Has anybody ever seen a UFO?

[dubs]

This always freaks me out a bit! I mean it wasn't as if it was seen by one drunk bloke tottering back from the pub..... These were proper military!...:-3 :-3

http://www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc715.htm

[koan]

Galbally;568067 wrote: P.S. Whats the name of that church, and more importantly, are there aliens good Catholic aliens or naughty Protestant aliens? They will need to work that out before they visit Belfast, or they will have a rough time.


It's on the corner of 49th and Fraser in Vancouver.

[K.Snyder]

Galbally;568026 wrote: I think that in terms of evolutionary strategy, and what this would mean for exobiology (which is the proposed biology of life on planets other than earth), it is widely accepted that there would be many commonalities between life here, and life elsewhere in the universe, but again we don't know because we have no reference other than life on earth, so we may be misguided in our assumptions. We used to think that life would be bizarrely different, but this is not so popular an idea as it once was.




Considering that there are other sun-like stars out in our galaxy, wouldn't it be right to assume that life around those stars may be almost identical to life on Earth?

Or is that too optimistic?...But then again, we probably don't even know a tenth of what's actually out there.

I thought this was interesting

History of Earth

Origin of life

[Galbally]

K.Snyder;568102 wrote: Considering that there are other sun-like stars out in our galaxy, wouldn't it be right to assume that life around those stars may be almost identical to life on Earth?

Or is that too optimistic?...But then again, we probably don't even know a tenth of what's actually out there.

I thought this was interesting

History of Earth

Origin of life


Again, the simple answer is that we do not know, other than to say that on a planet with a similar history of development and geology to earth, and the concurrent rise of life (i.e. the rise of carbon-based microbial life, producing an oxgen-rich environment on a rocky planet roughly similar to our own in the same kinda orbit around the same kinda star, from which all manner of other species would evolve and over time produce an intelligent self-aware species that developed a technological civilization, advanced engineering and science) then its certainly true that the laws of physics and nature would be the same for such beings as ourselves, and that Carbon or perhaps Silicon would be the most obvious candidates for the basis of such life (because of basic chemistry), and there might well be many commonalities, though there would also be by definition huge (and perhaps insurmountable) differences.

Here are a few.

One: Life as a bioshphere retains most of its living mass in microbial and bacterial form, these creatures have evolved for billions of years here, and all life here is adapted to living with them everywhere (for instance in your gut, your mouth or the nasty ones in your nose when you get a flu), now, we also have defence mechanisms that protect us from them, and they live with us and all other creatures in a symbiotic relationship. But on any other planet, the microbial life would be completely different, and probably deadly, as we would have NO defence against it at all, and they would have no defence against us. So thats the first problem about any living thing from this world "visiting" another living world, in that biologically it might be catastrophic. A human astronaut, or animal would most likely die pretty quickly if exposed to an living environment that was not the one they evolved in themselves. Or conversely, the astronauts own bacteria and germs might have a catastrophic effect on the local fauna, and basically wipe it out over a period of time. For an example, think of the problems that have been caused by Europeans introducing European species to a pristine environment like Australia, and multiply this my 1,000,000. Its a serious problem.

The second is DNA. All life on this planet, all life, is based on exactly the same original DNA, that continues to propagate itself almost 4 billion years after it was first organized. There is no living matter on earth that is not based on this basic Earth DNA, now, on another planet its probably that the life would be organized in a similar way, however, there is nothing that would suggest that it would be based on exactly the same DNA structures, meaning it would in its most basic respects be a competitor type DNA that has never encountered ours before, for billions of years, (this is also potentially something that we have no way of dealing with or even predicting because we have no experience of life other than that based on our own genetic code). It could be a disastrous problem when dealing with non-earth based life (or it might not, but the precautionary principal would have to apply because the implications are stark for any contamination of either biosphere).

There issues are not really discussed in science fiction as they tend to dampen a dramatic story, but they are serious issues, and far more important than the "they would have better ray guns" one we usually think about. Though as Jimbo said the idea that any intelligent life would be "nice and benign" and "our friends" is something of a gamble that is not born out in the rest of nature as we experience it, so why would it happen this time, except that we would like to think that perhaps the rest of the universe is a little nicer than planet earth (a dangerous assumption indeed). Again, all of these ideas are fascinating, and there are serious scientists and biologists thinking about them, because its likely we will find other life in the next 50 years, intelligent or no, so we have to be prepared for the consequences and implications. Interesting eh? :-6

[K.Snyder]

Galbally;568442 wrote: Interesting eh? :-6


Yeah absolutely, until of course we actually find out that there is life on another planet, then it is accompanied with fear followed by extreme paranoia and prejudice.

