation ISS.  © Nichole “Vapor” Ayers

En vanwaar die opvallende rode kleur? Dat komt doordat de sprites in wisselwerking staan met stikstof in de bovenste atmosfeer.

Voor het eerst gefotografeerd in 1989

Volgens 'Live Science' werden sprites zoals deze voor het eerst goed geobserveerd in de jaren 1950 door passagiers op vliegtuigen. Pas in 1989 werden ze voor het eerst op foto vastgelegd. Intussen zijn ze ook gespot in de hoge atmosfeer van Jupiter. Vermoedelijk komen ze ook voor op Saturnus en Venus.

Mysterie

Maar ondanks jaren van onderzoek is er ook nog mysterie rond de spectaculaire flitsen. Zo begrijpen wetenschappers nog altijd niet goed waarom sommige bliksems juist sprites veroorzaken en andere niet. ISS-astronauten, die vanuit het ruimtestation in een ideale positie zitten om de lichtflitsen te zien, kunnen nuttige data aanleveren waarmee onderzoekers kunnen achterhalen hoe de verschijnselen precies werken.

LEES OOK.

• EXCLUSIEF. Onze journalist bezocht Belgisch astronaut Raphaël Liégeois: “Ik kan niet wachten om de aarde vanuit de ruimte te zien” (+)

• KIJK. Wat doen 286 dagen in de ruimte met je lichaam? VTM NIEUWS-journalist Carl Theunis test het zelf uit

{ https://www.hln.be/weer-en-wetenschap/ }

Orange disk over Antelope Park, Utah July 3, 2025 UFO UAP sighting news. Over the Salt Lake. 👽👀😱

Date of sighting: July 3, 2025

Location of sighting: Over Antelope Park, Utah, USA

Source: Filmed by me.

 

Guys, you know me...I got to scan the sky every moment I get outside. Why? Because the more you search, the more your chance to see an actual UFO...like yesterday. I recorded this UFO that I noticed was glowing orange behind some darker clouds. It really popped! I used my iPhone 14 so the quality is soso but I got it! And thats what counts. I added contrast to the screenshots and I quickly noticed that there is a tornado like spiral cloud coming down from the UFO. It was probably getting ready to send some people or supplies down to an underground base about 4-5 miles below the Salt Lake. It's a dead zone where most people don't venture out there. Also the land behind that area is all top secret military practices areas for the helicopters and fighter jets from Hill AFB. Recorded some F35s today...see the next post. This is 100% a real alien disk and it's over 100 meters across! They didn't fool me...I nailed their alien butts to the wall on this day. 

Scott C. Waring - UFO Sightings Daily

 

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{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

Triangle UFO Disguised As Iceberg In Canada, similar to UFOs in clouds, UAP sighting news OMG!

Date of discovery: June 2025

Location of discovery: Canada

Source: Found by me using google earth

 

Check this out. I taught the world about UFOs hiding within a cloud and how UFOs can actually make clouds, which I have shown in US gov videos from last year. But...you have never heard of a UFO disguised as an iceberg. This is something even I have never seen until now. This is a 50x70 meter UFO floating on the surface of the ocean and its cloak on top has us almost fooled into looking like an iceberg. Aliens pride themselves on being more intelligent than humans, so much so that they laugh at us as they hide right under our noses. Well, they don't get away with that when I'm in the area. 

Scott C. Waring - UFO Sightings Daily

{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

Tower and crashed UFO in Antarctica Google Earth Map, UAP Sighting News. Proof of ancient aliens

Date of sighting: June 2025

Location of sighting: Antarctica

Source: Found by me

 

Guys, check this out. I found this alien tower in Antarctica this week and it's just mind blowing. This tower has a large white base and a smaller tower near it. Aliens in Antarctica, we all knew that right? 

Scott C. Waring 

{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

Declassified CIA document reveals Area 51's TRUE purpose

• READ MORE:  Incredible tale of the only man to sneak into Area 51

By STACY LIBERATORE FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

Area 51 has long been the stuff of alien lore, with whispers of crashed UFOs and extraterrestrial autopsies behind its barbed-wire-laced fence.

The base, established in 1955, remained largely unknown until 1989 when Robert Lazar claimed on TV that he worked at a secret site near Groom Lake, 'S-4,' studying alien technology and spacecraft.

While the remote US Air Force base in Nevada has kept a tight lid on its activities, the CIA finally lifted the lid in 2013, officially admitting Area 51's existence.

The agency declassified a more than 400-page report that detailed how testing its secret spy planes 'accounted for more than one-half of all UFO reports during the late 1950s and most of the 1960s.'

The U-2 spy and A-12 reconnaissance planes were being flown in the shadows of the desert amid the Cold War, but the extreme altitudes sparked fears of an alien invasion.

'High-altitude testing of the U-2 soon led to an unexpected side effect—a tremendous increase in reports of unidentified flying objects (UFOs),' the report states.

'Once U-2s started flying at altitudes above 60,000 feet, air-traffic controllers began receiving increasing numbers of UFO reports.' 

However, the CIA report does not mention Area 51's purpose after 1974.

Area 51 remained largely unknown until 1989 when Robert Lazar claimed on TV that he worked at a secret site near Groom Lake, 'S-4,' studying alien technology and spacecraft

While the document was declassified in 2013, it has resurfaced on X where the public appears to be seeing it for the first time.

'The mystery has been solved,' one user shared.

The CIA documents were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request made in 2005, and provide details about how Area 51 came about.

Area 51, officially referred to as the Groom Lake test facility or 'the Ranch,' was established in April 1955 when scouts spotted the area while flying over the Mojave Desert.

'By July 1955, the Groom Lake facility was ready for operations, although it was still quite primitive,' the report states.

'It included a 5,000-foot asphalt runway, housing for about 150 personnel, a mess hall, a few wells to provide water, fuel storage tanks, and a small amount of hangar and shop space.'

The first planes were delivered to Area 51 on July 25, 1955, and the trials began two days later, and the first documented test flight occurred on August 4, 1955.

The goal was to establish Project AQUATONE, the CIA's program to develop the Lockheed U-2 strategic reconnaissance aircraft. 

The U-2 was designed to conduct high-altitude, long-range surveillance of the Soviet Union to address critical intelligence gaps during the Cold War. 

The CIA report noted that reports about UFOs around Area 51 occurred 'in the early evening hours from pilots of airliners flying from east to west.'

Area 51, officially referred to as the Groom Lake test facility or 'the Ranch,' was established in April 1955 when scouts spotted the area while flying over the Mojave Desert. Pictured is Area 51 taken during a 1957 U-2 flight

A CIA document declassified in 2013 revealed the UFO sightings were due to it flying US spy planes over the area 

'If a U-2 was airborne in the vicinity of the airliner at the time, its horizon was considerably more distant, and it was still in sunlight,' reads the document.

