UFO over Texas?
Published on Jan 16, 2008 at 6:20 pm.
31 Comments.
Filed under skywatching.
Several days ago, several people near Stephenville, Texas, apparently saw something in the sky that they did not recognize. For those who have not heard of Stephenville (and I expect that is almost everyone not from around these parts), it is a town SW of Fort Worth. With a population of about 17,000 people, Stephenville is the largest town in its county (a county whose population of cattle significantly outnumbers the humans). It is the county seat, home to Tarleton State University, and is big enough to even have a Walmart. I’ve been to Stephenville, so I know the area and the town. There is a statue of a cow in front of the county courthouse. My impressions of the place make me not at all surprised that the local people, particularly if they’ve had a drink or two, may see something in the sky that they don’t immediately recognize. I am a little surprised that the news made such big billing in the local newspapers, but even more surprised that it made national news. People saw something that they are calling a UFO in the sky, so naturally others ask Astroprof what my take on this news may be.
Well, first of all, let me point out that a UFO is an Unidentified Flying Object. That is all that it is. The key word here is Unidentified. I am perfectly willing to accept that people may look up and see something that they don’t recognize. I’ve done that. I have looked up and been caught by surprise by an aircraft that was behaving abnormally, or was of a significantly different shape, size, and flight path from what I normally see. And, I know of people the who have mistaken planet Venus for a UFO. But, the real key here is the unidentified part. What gets me is the speculation that this is an otherworldly visitor. People, it is unidentfied. Quite a number of years ago, I was at an event where someone asked Carl Sagan about his opinion of the UFO visitors from outer space that were being held under guard by the Air Force. He was a pioneer in exobiology and SETI (the Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence). Sagan replied that there aren’t many other people on Earth who would love for their to be proof of extraterrestrial visitors, but that we need to be scientific about these claims. Seeing something in the sky and saying something like, “Wow. I don’t know what that was, so it must have been a visitor from outer space!” is a rather wild leap. How can you claim not to know what it was, and that lack of knowledge be what leads you to believe that you know what it was???
Occam’s Razor in applicable in this situation. Put simply, Occam’s Razor is a principle that has had much empirical success in science. It states that if two competing theories both explain a phenomenon, then most likely the simplest of the two theories is the correct one. So, as Sagan explained, if you see something unknown in the sky, all you can say for certain is that it is unknown. While it might be an alien spaceship, it is far more likely to be a conventional aircraft acting unconventionally, or perhaps even an unconventional aircraft, or even a natural phenomenon. Most people today don’t look at the sky very carefully, so there are all sorts of things up there that are very normal, naturally occurring events that can look pretty spectacular.
But, what about all the people who saw the whatever-it-was? Eyewitness reports are not to be trusted, particularly in the case where people are caught by surprise. In 1990, Avianca Flight 052 crashed on Long Island. Plenty of eyewitness reports said that the aircraft exploded in mid-air and that it was on fire as it plummeted to Earth, despite the fact that photographs of the wreckage and the “black boxes” on the aircraft told a different story. The aircraft ran out of fuel. There was no fire. It did hit the ground intact. People often see what they expect to see. And, after the fact, people who did not see anything at all will think that they saw something. So, when reports of UFOs start coming in, then all of a sudden a lot of people think that they saw the UFO.
So, let’s look at the eyewitness reports. They claim that the Stephenville UFO was lit up, and it was about 300 to 400 feet above the ground, was about a mile long, and about half a mile wide. Huh? So, you are saying that something like that flew over a city of 17,000 people, and only 30 people saw it?  Only 30 people on the ground saw it? No pilots saw it? It did not show up on radar? It was a half mile wide, moving very fast, and did not displace any air? Such a body should have at the least created hurricane force winds doing massive damage as it flew overhead very quickly at that altitude. Oh, and let us not even think about the physics required to make something that big fly. Yeah, someone will tell me that we don’t know all the technological advancements that aliens might make. True, enough. But, even new alien technologies will still have to obey the laws of physics: Newton’s Laws, conservation of energy, conservation of momentum, etc.