[Galbally]

K.Snyder;568459 wrote: Yeah absolutely, until of course we actually find out that there is life on another planet, then it is accompanied with fear followed by extreme paranoia and prejudice.


Yes, it would certainly be the case that the discovery of extraterrestrial life will be a huge event for human beings and their relationship with the world and the rest of the universe, but over time, it will be a "growing up" type experience, or at least hopefully it would, then again, knowing what people are like, maybe it won't be, oh dear.

[K.Snyder]

Galbally;568537 wrote: Yes, it would certainly be the case that the discovery of extraterrestrial life will be a huge event for human beings and their relationship with the world and the rest of the universe, but over time, it will be a "growing up" type experience, or at least hopefully it would, then again, knowing what people are like, maybe it won't be, oh dear.


Pandemonium.

[Galbally]

HEY I THOUGHT I JUST SAW ONE!!!! :-6



























No wait, it was only a cat with a police car light on its head. :-3

[crazygal]

Soberano;564595 wrote: I'm with you on this one Crazygal.


Yahoo, someone else not in a dream world. :wah: Too much TV people!

[crazygal]

Soberano;564658 wrote: I have just looked out of my bedroom window and what a blinkin scene, will you just look at that.




:wah: LMFAO brilliant.

[Ashton099]

never seen one, but do believe in them.

[K.Snyder]

Ashton099;1176628 wrote: never seen one, but do believe in them.


So if you've never seen a UFO then why do you believe in them?

Others' testimony compelling beyond reasonable doubt?

[binbag]

Hi there,

I don't actually believe in UFO's myself, however if you do, here's a couple of pics that might be of interest.

Cave Junction Oregon 1927





Redondo Beach California 2007

[beowulf]

yes.....and i wasnt the only one at the time

[Kathy Ellen]

No...damnit.....but I'm going out again to look tonight as I watch the ISS flyby....

[fuzzywuzzy]

A UFO by definition is an Un-identified flying object.

If you've ever seen anything remotely off the surface of the earth and you couldn't say exactly what is (Animal, chemical or otherwise) ..............then you've seen one.

ON the other hand, if you've seen an UO .......then what the hell are you doing in my teenagers room?

[K.Snyder]

binbag;1329908 wrote: Hi there,

I don't actually believe in UFO's myself, however if you do, here's a couple of pics that might be of interest.

Cave Junction Oregon 1927





Redondo Beach California 2007




You're joking with these pictures right?

[ZAP]

I have a photo, taken by my daughter, that shows 7 or 8 objects in the daylight skies of the Sierras, that have defied analysis. I would post it here if I could.

[CARLA]

I haven't but know people who have. I'm not nieve enought to think that we are the only life form out there that can travel the skys.

[fuzzywuzzy]

How come people think it's always little green men?

[K.Snyder]

Why is it before airplanes were invented flying objects were never sighted?

Millions of years of evolution and for other life forms to reach a state of technological advancement capable of interstellar space travel and they hadn't shown up before the 1900's? JC alien UFO's ffs!

[ZAP]

K.Snyder;1330326 wrote: Why is it before airplanes were invented flying objects were never sighted?

Millions of years of evolution and for other life forms to reach a state of technological advancement capable of interstellar space travel and they hadn't shown up before the 1900's? JC alien UFO's ffs!


Perhaps they did. One theory:

The Spaceships of Ezekiel

Or:

http://spaceshipsofezekiel.com/html/bib ... ekiel.html

[fuzzywuzzy]

It was eventually shown that a lot of von Däniken's "evidence" did not exist or were forgeries he commissioned and that he had served several prison terms for fraud.


OH dear.

I remember a time when people were seeing UFO's an they described how it couldn't be a plane because people were blinded by it's lights and it came up over trees and went sideways and took off at a great rate of speed.

A couple of years later we find out they've invented this huge you beaut helicopter!!!

[binbag]

K.Snyder;1330193 wrote: You're joking with these pictures right?
Negative, K.Snyder. Despite the "so called" evidence of these images, Aaaand, despite my wife, three children and myself having witnessed an object, very clearly, in the sky one night, I still don't believe in them. I can describe it, but I don't believe it was a UFO as UFO's have come to be accepted as.



fuzzywuzzy;1330324 wrote: How come people think it's always little green men?Yes, I've often thought that myself fuzzywuzzy. The majority appear to be portrayed with two eyes, two arms, two legs....just as humans do really!!!!! :-3

Why not five arms, or one arm.