'At times, when a U-2 pilot made a turn, the sunlight reflecting off the U-2's silver wings would cause a series of glints or flashes. This caused airliner pilots to report seeing a bright object high above them.'

Even more, the CIA revealed that it had flown personnel assigned to the test site from 'the Lockheed plant in Burbank, California, every Monday morning and returned to Burbank on Friday evening' to conceal the base from the public eye.

The OXCART program, which developed the A-12 reconnaissance plane, started flights in September 1960.

The Lockheed A-12 was intended for high-speed, high-altitude reconnaissance missions, particularly over areas deemed 'denied' or politically sensitive.

The airplane was used by the CIA for five years to fly operational missions over Southeast Asia before it was retired in 1969 and put into storage at Palmdale, California.

'In early 1962, CIA officials became concerned about the possibility that the Soviet Union might learn about the OXCART program through overhead reconnaissance,' the document reads.

Because of the fear, the CIA tested the site's visibility using their own reconnaissance assets by having having 'Groom Lake photographed by a U-2 and later by a CORONA reconnaissance satellite.'

But in 1974, 'the Skylab astronauts inadvertently photographed the Groom Lake test site despite specific instructions not to do so.'

Skylab was America's first space station and a pioneering research laboratory in space. 

The agency declassified a more than 400-page report that detailed how testing its secret spy planes 'accounted for more than one-half of all UFO reports during the late 1950s and most of the 1960s.' Pictured is a mysterious triangle tower on the base

Details about astronauts snapping images of Area 51 are the last reference to the secret base in the 400-page report. 

Self-proclaimed Ufologist Stanton Friedman did not take the documents as fact, saying in 2013: 'The notion that the U-2 explains most sightings at that time is utter rot and baloney.

'Can the U-2 sit still in the sky? Make right-angle turns in the middle of the sky? Take off from nothing?' 

And it seemed thousands of Americans did not believe the CIA either.

In July 2019, nearly 500,000 people committed to storming Area 51 that September.

The 'Storm Area 51, They Can't Stop All of Us' event was created on Facebook, garnering more than 460,000 'going' RSVPs while another 460K said that they were 'interested' in infiltrating the Nevada compound.

'We will all meet up at the Area 51 Alien Center tourist attraction and coordinate our entry,' the event description says.

'If we Naruto run, we can move faster than their bullets. Lets [sic] see them [sic] aliens.'

The phrase 'Naruto run' refers to anime character Naruto Uzumaki, who is known for a running style that has his body tilted forward and low to the ground while his arms are stretched out behind his back. 

A few days after the Facebook event was created by Matty Roberts, he revealed it was all a 'joke.'

Roberts told Nevada's KLAS-TV via video call on Wednesday he was amazed at how his hoax took off. 'I posted it on like June 27th and it was kind of a joke,' Roberts said.

Roberts said he had decided to come forward out of fear the FBI would come to question him over the joke after millions of UFO conspiracy theory fans signed up to invade the top-secret US Air Force base.

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{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

Bombshell report reveals truth about Area 51 UFO conspiracy:' There's a gigantic cover-up'

• READ MORE: Declassified CIA document reveals Area 51's TRUE purpose

By STACY LIBERATORE FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

A bombshell report has claimed that the UFO conspiracies surrounding Nevada's Area 51 were fueled by the Pentagon to conceal a classified weapons program.

According to the 2024 US Department of Defense (DOD) review, the government conducted a deliberate disinformation campaign during the Cold War era, going so far as to distribute fake photos of flying saucers to residents. 

In the 1980s, a US Air Force colonel allegedly handed out doctored images of UFOs to patrons at a nearby bar, claiming they had been taken in the area. 

The photos were quickly pinned on the wall, igniting public speculation that alien technology was being housed and studied at the top-secret base. 

The report claimed the grassroots disinformation campaign was an attempt to hide military testing, including stealth fighter jets, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Area 51, officially established in 1955, remained largely under the radar until 1989, when whistleblower Robert Lazar appeared on television. 

He claimed he had worked at a hidden facility near Groom Lake, known as 'S-4,' reverse-engineering alien spacecraft, further cementing Area 51's place in UFO lore.

The report also revealed that high-ranking Air Force officials hazed new commanders by briefing them on a fabricated top-secret project called 'Yankee Blue,' which involved the supposed study of extraterrestrial craft. 

After the phony briefing, recruits were warned they would face jail or execution if they ever disclosed the information. 

A bombshell report has claimed that the UFO conspiracies surrounding Nevada's Area 51 were fueled by the Pentagon to conceal classified weapons program

Details confirming that Area 51 served as a testing ground for America’s cutting-edge weapons were first revealed in a CIA document declassified in 2013. 

The report explained that during the Cold War, the remote Nevada base was used to test aircraft like the U-2 spy plane and the A-12 reconnaissance jet under a veil of secrecy. 

Despite those facts, Area 51 has since evolved into a hotbed of alien conspiracy theories, with persistent rumors of crashed UFOs and extraterrestrial autopsies hidden behind its barbed-wire fences. 

The new claims of a secret weapons cover up comes from a report by the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), a congressional task force within the DOD created to investigate persistent rumors of secret government projects involving alien technology. 

Sean Kirkpatrick, the first director of the AARO, was appointed by the government in 2022 to investigate and make sense of the countless UFO theories swirling through public and military channels. 

He and his team sifted UFO reports spanning back to 1945, finding several cases where high-ranking military officials misled the public and their own colleagues. 

Kirkpatrick told the Wall Street Journal that he met with retired Air Force members who were briefed about Yankee Blue.

The new recruits were given a photo of what looked like a flying saucer that was described as an anti-gravity maneuvering vehicle.

And even decades later, news that Yankee Blue was fake stunned the now-retired servicemen. 

A branch of the government sifted sifted UFO reports spanning back to 1945, finding several cases where high-ranking military officials misled the public and their own colleagues. Pictured is a 2004 case, capturing a mysterious object over California

It was not until 2023 did the defense secretary's office send a memo out across the service ordering the practice to stop immediately.

Read More

EXCLUSIVE

• Top air force vet who 'witnessed UFOs turn off nuclear warheads' issues sobering warning 

Kirkpatrick told then President director of national intelligence, Avril Haines, who was also stunned.

Haines was said to have pressed the issue, questioning how the hazing could have carried on without being stopped.

The official responded: 'Ma'am, we know it went on for decades. We are talking about hundreds and hundreds of people. These men signed NDAs. They thought it was real.' 