So, what was this sighting, if not an alien spacecraft? Well, like I said, it is unidentified, so there is no way to really be sure. A spokesman with the 301st Fighter Wing. based in Fort Worth, apparently thinks that it may have been an optical illusion created by commercial aircraft flying in an odd pattern. But, there are plenty of other hypotheses. My girlfriend and I were heading back from eating out a few days ago, and I saw a blimp. The Dallas Cowboys were playing an NFL playoff game this past weekend, and there was a blimp flying around advertising a satellite TV company. Blimps would seldom fly past Stephenville. If it did, then it may catch people by surprise. It would be interesting to see what the flight path of the blimps in the area may have been on the day in question. But, I am not going to say it was a blimp. Remember, it is an unidentified object. But, I would think it far more likely to be a blimp that surprised some folks rather than a mile long visitor from space.
-Astroprof
Seeking Solace on January 17, 2008 at 7:24 am: 1
I was waiting to hear you take on this.
New alien technology has to obey the “laws of physics…” Funny, but very true!!!!
Mike on January 17, 2008 at 12:43 pm: 2
I guess you can “assume” that our mainstream scientists have a complete understanding of the laws of Physics, but even “your guy” Carl Sagan said “In physics, as in much of all science, there are no permanent truths; there is a set of approximations, getting closer and closer, and people must always be ready to revise what has been in the past thought to be the absolute gospel truth.”
- Carl Sagan -
Face it Prof, although much of physics has been learned in the last century, on a universal scale, our so-called geniuses are merely toddlers just learning to utter their first words. Simply put, science is still at the beginning of the learning “curve” and therefore is not a reliable authority on things they know nothing about, or to which they have not even devoted serious study and investigation.
The scientific method for determining whether something is a fact or not is actually flawed, for 2 reasons: 1) it requires the ability of scientists to be able to reproduce the same results, even if the phenomenon does not accommodate that “requirement”. And 2) It presumes that “their” methodology is the only reliable method. And mainstream science is a bit on the hypocrtical side of this equation to boot, since many scientific conclusions are merely based on observation of a phenomenon in its own natural setting….yet they postulate that UFO’s can NOT be piloted vehicles from elsewhere, since they do not have one to poke and prod in their laboratories….(Which is actually a pretty good or even probable rationale for visitors choosing NOT to come shake our hands…..maybe they don’t wish to submit to autopsy analysis merely to convince a primitive group of self-important, self-destructive liars.)
And a SWAG (scientific wild ass guess) regarding the probability of a blimp or reflection off of an airplane is,frankly, far less reliable than actual eyewitness reports….some of which lasted 5 minutes while this UFO “hovered” stationary, pretty close to the ground. One fella even reported it being close enough to the ground (300) feet and that he looked at it through his telescopic rifle scope. Seems that if it were an airplane, he could have read the N number on that craft….yet you SWAG it as a blimp? It takes a certain kind of arrogance to assume that folks in Texas can’t tell a blimp from a DC-10 from a rough approximation of a 1 mile long “unknown” metallic craft. But if that kind of rank “armchair” speculation was valid at all, why are there not massive reports of UFO’s when the blimps fly over every MNF game, or every time the sun is setting on a clear day near airports? That logic defies Occam’s Razor, and your citation of same certainly does not lend support to YOUR swag.
You stated “Most people today don’t look at the sky very carefully”,…to which I agree. And this fact could very well explain why only a small percentage of folks in a community of 17,000 have seen/reported this particular UFO. Your comments contradict your incredulous conclusion Prof~
No doubt one should consider all possibilities, but the OR principle also includes the implicit process of elimination, prior to determining which possibility is simplest and therefore most likely.
I sincerely hope you never sit on a jury where eyewitnesses by the score saw the guy kill someone, because your logic would mandate that no one saw what they saw, and you would be the putz that put a killer back on the street…(fair game, since you lump all people into the category of having untrustworthy eyes. Or is that just in farm communities?)