Why two legs, why not one leg.

Why not legless, they could still bum their way around.



Absolutely no offence aimed towards any believers. :yh_flower

[fuzzywuzzy]

binbag;1330378 wrote:



Yes, I've often thought that myself fuzzywuzzy. The majority appear to be portrayed with two eyes, two arms, two legs....just as humans do really!!!!! :-3

Why not five arms, or one arm.

Why two legs, why not one leg.

Why not legless, they could still bum their way around.


Well Buddha has been done to death

And we have the phalic symbol

The hysteria towards people with one leg and no legs would increase.

If they look just like us then we can speculate more imaginitively.............It could be you're own mum!!!!!!!! That'll make a good movie.

[binbag]

fuzzywuzzy;1330479 wrote: Well Buddha has been done to death

And we have the phalic symbol

The hysteria towards people with one leg and no legs would increase.

If they look just like us then we can "speculate more imaginitively".............It could be you're own mum!!!!!!!! That'll make a good movie.Being the operative words. fuzzywuzzy

[K.Snyder]

ZAP;1330329 wrote: Perhaps they did. One theory:

The Spaceships of Ezekiel

Or:

The Book of Ezekiel


Yes, Zap, that's one account compared to hundreds of thousands of reports of alien UFO's. This is easily assumed by the fact that peoples' imaginations are equally as creative throughout history. All one need do is look at a bird during flight and then assert their own self absorbed tendencies relative to their personal agendas. Ezekiel was selling a book. What's odd is that I have not a clue what it is people that claim alien UFO's are prevalent are up to...

On a side note, can anyone tell me what the fascination is with people observing alien UFO's and the inescapable "romance" of having a probe "discretely" inserted into their rectums?

[binbag]

K.Snyder;1330542 wrote: Yes, Zap, that's one account compared to hundreds of thousands of reports of alien UFO's. This is easily assumed by the fact that peoples' imaginations are equally as creative throughout history. All one need do is look at a bird during flight and then assert their own self absorbed tendencies relative to their personal agendas. Ezekiel was selling a book. What's odd is that I have not a clue what it is people that claim alien UFO's are prevalent are up to...

On a side note, can anyone tell me what the fascination is with people observing alien UFO's and the inescapable "romance" of having a probe "discretely" inserted into their rectums?Hi again K.Snyder.

The book of Ezekiel in the bible is used as evidence by some UFO believers to prove (according to them) aliens were around in biblical times.

There are also ancient paintings depicting characters of the bible who witnessed objects (apparently) of the alien nature.

My personal belief is..... those so called alien thingy's and or (supposed) alien/space crafts, can be identified (with advanced knowledge and understanding) as objects witnessed in life today, and easily identifiable.

Incidentally, if you do a Google image search with the word alien, approx 21.5 million results will appear. A staggering number.

What's that saying again?

Oh yes, I remember.... "Well, we can't all be wrong".

Well, there's a flip side to that saying...... It doesn't follow they can all be correct.

Anyway, here's a web site for you believers which, if you haven't been it before, should be of interest to you. It's packed full and will keep you busy for hours.......

UFO, UFOs photographs

[ZAP]

Some very interesting shots K. Thanks for posting. The Squadron of Three photo looks very much like the photo that my daughter has, but there's nothing to compare it to for height, size, etc., like trees or people, which are in her shot.

[Saint_]

I wrote this a while ago, detailing my run-in with that big UFO. It was off the War highway near El Paso. (Very desolate area.)



In the Air Force, one of the duties required of all pilots is to spend a week (on a rotating basis) doing what is called "alert duty". During that time, you are required to be in your flight suit and be prepared to fly at a moment's notice. You can travel around the base, but most of us chose to stay at the "alert shack" which was a small building at the end of the runway. It was quite comfortable, outfitted with a foosball table, a couple of pool tables, a big screen TV, and tables for cards, etc. The other room held bunks and toilet facilities. It was generally a boring duty. But twice a week, we would run a "scramble" alert.



In "Scramble" alert, all the pilots would rush out of the building to the planes which were parked just outside. The aircrews would already have the planes started by then, and you would just jump into the cockpit and takeoff nose-to-tail, seeing how fast you could get off the ground.



Usually, 99% of the time, you would just fly afterburners-on to a given coordinate, then be told it was an exercise and fly back home. We usually liked that because in the absence of a given mission, we could have practice dogfights on the way home or engage in other non-permitted behavior such as flying low to the ground with transponders turned off.