Defense Department spokeswoman Sue Gough confirmed to the Wall Street Journal that AARO had uncovered fabricated materials falsely presented as part of classified programs involving extraterrestrials. 

She said lawmakers and intelligence officials had been briefed on the findings. 

{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

UFOs are at risk of going 'down the paranormal rabbit hole', expert warns - as bombshell report reveals Pentagon planted myths

• READ MORE: Bombshell report reveals truth about Area 51 UFO conspiracy

By WILIAM HUNTER

UFOs are at risk of 'going down the paranormal rabbit hole', an expert has warned in wake of a bombshell report by the Wall Street Journal. 

The report revealed that UFO conspiracies were fuelled by the Pentagon in a bid to conceal a classified weapons programme.

According to the 2024 US Department of Defense (DOD) review, the government conducted a deliberate disinformation campaign during the Cold War era, going so far as to distribute fake photos of flying saucers to residents.

Following the release of the report, Nick Pope, who worked on the MoD's UFO desk for three years from 1991, claims that some UFO investigators are introducing 'too much religiosity' into their theories.

In a post on X, Mr Pope wrote: 'The subject of UAP has gone from fringe to mainstream. 

'Congress is engaged. 

'We risk losing this if we go down the paranormal rabbit hole, or introduce too much religiosity or spirituality into the narrative. 

'Let's keep the focus on defense, national security and safety of flight.'

A bombshell report has claimed that the UFO conspiracies surrounding Nevada's Area 51 (pictured) were fueled by the Pentagon to conceal classified weapons program

UFOs are at risk of 'going down the paranormal rabbit hole', an expert has warned in wake of a bombshell report by the Wall Street Journal 

Mr Pope (pictured), who worked on the MoD's UFO desk for three years from 1991, cautioned that some UFO investigators were introducing 'too much religiosity' into their theories and warned that those interested in UFOs should 'keep the focus on defense, national security, and safety of flight'

Over the last few years, there has been growing interest at the highest levels of US politics in the topic of UFOs and UFO sightings.

Members of Congress, largely coming from the Republican Party, have formed a caucus to examine what they call 'unidentified anomalous phenomena' or 'UAPs'.

In 2023, this culminated in a major congressional hearing in which former US officials testified to the existence of a secret UFO recovery programme.

David Grusch, who led the analysis of UAP within a US defence agency, claimed that the government had taken possession of alien craft and 'biologics'.

However, UFOs' growing credibility now risks taking a serious blow as it emerges that a number of UFO theories might have been deliberately started by the Pentagon itself.

The new claims of a secret weapons cover-up come from a report by the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) - a congressional task force within the DOD created to investigate persistent rumours of secret government projects involving alien technology.

Sean Kirkpatrick, the first director of the AARO, was appointed by the government in 2022 to investigate and make sense of the countless UFO theories swirling through public and military channels.

Investigating UFO reports dating back to 1945, AARO discovered several cases where high-ranking military officials deliberately misled the public and their colleagues.

The subject of UFOs has recently gained credibility, culminating in a series of Congressional Hearings in 2023 in which whistleblowers testified that the US has a secret UFO retrieval programme 

Recent reports suggest that the Pentagon deliberately fanned the flames of UFO conspiracies and gave doctored images to members of the public and members of the military to cover up a secret weapons programme. Pictured: The famous 'Tic Tac' UFO video

Mr Kirkpatrick told the Wall Street Journal he had met a number of former Air Force members who claimed to have been briefed on a project called 'Yankee Blue'.

For decades, some newly recruited officers were given a picture which appeared to show a flying saucer and were told that they were part of a programme called Yankee Blue which was responsible for reverse-engineering the technology.

However, the picture was a fake and there was such a reverse-engineering programme.

Instead, Yankee Blue appears to have been a bizarre hazing ritual or loyalty test for new recruits into the Air Force.

And even decades later, news that Yankee Blue was fake stunned the now-retired servicemen.

It was not until 2023 did the defence secretary's office sent a memo out across the service ordering the practice to stop immediately.

Kirkpatrick told then President's director of national intelligence, Avril Haines, who was also stunned.

Haines was said to have pressed the issue, questioning how the hazing could have carried on without being stopped.

According to the 2024 US Department of Defense (DOD) review, the Pentagon (pictured) conducted a deliberate disinformation campaign during the Cold War era, going so far as to distribute fake photos of flying saucers to residents.

The official responded: 'Ma'am, we know it went on for decades. We are talking about hundreds and hundreds of people. These men signed NDAs. They thought it was real.'

Mr Pope told MailOnline: 'The idea that governments have faked UFO narratives so as to distract people from black project technologies isn't new. 

'It doesn't surprise me that the practice continues, or that other false narratives have been created, perhaps as loyalty tests, to see if people leak them, or even as practical jokes.'

These findings are particularly critical for UFO researchers since they threaten to cast doubt over recent high-profile testimony given before Congress.

For example, Mike Gold, who served on NASA's independent UAP study team in October 2022, told Congress that 'UAPs should be taken seriously and researched accordingly.'

If it is true that UFO sightings are being manufactured by the intelligence community, then it could mean this testimony can no longer be relied on.  

Mr Pope adds: 'At some of the public sessions, Intelligence Community insiders have testified as to the reality of legacy Intelligence Community programmes relating to crash retrievals and reverse engineering, unequivocally stating that the U.S. government is in possession of hardware and bodies of a non-human intelligence.

'Congress urgently now needs to ask: are these statements true, were the witnesses taken in by these false narratives, or were they complicit in creating and spreading such narratives?'

Despite this new information, UFO advocates such as Luiz Elizondo (pictured) have doubled down on their beliefs. Mr Elizondo appeared to insinuate that the recent investigation was, itself, part of a conspiracy to hide the truth about UFOs

As these reports rattle many UFO believers, Mr Pope insists that it is key for those in favour of UFO disclosure to 'push narratives that compete with the religious/spiritual one'.

Mr Pope wrote: 'Let's keep the focus on defense, national security and safety of flight.'

His comments come in response to a growing number of UFO supporters who argue that aliens are actually angels or other supernatural creatures.

For example, Luis Elizondo, one of the leading UFO whistleblowers and disclosure advocates, has claimed that he psychically transformed into an angel to scare terrorists as part of a secret Pentagon programme.

Yet despite the Wall Street Journal's revelations and Mr Pope's appeal to stick to the facts, many UFO believers have only entrenched themselves deeper in conspiracy theories.

Speaking on the Good Trouble Show podcast, Mr Elizondo said: 'The absurdity of the WSJ article is not only a disingenuous piece, it appears to be well orchestrated with the usual players in the DoD [Department of Defence].'