Finally, there are different levels of “unidentified”, which you conveniently choose to disregard. For example, if 30 people saw a hit and run accident from a few hundred feet away, all could reliably be deemed to have seen a “car” hit and run. But maybe others could identify it as a red, 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee with a busted tail light. So I for oneput a lot of credibility in a trained pilot sighting and comment that it “absolutely wasn’t from around these parts”, even if he can’t tell me the make, model and point of origin of the vehicle.
scientists can be so arrogant to assume that they, and their narrow-minded view of things that do not fit their belief system, renders them the final authority. They are just a small part of society, and have no more authority on the truth than, for example, a particular branch of religion. And a fact is a fact if it is true, regardless of any consenus of “accepted fact”, as determined by men of “science”.
Astroprof’s Page » Unidentified Flying Sundog on January 18, 2008 at 11:27 am: 3
[…] Two days ago, I wrote about an UFO sighting over Stephenville, TX, that has been getting a lot of press attention. Well, the local news paper has published a photograph purportedly of the UFO. It is an excellent photograph of a parhelion! Here is the photograph, courtesy of Sean Kiel, a truck driver who took it with his cell phone: […]
BILL on January 20, 2008 at 11:15 am: 4
If all these people saw this “UFO” why are there not more/any pictures? Many of the observers must have had cameras or cell phones with cameras.
Marcianitos Verdes » Ovnis sobre Stephenville (7) on January 20, 2008 at 7:23 pm: 5
[…] Hace dos dÃas, escribà acerca de un avistamiento de ovnis sobre Stephenville, TX, que ha tenido mucha atención de la prensa. Pues bien, el periódico local, The Fort Worth Star Telegram, ha publicado una fotografÃa del supuesto ovni. ¡Es una excelente fotografÃa de un parhelio! Aquà está la fotografÃa, cortesÃa de Sean Kiel, un camionero que la tomó con su teléfono celular: […]
Avinash Machado on January 21, 2008 at 8:23 am: 6
Way back in 1897 the government was conducting test flights of experimental
dirigibles. Many times they were seen cruising over Texas and were known as “Mystery Airships”. Perhaps something similar happened this time also.
Strange sights in Stephenville « Archaeoastronomy on January 22, 2008 at 3:01 am: 7
[…] If you haven’t been following the press reports, there’s been a UFO flap in Stephenville. The best write-up of it I’ve seen is by Astroprof, who’s put up a couple of entries on it. He’s of the opinion that first it’s unidentified. He also argues that the witness statements don’t add up. For instance can anyone see the problem of a UFO one mile long, half a mile wide, flying just a few hundred yards above a town of 17,000 people and only 30 people noticing? I think there’s a few difficulties in saying that people saw a UFO like that. At the same time that doesn’t mean that the people who did see something were delusional or lying. […]
Universe Today » Astrosphere for January 22, 2008 on January 22, 2008 at 1:45 pm: 8
[…] Have there been UFOs over Texas? I was just in Texas, and would have loved to see UFOs. Anyway, back to the question… no. No aliens. Astroprof gives a much more detailed answer. […]
Hans-Peter Dollhopf on January 23, 2008 at 3:15 am: 9
The author is not funny but cynical. He writes:
“There is a statue of a cow in front of the county courthouse. My impressions of the place make me not at all surprised that the local people, particularly if they’ve had a drink or two, may see something in the sky that they don’t immediately recognize.”
Wow! After reading this I knew more about the author than about the inhabitants of Stephenville.
Sure that people have stereotypes about UFOs. But I am more concerned about the stereotypes of the author.
Hans-Peter Dollhopf, Germany
Greg on January 23, 2008 at 3:54 am: 10
I would love to see an alien spaceship, but sadly I never have, Despite scanning the sky thousands of times in my lifetime I can honestly say that I have never even experienced signting a UFO. I have seen thousands of things that I could identify. Perhaps it is my accursed better than 20-20 vision that is responsible.