Likewise, commenters on the popular r/UFO Reddit page shared their belief that the WSJ investigation must be another conspiracy.

One commenter wrote: 'The fact they are claiming this is totally absurd but it’s important to see why they are doing it. WSJ is being fed this info from Pentagon sources. Why? What is their angle?'

UFO believers are concerned that these findings could be used to undermine the testimony of several whistleblowers given before Congress in 2023. This has led to wild speculation that the investigation itself was a 'psy-op' from the Pentagon to discredit UFO believers 

Experts say that conspiracy theories are 'sticky', meaning that believers cannot give them up easily even when faced with contradictory evidence 

However, psychologists say that this reaction to the sudden release of new information is normal for conspiracy theorists.

Dr Daniel Jolley, an expert on the psychology of conspiracy theories from the University of Nottingham, told MailOnline: 'Conspiracy beliefs can be very “sticky” because they’re often tied to people’s identity and worldview.

'When someone invests in a conspiracy belief, it becomes part of how they make sense of the world and themselves. 

New evidence that contradicts those beliefs can be dismissed or rationalised away since accepting it might threaten deeply held assumptions and create psychological discomfort.'

This means that the suggestion that UFO myths were created as a disinformation campaign is unlikely to affect the deeply held beliefs of those who already think UFOs are real.

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{ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/index.html }

A set of disturbing photos claiming to show a dead alien caught the attention of Joe Rogan, who was stunned by what he saw. 

The three photos, which surfaced last week on X, have been linked to former military intelligence official Luis Elizondo, a polarizing figure in the world of UFO investigations. 

Elizondo has previously made headlines with unverified claims about extraterrestrials and advanced aerial technology. 

Daily Mail has chosen not to show the images in full due to their graphic nature.

'Did you see, Lou Elizondo, these photos that are supposedly of a real alien?' Rogan said to his guests, comedians Luis J Gomez and Big Jay Oakerson. 

'It's so dumb. The photos look blurry... of the photos of the dead alien. This is crazy.'

Along with the photos, Rogan presented a 1993 document claiming they depicted 'an alien hybrid child born to a 15-year-old girl, subject of an ET genetic experiment.' 

The discussion quickly veered into speculation when Rogan and his guests wondered if the figure in the images might be a baby with Harlequin ichthyosis, a skin disorder that causes thick, scaly plates on the body. 

'It could be anything, man. I mean, it might not even be human,' Rogan said.

The images have triggered intense backlash online, with many users convinced they depict a deceased baby rather than an extraterrestrial being. Critics have slammed Elizondo for allegedly promoting the photos without proper context. 

'Did you see, Lou Elizondo, these photos that are supposedly of a real alien?' Rogan said. 'It's so dumb. The photos look blurry... of the photos of the dead alien. This is crazy'

A set of disturbing photos claiming to show a dead alien flooded the internet, catching the attention of Joe Rogan, who appeared stunned by the bizarre images. Daily Mail has chosen not to show in full due to their graphic nature

However, UAP (unidentified anomalous phenomena) researcher Rob Heatherly told DailyMail.com that he sent the images to the former Pentagon official in hopes of getting clarification.

'His only reply to my inquiry, paraphrasing, was that he had absolutely no idea either,' Heatherly said. 

'Lue gets accused of things frequently that he has no actual involvement in or cognizance of. It's not required that he address each accusation, especially the absurd one, as this is. 

He claimed the photos were sold at auction, saying: 'I didn't buy the albums. I found the auctions and saved the images. 

'The person who listed them for sale was commenting about them with me in recent days regarding this.'

DailyMail.com contacted Elizondo and his lawyer Ivan Hannel last week for comment and has yet to receive a response. 

Elizondo, however, appeared on The Joe Rogan Experience in 2024, where he claimed the intelligence community and the Department of Defense have 'hundreds and hundreds of videos of UFOs.'

Rogan did not say Elizondo had shared the images, only mentioned that the former military intelligence official was somehow involved with them.

Along with the photos, Rogan presented a 1993 document claiming they depicted 'an alien hybrid child born to a 15-year-old girl, subject of an ET genetic experiment'

'Like you can't even zoom in on that,' Rogan said during the podcast, highlighting how blurry the images were. 'You can't even f****** focus. Look at these. 

'What is that? What's that? What is that dude? How about better pictures? These are the only pictures. Is this from the forties? Like, what's this picture from? What is this?'

Elizondo recently came under fire after sharing an image he said was a UFO.

While speaking in front of Congress on May 1, he held up what he said was a never-before-seen image of a cruise ship–sized craft he claimed was spotted hovering 21,000 feet in the air over the western US.

The image quickly flooded social media and was debunked in less than 24 hours. 

Users analyzed the photo and located the object, discovering it was actually a snapshot of two irrigation circles in rural Colorado.

Mick West, a British-American science writer and conspiracy theory investigator, wrote on X: 'This UFO photo shows two irrigation circles.

While speaking in front of Congress on May 1, Luis Elizondo held up what he said was an image of a cruise ship–sized craft he claimed was spotted hovering 21,000 feet in the air over the western US. It was quickly debunked. He has not commented on the recent photos

Another mistake involved a high-resolution image of a 'mothership' in 2022, which looked at first glance to be piercing through the clouds in Romania, but was later debunked as the window reflection of an indoor chandelier lamp 

'The roads are perfectly aligned, and the 'shadow' is in the wrong direction.'

West also noted that this isn't the first time Elizondo, who led the Pentagon's program investigating UFO sightings for 10 years, has made a major UFO blunder.

One glaring mistake involved a high-resolution image of a supposed 'mothership' in 2022, which appeared to be piercing through clouds over Romania. It was later debunked as the window reflection of an indoor chandelier lamp.

Others in the Reddit thread were less forgiving toward Elizondo, with many accusing him of spreading disinformation.

'Trying to clown all of us,' one user wrote. 'If any of the people coming forward are serious, they'll distance themselves from him.'

'Really brings into question what they are doing with disclosure. Starting to think that Elizondo and co. are just disinformation agents,' another added.

Despite the criticism, Elizondo doubled down on showing the photo at Thursday's hearing, saying on X Friday that it was an unvetted image he used to prove a point about civilian pilots lacking access to UFO-reporting resources.

'The purpose of me showing the photo was to illustrate the need for civilian and commercial pilots to have a central reporting mechanism to report potential anomalous sightings,' Elizondo posted on X Friday.

'In this case, the pilot who took the photo, using his own camera, did not have a way to report what he believed was anomalous,' he continued.

'The ones who are screaming about it (instead of discussing it respectfully as I hoped) missed the entire point of the photo and are not helping other pilots in the future from coming forward,' the whistleblower added.

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'Alien' skull of toddler is actually evidence of long-standing practice of head shaping

But the child's skull was found several feet away along with the rest of the skeleton, which was placed in the grave in the fetal position. Although the child had no grave goods, pottery fragments in the dirt suggested a date of death around 1100 to 1300.

The archaeologists did not see any trauma on the child's skeleton, but they noted the "pronounced cultural cranial alteration of the oblique tabular type," Melián said.

The practice of head shaping, or cranial modification, dates back thousands of years and has been found in all parts of the world. While some cultures used long stretches of cloth wrapped around a baby's head to create an elongated shape, others applied padding to the front or back of the baby's head to create a flatter shape. Nowadays, often for medical purposes, parents may employ a special helmet to ensure their baby has a round, symmetrical head.

Related:

•  'Cone-headed' skull from Iran was bashed in 6,200 years ago, but no one knows why

The child's skull found in San Fernando was likely shaped using padding to encourage the "oblique tabular" shape, which is flat or sloping at the front and back of the skull. This practice can cause the sides of the skull to widen and appear bulged.

Most scholars of ancient head shaping agree that the practice had few, if any, negative health consequences. Instead, experts say the practice was linked to social identity or to child-rearing preferences.

Currently, the Provincial Directorate of Anthropology has more than 100 skulls from ancient people in its skeletal collection, Melián said, and evidence of head shaping is extremely common.

"Approximately 90% of them have an erect or oblique tabular shape" to their skulls, Melián said.

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A startling new video has captured a clear image of what one witness believes was a giant UFO flying over California.

The April 27 video taken by an unnamed resident in Twentynine Palms followed what appears to be a brightly-lit hexagonal craft as it flew over the desert.

The UFO reportedly appeared out of nowhere around 10:27 pm PT while the witness was staying at a remote cabin.

'It seemed to move arbitrarily with no clear path. The movements were jerky and at varying speeds,' the witness wrote in their NUFORC report.

The large object also appeared to pulsate, giving off a bright light from its edges, as it moved through the sky for approximately 15 minutes.

'Tonight is the new moon - so it was definitely not the moon, and in any case was much brighter than even a full moon,' the witness continued.

'The striking thing was its great brightness and irregular shape and path,' they added.

The April 27 video taken by an unnamed resident in Twentynine Palms, California followed what appears to be a brightly-lit hexagonal craft as it flew over the desert

As the witness in Twentynine Palms followed the UFO, they added that the strange craft began to change shape - morphing from a six-sided object into a circle.

The person taking the cellphone video was the only witness at the cabin that night, so no one else was able to confirm their story.

However, they declared in their report to NUFORC that they hadn't taken any 'mind altering substances' during the sighting and had clear vision the entire time.

Officials at NUFORC tried to find an explanation for the sighting, noting that a SpaceX rocket launch had taken place that day, but that Falcon 9 took off from in Florida three hours earlier.

A previous rocket launch created a similar phenomenon over the UK in March.

That bizarre shape was caused by illuminated frozen fuel expelled from the SpaceX rocket, experts revealed.

The light blue spiral is formed when excess fuel that has been released from the fast-spinning rocket turns to ice.

It then reflects the sunlight in the upper atmosphere - giving it an otherworldly gleam - before turning to water vapor.

Experts say the bizarre shape seen in the UK in March was caused by illuminated frozen fuel expelled from a SpaceX rocket - and was not caused by aliens

The brand new sighting came just days before a US congressional hearing on UFOs and unidentified aerial phenomenon (UAPs).

The speakers, including Pentagon UFO project whistleblower Luis Elizondo, a former NASA administrator, and a retired Navy admiral called on the government to release what they know about these unexplained sightings.

They also called for an increase in funding for the detection of UFOs and UAPs, which several hearing speakers said was being suppressed by the US intelligence community.

Elizondo and others noted that witnesses like the one in Twentynine Palms have no centralized official channel in the US to speak to when it comes to reporting UFO sightings.

Therefore, countless alleged sightings either go unreported or are never investigated by the military or federal officials.

NUFORC and the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) are two of the most recognized civilian groups keeping track of sightings by civilians.

While these two organizations are not government-affiliated, they often share data with researchers or government entities when significant cases arise. 

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A strange jellyfish-like phenomenon was spotted streaking across the California sky Monday night.

While the unusual 'UFO' sighting baffled many locals from the Mojave desert to Los Angeles's South Bay, scientists say there were no extraterrestrials involved in creating the jellyfish - it was an Elon Musk rocket.

SpaceX's latest Falcon 9 rocket mission lifted off at 11:36pm ET Monday night from Vandenberg Space Force Station in California.

A few minutes into the flight, the rocket's exhaust interacted with the atmosphere, creating a visible cloud of condensed water vapor.

Since the launch took place right after sunset, around 8:36pm PT, the sun illuminated the crystalized exhaust plume, resulting in a spectacular sight for millions on the ground.

Californians posted images of the rocket soaring over the state on X, even as far south as Riverside, over 200 miles southeast of the Vandenberg launch site.

SpaceX's lead avionics systems engineer, Cameron Gable, captured the jellyfish phenomenon as the rocket traveled past Los Angeles County's South Bay.

The mission, dubbed Starlink 15-9, saw SpaceX launch its latest batch of Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit. 

Scientists said that the mysterious jellyfish seen over California Monday night was the exhaust trail of a Falcon 9 rocket

The Falcon 9 rocket's exhaust interacted with Earth's atmosphere, creating a visible cloud of condensed water vapor that became easier to see right after sunset

SpaceX's lead avionics engineer posted on X, showing the jellyfish effect as it passed over Los Angeles's South Bay

The jellyfish phenomenon, also known as a 'vapor cone' or 'shock collar,' occurs when the localized air pressure around the rocket drops, causing the air temperature to decrease and water vapor to condense into visible clouds.

Monday's giant jellyfish display started just a few minutes into the flight and was visible to anyone in the Southern California area.

It's not the first time a SpaceX rocket has produced the jellyfish effect. In October 2022, sky watchers caught another Falcon 9 rocket creating the same vapor trail during a similar mission to deploy new satellites.

Monday's Falcon 9 launch was the latest mission in SpaceX's ongoing efforts to expand its Starlink 'constellation,' aiming to enhance global internet coverage.

SpaceX has already conducted 75 launches in 2025, mainly for Starlink missions.

The mission also used a reusable first-stage engine, a hallmark of SpaceX's design philosophy aimed at reducing the cost of spaceflights.

SpaceX captured the moment on their live broadcast when the reusable engine safely landed back on Earth to be used again in future missions.

Monday's mission was the 200th from the company's Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg.