Honestly the whole concept of UFOs being aliens is completely insane. Why would incredibly intelligent beings from another dimension, galaxy, or solar system travel all this way to our planet, fly around in our skies and not even bother to try to communicate with us. For that matter they do not even do anything that makes one iota of difference to anybody’s daily lives except perhaps being seen. Even if for some they are completely indifferent to the “primitive Earthling barbarians” they absolutely do not matter to us in any way and nobody should care about them since they do not bother to interact with us. If you are odd enough to believe these sightings actually represent alien intelligence, then until one of them leaves some kind of intelligible message for us you absoultely should not care about them.
Greg on January 23, 2008 at 4:20 am: 11
Another thought I wanted to share about why the whle notion of UFOs representing alien intelligence makes no logical sense. Now if I was an alien in a UFO, why would I try to comunicate with those primitive barbarians? The reason is simple, they have nuclear tipped missiles on their jet planes. If I was anintelligent alien in a UFO, it would be imperative to let the “barbarians” know that I am not any kind of threat to them in case they decided to scramble a few fighter jets armed with nukes and try to shoot me out of the sky while flying in from different approach vectors due to mass hysteria induced by their stupidity. The fact that they have not done this means that they are not intelligent at all and to me is an unresolvable paradox. You would have to be excessively paranoid about world governments to get around the logic of this argument.
jerry on January 23, 2008 at 8:21 am: 12
Hey Mike,
I think you are mistaken on the eye witness thing. It has been proven time and time again. Not with just anecdotal stories, but with testing that eyewitnesses are unreliable. Just look at the number of “criminals” released after DNA testing proved that the “eyewitness” was wrong.
Nor do I believe we can just dismiss this story. And I do take exception to the comment about the cow statue. And our knowledge of physics is increasing everyday, but we have no way of knowing what we do not know.
So in the end all we are left with is: the object is unidentified.
Nicolas on January 23, 2008 at 8:56 am: 13
You must also question a man who calls himself “prof” when grade-school English-speaking children have better grammar skills. A “prof” who cannot even stick to the point, and has to resort to petty stereotypes. What a waste of time. Gross.
Peter Canuck on January 23, 2008 at 9:05 am: 14
Yes, the writer/Scientist is biased, prejudiced and full of himself. No, it probably isn’t an alien spaceship. Yes, eyewitnesses can report fabrications or fallacies. No, it is very difficult to mistake an unknown skycraft for a blimp or several planes flying in formation.
And the one that really gets me…”I know of people the [sic] who have mistaken planet Venus for a UFO” Planet Venus ALWAYS looks like a bright star. It doesn’t scoot, doesn’t fly in formation, doesn’t turn on and off, doesn’t veer off toward the north and DOESN’T look like a spaceship, especially a mile long! No wonder “Astroprof” doesn’t sign his own people-are-too-stupid-to-recognize-a-weather-balloon doublespeak spin. He’s an arrogant prat.
Astroprof on January 23, 2008 at 9:12 am: 15
I do not mean to stereotype everyone from rural areas as ignorant. I know a lot of people who live in such areas who are quite educated and on the ball. My uncle and grandfather were both ranchers, and they were quite well educated (my grandfather self educated, and my uncle had formal education). However, many of the people in this particular community have never been more than a few miles from home, and have little interest in what occurs outside of their own part of the world.
And, I agree that we don’t really know what people saw, but some things are clear. A mile long object moving quickly 300 feet off of the ground would simply displace too much air. This thing could not go unnoticed by the majority of the town as buildings were blown down by the displaced air.
Also, MANY people do not pay attention to what they see in the sky. So, a great many naturally occurring phenomena are seen as UFOs. A case in point is some years back when several people called the college, local TV stations, and the police to report the planet Venus as a “bright UFO hovering over Fort Worth.” Back a few decades ago, an Air Force fighter pilot chased an UFO that turned out to be Venus.
Besides, as I pointed out in my later posting, the local paper published a photograph purported to be this Stephenville UFO, only it turns out that the photograph was actually of a common sundog (another of which I blogged about some weeks ago).