The SpaceX launch was part of the company's ongoing Starlink mission, which is deploying a network of new satellites that will boost global internet coverage

The jellyfish effect is a common occurrence during space rocket launches and can normally be seen from states hundreds of miles from the actual launch site

The remote-controlled reusable rocket engine made a perfect touchdown on SpaceX's droneship in the Pacific Ocean about eight minutes after launch, making it the 463rd engine returned to Earth.

While the jellyfish effect may seem like a bizarre UFO to the untrained eye, it's common among spaceflights.

Social media users regularly capture rockets giving off the jellyfish trail from hundreds of miles away.

One X user in Phoenix, Arizona, was able to spot a similar jellyfish during a June 2024 launch. That mission also involved a Falcon 9 launching from Vandenberg, which was over 500 miles away.

When a rocket launches, it expels a large amount of exhaust gases at high speeds. These gases, primarily composed of water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other rocket launch byproducts, expand rapidly as they exit the rocket's nozzle.

As the exhaust plume expands, it encounters cooler, denser air in Earth's upper atmosphere. This can cause the water vapor in the exhaust to condense into visible clouds, forming a balloon-like shape around the rocket.

The high speed of the rocket can also create shock waves, further shaping the exhaust into distinctive patterns, creating the jellyfish effect. 

SpaceX's Falcon 9 rockets, with their frequent launch schedule and reusable first stages, often trigger this effect due to their design and the typical launch times chosen for optimal visibility.

However, any rocket launch around the world can potentially give off a jellyfish trail, especially when the conditions are right for the exhaust to give off a dramatic display in the atmosphere.

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Archaeologists have uncovered ancient inscriptions inside Egypt’s Great Pyramid that they say confirm who built the monument 4,500 years ago. 

Ancient Greeks shared stories that the stunning monument was built by 100,000 slaves who worked in three-month shifts over 20 years.

But new discoveries inside the Great Pyramid have changed the narrative, showing it was constructed by paid, skilled laborers who worked continuously, taking one day off every 10 days.

Egyptologist Dr Zahi Hawass and his team recently explored a series of narrow chambers above the King’s Chamber using imaging technology, finding never-before-seen markings left by work gangs from the 13th-century BC. 

They also unearthed tombs south of the pyramid, the eternal resting places of skilled laborers, complete with statues of workers muscling stones and 21 hieroglyphic titles like 'overseer of the side of the pyramid' and 'craftsman.' 

'[The discoveries] confirm that the builders were not slaves. If they had been, they would never have been buried in the shadow of the pyramids,' Dr Hawass said during an episode of the Matt Beall Limitless podcast.

'Slaves would not have prepared their tombs for eternity, like kings and queens did, inside these tombs.'

The latest findings also shed light on how the pyramid was built, revealing that limestone from a quarry just 1,000 feet away was hauled to the site using a rubble-and-mud ramp, remnants of which were found southwest of the monument. 

Dr Hawass is now working on a new expedition, funded by Beall, which will send a robot into the Great Pyramid, marking the first excavation of the structure in modern history.

The Great Pyramid of Giza is the largest Egyptian pyramid and was constructed by Pharaoh Khufu, who ruled during the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom

 Egyptologist Dr Zahi Hawass shared the discoveries on the Matt Beall Limitless podcast this month

The Great Pyramid of Giza is the largest Egyptian pyramid and was constructed by Pharaoh Khufu, who ruled during the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom.

It is also one of three within the Giza plateau, the other two include the Pyramid of Khafre and the Pyramid of Menkaure, as well as the Great Sphinx.

All shrouded in mystery due to their unclear construction methods, precise astronomical alignment and still-debated purpose. 

Inscriptions were previously found inside the Great Pyramid during the 19th century, sparking debate that the writings were forged hundreds of years after it was built.

'There was some debate on whether or not that could be a forgery, but now you're saying that you've discovered three more cartes within the King's Chamber,' Beall asked Dr Hawass.

The archaeologist then showed images never shared with the public, highlighting the names drawn onto the rock.

'They were found in chambers that are difficult and dangerous to access, and they use writing styles that only trained Egyptologists can accurately interpret,' said Dr Hawass.

'It’s nearly impossible that someone in recent times could have forged something like this. You must climb about 45 feet and crawl through tight spaces to even reach those chambers.'

Egyptologist Dr Zahi Hawass and his team recently explored a series of narrow chambers above the King’s Chamber using imaging technology, finding never-before-seen markings left by work gangs from the 13th-century BC

Hawass's team also unearthed tombs south of the pyramid, the eternal resting places of skilled laborers

The archaeologist admitted that some European visitors managed to enter and left their names scratched into the stone in the late 18th and 19th centuries. 

'But the inscriptions we found are clearly much older, original graffiti from ancient Egyptian workers,' Dr Hawass added.

Alongside these inscriptions, the second major discovery was the tombs of the pyramid builders. 

Dr Hawass and his team found tools inside the tombs, such as flint tools and pounding stones that would have been used in the Great Pyramid's construction. 

'The base of the Great Pyramid is made from solid bedrock, carved 28 feet deep into the ground,' he said.

'This means that after marking the square base, the builders cut down into all four sides of the rock until they created a level platform of solid stone, no blocks, just bedrock. 

'You can still see this today on the south side of Khufu’s pyramid.'

He continued to explain that the workers operated in teams, some cut the stones, others shaped them and the rest transported the material using wooden sleds pulled over the sand.'

He added that the rocks were then moved using ramps, which the archaeologist said he found evidence of.

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Hawass's team also unearthed tombs south of the pyramid, the eternal resting places of skilled laborers, complete with statues of workers muscling stones

'The ramp had to come from the southwest corner of the pyramid and connect to the quarry,' said Dr Hawass,

'We excavated this area, and in the site labeled C2, we found remnants of the ramp, stone rubble mixed with sand and mud. When the ramp was dismantled, they didn’t remove every trace, and what was left behind is what we uncovered.'

Dr Hawass' colleague, Mark Lehner, has been excavating a site just east of the pyramid, uncovering what they are calling 'the worker's city.'

The team has uncovered facilities used for sorting salted fish, a large bakery for bread, barracks and the settlement where the laborers lived.

'There’s a popular myth that the workers ate only garlic, onions, and bread, but we found thousands of animal bones at the site,' Dr Hawass said.

'An expert from the University of Chicago analyzed them and found that the Egyptians slaughtered 11 cows and 33 goats every day to feed the laborers.

'This diet was enough to support around 10,000 workers per day.' 

The conversation switched to the upcoming exploration of the Big Void, which Dr Hawass is leading.

'I am funding the exploration of the Big Void,' Beall said, adding that he is helping the team build the robot for the mission.

The podcaster explained that they were working on a robot, no larger than a centimeter, which will travel through a tiny hole drilled into the side of the Great Pyramid.

The Big Void, discovered in 2017, stretches for at least 100 feet above the Grand Gallery, an ascending corridor that links the Queen’s chamber to the King’s in the heart of the pyramid.

Dr Hawass believes he will locate the lost tomb of Khufu inside the void. 

'I think it's unlikely that it's a tomb, just because there's never been a tomb,' Beall said.

'There's never been a Pharaoh discovered in any of these in any of the main pyramids ever.' 

The excavation is slated for around January or February next year. 

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A mysterious interstellar object has been caught on camera for the first time as it hurtles through the solar system.

First spotted by NASA on July 1, scientists from around the world have now confirmed that this unexpected visitor has travelled through space from a distant star. 

Officially titled 3I/ATLAS, the rare interloper is 12 miles (20km) long and hurtling towards the sun at 135,000 miles per hour. 

Now, using a powerful telescope in Hawaii, the European Space Agency (ESA) has captured the first video of 3I/ATLAS as it makes its journey through space.

As the short video shows, the object is extremely bright, which means it is either many times larger than any other interstellar object or has another source of illumination. 

Most experts agree that this extra illumination is caused by the fact that 3I/ATLAS is an active comet, producing a glowing 'coma' of ice and gas as it approaches the sun.

However, one Harvard professor claims that this might not be explained by natural means.

Professor Avi Loeb, a physicist at Harvard University, told MailOnline: 'If it is not a comet, then its large brightness would be a big surprise and potentially signal a non-natural origin, perhaps from artificial light.'

The European Space Agency has captured the first video of the interstellar object, 3I/ATLAS, currently hurtling through our solar system 

NASA predicts that 3I/ATLAS will reach its closest point to the sun on October 30, at a distance of 130 million miles (210 million km) - passing just within the orbit of Mars

3I/ATLAS was detected as a faint speck of light by NASA's Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) telescope.

Since then, professional and amateur astronomers around the world have scrambled to gather more data.

Scientists quickly combed older data to find observations of the object that had previously been missed, in a process called precovery. 

Combining these with hundreds of new observations, scientists were able to officially confirm that 3I/ATLAS was an interstellar object. 

Currently 420 million miles (670 million kilometres) away from Earth, 3I/ATLAS's trajectory and incredible speed meant it must be passing through our solar system after being ejected by its own star.

NASA predicts that it will reach its closest point to the sun on October 30, at a distance of 130 million miles (210 million km) - passing just within the orbit of Mars.

Thankfully, the object poses no threat to Earth and will pass harmlessly at around 150 million miles (240 million km) away at its closest point.

This is only the third time that scientists have managed to spot an interstellar object passing through the solar system.

Harvard physicist Avi Loeb told MailOnline that the object's intense brightness could be the result of artificial lights, indicating that it is an alien craft 

This graph shows the passage of the interstellar object as seen from Earth as it travels from the Sagittarius constellation through the area of the sky containing Virgo  

The first was 'Oumuamua in 2017, followed by Borisov in 2019.

When 'Oumuamua was first detected, certain irregularities in its spin and velocity prompted Professor Loeb and his co-author, Dr Shmuel Bialy, to suggest that it could be alien in origin.

Professor Loeb says: ''Oumuamua exhibited a large non-gravitational acceleration which was anomalous given its lack of evaporation.'

Similarly, Professor Loeb now suggests that 3I/ATLAS could be a similar type of alien craft. 

While experts say there is no evidence to support this idea, some researchers say we can't rule out the possibility just yet.

Professor Michael Garrett, Director of Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, told MailOnline: 'More observations are definitely needed.'

Asked whether the object could be an alien craft, Professor Garret responded: 'Who knows - it could be - that’s why it will be important to make as many different measurements as possible to test all hypotheses.'

'It’s unlikely that it is, but that doesn’t mean to say we shouldn’t check. We don’t know much about these interstellar objects, so we learn more each time we encounter one.'

In 2017, an interstellar object named Oumuamua passed through the solar system, and while most scientists believe it was a natural phenomenon, Harvard physicist Avi Loeb famously argued it may have been of alien origin

NASA and ESA have now confirmed that 3I/ATLAS is a comet due to the presence of a cloud of dust and gases called a coma. These are produced when the ice in a comet is warmed by the light of a nearby star like the sun 

However, Professor Garret adds that there is currently no evidence the object is alien in nature, and it is more likely to be 'an icy body that has escaped from another planetary system and wandered by the solar system by chance'.

Currently, the overwhelming majority of evidence points to the fact that 3I/ATLAS is a comet, a small body made up of frozen gases and ice.

This is because astronomers have spotted a nebulous envelope of gas and dust known as a coma surrounding the object as it is heated by the sun. 

Based on these observations, both NASA and ESA are now confident enough to confirm that 3I/ATLAS is an interstellar comet. 

This also explains why 3I/ATLAS is so bright, since the material in the coma reflects the sun's light far more than rock or ice alone.  

Dr Mark Norris, an astronomer from the University of Central Lancashire, told MailOnline: 'If there's a coma, it by definition is a comet, because this means that it is outgassing.

'This thing is still quite far from the sun, so you can expect, therefore, as it gets closer, you should get a bigger cloud of material; and that should become clear as we get more observations going forward.' 

However, by the time the comet reaches its closest point to the Earth, it will be hidden behind the sun, so astronomers will need to wait until it reemerges in December to make the best observations. 

Alien hunters at SETI – the Search for Extra-terrestrial Intelligence based at Berkeley University, California said there was a possibility the rock was ‘an alien artefact’.

But scientists from Queen’s University Belfast took a good look at the object and said it appears to be an asteroid, or ‘planetesimal’ as originally thought. 

Researchers believe the cigar-shaped asteroid had a 'violent past', after looking at the light bouncing off its surface. 

They aren't exactly sure when the violent collision took place, but they believe the lonely asteroid's tumbling will continue for at least a billion years.

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Scientists discover microplastics in SEMEN and female reproductive fluid – and warn they could spark an infertility crisis

• READ MORE: Terrifying images reveal what microplastics can do to your body 

By XANTHA LEATHAM, EXECUTIVE SCIENCE EDITOR

From the depths of The Mariana Trench to the summit of Everest, microplastics can now be found almost everywhere on Earth.

Now, it turns out even our most intimate moments can't escape their blight.

Scientists have discovered microplastics are 'common' in both male and female reproductive fluids.

And they warned of the potential implications for reproduction, as egg and sperm quality could be impaired.

The team examined follicular fluid – found within the ovaries - from 29 women and the seminal fluid, found within semen, from 22 men.

Analysis revealed a range of commonly-used microplastics were present in more than half of the samples.