What I have the most issue with, though, is the presumption that since some folk saw something in the sky that they didn’t recognize, then it must be a spaceship from beyond Earth.
Peter Canuck on January 23, 2008 at 9:18 am: 16
Ok, so I shouldn’t have given in to my feelings on the subject and called the “scientist” a name. He’s obviously writing for effect as opposed to objectivity. Hopefully, that’s not the way he conducts his scientific enquiries.
Peter Canuck on January 23, 2008 at 9:31 am: 17
I never understand this stuff. How does a pilot chase a star? How does a sundog, which resembles a piece of rainbow look like a metallic object 300 feet away? It’s because those are the OFFICIAL conclusions! Officials like to have the last word. They make NO sense but the layman is placated and the populace goes back to its mundane business. That’s why conspiracy theorist cults get so popular, because people are treated as mindless sheep and the OFFICIAL conclusions make less sense than the original offbeat ideas.
kbutler on January 23, 2008 at 9:49 am: 18
I see one cynic and a few open minds. Too bad this is like oil and water… they will not mix.
What I would hope to see would be a sceptical investigator without ANY pro or con misconceptions and prejudice.
No, wait a minute. That’s why the UFO’s only do a quick flyby. They’re looking for the same thing.
Seymour Hoover on January 23, 2008 at 11:27 am: 19
“Rockets will not fly in the Vacuum of outer Space because there will be Nothing for the exaust particles to push against.. ” - The New York Times Science Editor on Robert Goddard’s Hopes to go to the Moon in a Rocket Ship. That Science Editor didn’t know that:
d(momentum)/dt = d(MxV)/dt =
VdM/t + MdV/dt = E(Forces).
Astroprof is entitled to his opinion also but the Science of today or yesterday fluctuates with time …if time exists at all. Today Cosmologists talk about Multiple Universes and Worm Holes ..
String Theory , for which GRANTED there is no physical proof as yet , makes room for 11 dimensions .. things popping in and out of our dimension .. Is anyone laughing yet ? and UFO’S ? .. any Super Intelligent Human Skeptic available for comment ?
After all birds can fly … Sure , but Airplanes ?..Come on get real… What have you been sniffing or drinking?
Astroprof’s Page » The Stephenville, Texas, UFO on January 23, 2008 at 6:31 pm: 20
[…] Last week, I posted about the UFO seen near Stephenville, TX. Then, a number of days later, a photograph surfaced and was prominently displayed in the local Dallas / Fort Worth area media purported to be a picture taken of the UFO by a trucker’s cell phone. I wrote about that, too. The photograph may have been unidentified to the trucker, but it was a very common weather phenomenon called a sun dog, or parhelion. Interestingly, a number of people claimed that the whole sun dog phenomenon was simply made up to cover up the UFO, despite the fact that I wrote about sun dogs months ago, and there are plenty of photographs and explanations around the internet and in books dating back decades. What gets me is that so many people are convinced that if someone sees something in the sky that they don’t recognize, then that object MUST be a spacecraft from beyond Earth. But, what really surprised me is the rather vehement responses that I got on my posting. Many people who disagreed with me (most of whom did not talk to anyone in the area, were not in the area to see what the skies looked like, and whose only source of information was news coverage, which really stunk) blasted me for being skeptical of the interpretation being made of what the handful of witnesses saw. I was surprised by the childish response of some people: posting obscenities, hate messages, and threats (By the way, dim wits, my software recorded the IP addresses of the computers that you were posting threats from, should I care to submit these threats to law enforcement officials.). I deleted the obscene comments, the really hateful ones, and the threats (though I kept copies of those in case those people continue to hound me or escalate matters beyond threats). […]
Kevin M. on January 23, 2008 at 8:42 pm: 21
It is strange that no one got a single picture.