This included microplastics linked to non-stick coatings, polystyrene, plastic containers, wool, insulation and cushioning materials. 

Lead researcher Dr Emilio Gomez-Sanchez, from the University of Murcia, said: 'Previous studies had already shown that microplastics can be found in various human organs.

While microplastics are much smaller than this, measuring under 5mm in size, this image shows how plastic particles can break down in the environment (stock image)

Experts have found microplastic particles in both male and female reproductive fluids - and it could have an impact on egg and sperm quality (stock image)

'As a result, we weren't entirely surprised to find microplastics in fluids of the human reproductive system, but we were struck by how common they were – found in 69 per cent of the women and 55 per cent of the men we studied.'

Microplastics are defined as plastic particles under 5mm in size, and there is evidence that they pose a threat to environmental and public health.

While this research did not directly assess how microplastics affect fertility, their detection highlights the need to explore possible implications for human reproductive health, the researchers warned.

'What we know from animal studies is that in the tissues where microplastics accumulate, they can induce inflammation, free radical formation, DNA damage, cellular senescence, and endocrine disruptions,' Dr Gomez-Sanchez added.

'It's possible they could impair egg or sperm quality in humans, but we don't yet have enough evidence to confirm that.'

The scientists said the microplastics probably enter the body through ingestion, inhalation and contact with the skin.

From there they enter the bloodstream, which then distributes them throughout the body – including to the reproductive organs.

They plan to carry out further studies to explore the potential relationship between the presence of microplastics and egg and sperm quality.

Tiny bits of microplastic, seen here as the black dots, have also been previously found in semen samples as part of a Chinese trial

The findings, published in the journal Human Reproduction, were presented at the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE).

Commenting on the study Dr Carlos Calhaz-Jorge, Immediate Past Chair of ESHRE, said: 'Environmental factors influencing reproduction are certainly a reality, although not easy to measure objectively.

'The authors of this study found microplastics in over two-thirds of follicular fluids and more than 50 per cent of semen fluids from the studied patients.

'Although the significance of these findings is not yet clear, they should be considered an additional argument in favour of avoiding the generalised use of plastics in our daily lives.'

Previous studies have detected microplastics in human breast milk, blood and even brain tissue.

And separate research has found high levels in everyday items such as tea bags, baby bottles and chopping boards.

Some scientists have urged caution when interpreting the findings of the new study. 

Dr Stephanie Wright, Associate Professor in Environmental Toxicology at Imperial College London, said: 'Without information on the sizes of the microplastic particles observed, it is challenging to interpret how meaningful this data is. 

Scientists from Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona have previously warned that a single tea bag can release billions of dangerous microplastics into your body

'There is a high potential for samples to become contaminated with microplastic throughout the sampling, laboratory processing, and analysis procedures. 

'It is not a surprise that microplastics have been found – they are everywhere, even in the lab – but the data provided do not support that they are there as a result of human exposure as opposed to methodological artefact and must be interpreted with caution at this early stage.'

Fay Couceiro, Professor of Environmental Pollution and Head of the Microplastics Research Group at the University of Portsmouth, said: 'The study is very interesting and considering the global reduction in fertility rates, looking at possible causes is very topical and timely. 

'As the authors state, finding microplastics is not that surprising as we have found them in lots of other areas of our bodies. 

'Presence is also not the same as impact and the authors are clear that while they have found microplastics in the reproductive fluids of both men and women, we still don't know how they are affecting us.'

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China's first three-on-three robot football tournament kicked off in Beijing last Sunday.

But the quality of play on show suggests that a robot won't be claiming the Ballon d'Or any time soon.

As the AI-controlled bots shuffled slowly across the turf, they bumped into each other, toppled over, and only occasionally even kicked the ball. 

By the time the final whistle blew, two bots had to be stretchered off the pitch after taking falls that would earn most human players a yellow card for diving. 

Cheng Hao, founder of Booster Robotics, which supplied the robots for the tournament, told the Global Times that the robots currently have the skills of five-to six-year-old children. 

However, Mr Hao believes that the robots' abilities will grow 'exponentially' and will soon be 'surpassing youth-level teams and eventually challenging adult teams'. 

In the future, Mr Hao even says that humans could play against robots in specially arranged matches.

However, with the robots currently struggling to avoid collisions, more will need to be done to make the bots safe for humans to play with. 

China's first three-on-three football tournament kicked off in Beijing last weekend, but the quality of play wasn't quite at professional levels 

By the time the final whistle blew, two bots had to be stretchered off the pitch 

The match took place as part of the ROBO league football tournament in Beijing, a test game ahead of China's upcoming 2025 World Humanoid Games. 

Four teams of engineers were each provided with robots and tasked with building the AI strategies which control everything from passing and shooting to getting up after a fall. 

Ultimately, THU Robotics from Tsinghua University defeated the Mountain Sea from China Agricultural University team five goals to three to win the championship.

However, despite impressive advancements in robotics, the matches showed that robotics still has a long way to go.

The robots struggle with what engineers call 'dynamic obstacle avoidance', which means they tend to run into other moving players despite moving only one metre per second. 

This was such an issue that the tournament's organisers had to use a specially made version of football's rules which allows more 'non-malicious collisions'. 

Likewise, although the robots were sometimes able to stand back up, human assistants sometimes had to step in and set them back on their feet. 

At one point in the match, the referee even had to hold back two robots as they blindly trampled a fallen teammate. 

The robots struggle with 'dynamic obstacle avoidance', meaning they often crash into other players despite moving slowly 

The referee had to step in and prevent the robots from trampling each other during several points of the game 

These kinds of difficult scenarios are exactly why robotics researchers are so interested in using sports as testbeds for their technology.

Sports involve multiple moving objects, rapidly changing situations and demand levels of teamwork and coordination that have long surpassed the capabilities of robots.

Mr Cheng told the Global Times: 'We chose the football scenario for robot competition primarily for two reasons: first, to encourage students to apply their algorithmic skills to real-world robotics; second, to showcase the robots' ability to walk autonomously and stably, withstand collisions, and demonstrate higher levels of intelligence and safety.'

Similarly, Google's DeepMind has used football to help test its learning algorithms, demonstrating miniature football-playing robots in 2023.

China is currently pushing forward with its efforts to produce AI-powered humanoid robots, and is often using sports to show off their potential.

This follows a recent kickboxing match between robots developed by Unitree Robotics as part of the China Media Group World Robot Competition.

Similarly, 21 robots developed by Chinese manufacturers competed in the Yizhuang half marathon alongside thousands of humans. 

The winner, Tiangong Ultra, finished the race in two hours, 40 minutes and 42 seconds, but some robots struggled to complete the race.

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