But a large, very wide, triangular, hovering, slowly-moving craft surrounded by fighter jets, always around an airbase, is a well known “black” project which has been being developed by the US for decades. These are high-altitude spy balloons, which float in the stratosphere above cities. See cover stories on them, with full-color depictions, in Popular Mechanics and Popular Communications magazines. The strange thing is that they keep being sighted all over, fitting known descriptions very well, yet the wider public remains clueless. Also strange is why they keep allowing them to be seen, though it’s pretty hard to hide a mile-wide craft. These craft probably have to be very wide to stay afloat in the stratosphere. The wider they are, the higher presumably they can float. They may well be trying to push the width to these amazing limits, though at any distance, the scale might be very misleading to the eye. Unidentified? Perhaps for some. Alien craft? No, good old US ingenuity, and already 30 or 40 years old.
Kevin M. on January 23, 2008 at 8:58 pm: 22
The only explanation for their regular low altitude sightings, other than during “take-off and landing”, must be that their extreme size and width must make them very hard to control in lateral and up and downdrafts of pressure of local weather patterns. So the lesson that the developers are probably learning is that it is relatively easy to make a balloon craft extremely light and wide, but very difficult then to control it from blowing wherever the wind takes it, especially while it is close to the surface.
Shannon D. on January 23, 2008 at 10:37 pm: 23
Hello. I live in Grand Prairie, Texas (between Dallas & Ft. Worth) and believe I know of another theory. The concept of a blimp may be possible. Around 3 years ago, after dusk, there were sightings of a wierd bright object which hovered and flew very fast up and down I-30 from Loop 12 at I-30 to Highway 360 and would then change directions and fly erratically, but extremely fast. The object would change colors, flash patterns and it would reappear a few days later.
One night, I decided to drive toward I-30 and there’s a very high point in Grand Prairie where you can see for several miles. What I saw was heart stopping. The object was back and blinking and flying at high rates of speed. I got on my cell phone and called my father and told him I found the craft. It was flying over southern Irving, Texas, but heading my way. It was a very alien scene!! As it got closer, heading straight down Belt Line Road, all I saw were wierd light patterns, but as I said, it was flying fast. What happened when I got close enough, it changed directions ….. and I finally found out what it was. There’s a company in North Texas (wish I could remember the website address and I’m trying to find it again). There’s a company in North Texas which makes high quality radio controlled blimps with what I remember looked like LED technology screens all over it! They were advertising their “New” advertising business concept by flying it all over the place, up and down freeways, but the ENTIRE BLIMP was lit up. The blimp was quite large, but unmanned and once again, maneuvered very fast.
It was very quiet and when I found out what it was, I was so upset!!! I felt completely let down that this company was probably scaring a lot of people, but shortly afterwards, the blimp stopped flying in town probably because it violated FAA laws. But a video recently shown on the news tonight (1/23/2008) on CBS 11 (cbs11tv.com) looks very much like the light patterns I saw. The blimp company would flash wierd patterns to capture drivers attention and would then flash their phone number along with an advertising slogan.
So, they may still be operating in North Texas or even near Stephenville, TX. But this is my theory. I VERY MUCH BELIEVE we’re not alone in the universe and wish someday we would make first contact to show how our big differences are so small compared to the possibilities “out there”. I’ll keep looking for that blimp company online (they have a website), but this might be a starting point for those who want to research. The blimp I saw DID look and behave like a UFO and like the descriptions made recently. Thanks and keep your eyes on the sky!
Sorting Out Science » Blog Archive » Carnival of Space, Week 38 — The Adventures of Shorty Barlow, Private Eye on January 24, 2008 at 7:44 am: 24
[…] As I walked past the newsstand, the headlines caught my attention — it said “Strange Sights in Stephenville.” I had to laugh when I read a bit further. Some huge thing supposedly flies over this ranching town of 17,000 people, but only about 30 of them see it. Were the rest blind, or were the 30 just over-enthusiastic? Maybe the 30 really saw a Sundog, or maybe they’ve just been drinking some of “homeboy”’s hooch… […]
Kevin M. on January 24, 2008 at 9:03 pm: 25
If it is the blimp company, they are having a hell of a good laugh right now.
Another wag on the radio this weekend suggested it may have been the Economic Stimulus Package.
utsav on January 27, 2008 at 11:18 am: 26
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Tasha in MS on January 30, 2008 at 1:53 pm: 27
All I have to say is that the world is full of ignorance. 30 people only responded because they were afraid of disbelief like I am reading throughout these comments. It’s amazing to me how people are quick to judge when it’s not their place. In DUE time, if yall are still alive, GOD will reveal all. My only comment then is, all of you put both your feet in your mouths. I don’t have to lie about nothing, and have seen something Unidentified flying in my MS skies. I am a teacher with an outstanding IQ. It had no sound, it hovered longer than 10 min. No, I didn’t have a phone; didn’t care if anyone believed because noone helps me pay any of my bills. We are not alone. I bet plenty of people saw the UFO and are afraid to say. Go to http://www.cbs11tv.com and see for yourselves. Some are fake; but if you can astroprof, I would love your comment on these. Explain them since you are in disbelief! God Bless
Astroprof on January 30, 2008 at 3:32 pm: 28
I see some obvious fakes, some interesting cloud formations, contrails, and some things that are just strange photos that need more explanation to try to explain. Just because there is an unidentified light in the sky in a photo does not mean that it is a spaceship. Just because something cannot be identified in a poor quality photograph also does not mean that it is alien in nature.
Mike on February 9, 2008 at 12:28 am: 29
Mike, from comment # 2, adds: It is pretty ridiculous that anyone would issue threats against you, regardless of what they think of your opinions or even “insults” against the locals. Strong evidence of small minds and the fact that ignorance is alive and well in the new millenium.
Astroprof’s original comments simply read like he is using his presumed educational qualifications to support predetermined conclusions. And while he says that he really only takes issue with those that assume an unidentified object MUST be alien spacecraft, I similarly take issue wit those who say it must not be, based on our current level of inderstanding of scientific limitations or the laws of physics. Maybe our learned scientists simply don’t comprehend how a large object can move through airspace without displacing so much air as to knock down buildings, etc. Maybe the speed of light is not the universal speed limit….even if Einstein, Hawkings & Astroprof all believe it to be true.
One thingfor sure: Stephensville is not an isolated incident, and even after ruling out mere “lights in the sky” sightings, there are remains an impressive, statistically significant number of documented sightings of clearly observed metallic, flying objects made by credible, trained observers with good vision, and nothing to gain by reporting thier sightings. Why does “science” not focus on studying that database? Answer: because it does not lend itself to the study methods scientists prefer….it is easier for that group to dismiss this important and relevant topic, and act self-important with thier credntialed and superior background. At least, that is the typical “scientific” justification for BS debunking conclusions.
Tasha on February 13, 2008 at 1:06 pm: 30
Astroprof: There are more websites: http://www.mufon.com, http://www.frictiontv.com,and more. I have searched and looked and find these pictures amazing. I didn’t say it was alien in nature, but simply an unidentified flying object. Thanks and have a blessed day.
Greg on March 13, 2008 at 1:42 am: 31
Perhaps I was a little too harsh in my earlier posts, but I phrased things this way purposefully for its stark and blunt effect. Hopefully a little bit of harsh realistic thinking can help some people refrain from jumping to irrational conclusions based on rumors in the absence of any hard evidence to support the story. I have come to realize the frame of mind underlying why otehrwise intelligent people tend to think this way when confronted by something they saw that they cant explain. The experience evokes a religious or mystical mindset which makes the viewer seem extrodinarily special and important. Throughout human history there is evidence to suggest that our ancestors reacted similarly when they saw celestial events they could not explain. I would not dare to discount the personal experiences someone had when I was not also present. What I would like to point out is that ascribing the experience to alien intelligence is wholly irrational using common sense reasoning such as I described in above posts. It would make more sense if one were to relate such an experience to someone else in a mystical or visionary sense (something surreal) rather than something that is alien and real.