Occasionally, you'd have to identify an unidentified aircraft, which usually turned out to be a stupid smuggler or an off-course civilian. They were always more than happy to comply with instructions when surrounded by fighter aircraft. (We intentionally flew VERY close to them to make them even more nervous.)



Then there were the other times...



I've come screaming up on many "UFO's" at closure speeds of up to 880 kias before. I've seen them all, silver ones, bright lights that hang in the air, and even spinning cylinders with lots of details and no kind of flight surfaces at all. Most of them fell into the 'Mexican Air Force" category which was a spinning silver plate, just like the one that flew through the Mexican Air Force's flight show a couple of years ago. But the most impressive, by far, was the HUGE black ship that hovered over the mountains off the War Highway near El Paso Texas.

I was flying that day as Whiskey 2 and my formation leader was Whiskey 1. It was just about dusk, but there was still plenty of light. The UFO was hovering about 2000 ft. AGL. (Above Ground Level.) It was sitting in the lee and shadow of a small range of mountains and was hard to see from a distance. As we came up on it, though, I could see that it was jet black all over its top and featureless. It looked like a giant black Frisbee. It was the size of a small city, easily over ten miles in diameter. What really got my attention, though, was the underbelly, which was very visible from our position at a slightly lower altitude.



The entire bottom of the object was open, and a bright red light was suffusing from it. As I watched, other smaller red lights detached themselves from the object and traveled slowly to the ground. There, they joined many other small red lights moving around on ground level.



We closed at over the speed of sound, chattering to each other over the mics.

"Whiskey 1, I have a bogey in sight, and what a bogey it is too! Do you confirm? Over."

"Uh, yeah, Whiskey 2, I'm seein' it, but I'm not believin' it. Request instructions from RAPCON, Continue...ummm.... closing with bogey."

"Roger, Whiskey 1, I'm closin', but I'm not lovin' it. Sierra Hotel.... that thing is HUGE!"



Suddenly, as our DME (Distance Measured Equivalent) closed to 15 miles, all the red lights on the ground lifted off and streaked to the underside of the Gigantic Black Frisbee. In just four seconds, the Black Frisbee took off straight up at what had to be a 100G-climb rate. (Far beyond human endurance or the abilities of any known aircraft) The bogey shot off so fast we could hear the booming - thunder sound of air falling into the vacuum it made plowing through the atmosphere. In seconds it was gone.



"DAMN! Whiskey 1, did you see that? Where did it go?"

"Affirmative, Whiskey 2, the bogey took off like the space shuttle, I have no joy, can you see it?"

'Negative Whiskey 1, it's in the twilight zone!"

"Roger that, Whiskey 2, RTB (Return To Base) and chalk up another UFO with negative contact."



That was pretty much how it went of most of the time. Since I’ve been a civilian, I’ve seen a UFO again, but that’s another story.

[ZAP]

wow!!!

[K.Snyder]

I think I'm going to be sick

[G#Gill]

K.Snyder;1330900 wrote: I think I'm going to be sick


Why?

[fuzzywuzzy]

because a good story, missing the point, will always make everyone sick.....that imagination thing.

[G#Gill]

So what point did that good story miss ?

[Saint_]

I should mention that my wife grew up in the small town of Snowflake, AZ that is detailed in the movie "Fire in the Sky." She told me she knew that guy who got abducted and he was an ignorant redneck, completely incapable of the kind of imagination it would take to fake a UFO stunt. She also told me he was never the same after that incident.

[Saint_]

To the skeptics: I don't expect you to believe me, especially since, I, myself never believed anyone until it happened to me.

Now to my other story:

My wife and I were sitting on our deck early in the morning about 12 years ago. Our home was on a mesa overlooking the valley where the city in which we live lies. It was a very dark night, with no clouds or moon, and since we were outside of the city limits, no street lights either.

I was showing her how, in that darkness with all the stars visible, (and I mean ALL the stars) you could pick out satellites orbiting the Earth by watching for their dim light passing quickly by at high altitude overhead. We watched a couple orbit by then she asked me, 'Is that a satellite over there?" and pointed to a light that was undoubtedly in orbit high above. "Yep" I told her, "that's much to high for an airplane, and airplanes are all equipped with strobes as well as colored indicator lights."

"Then why is it getting closer?"

Astonished, I looked at it and realized that it was quickly gaining size and was headed, as far as I could tell, straight for us. I thought it might be a meteorite at first, but it displayed no tail, nor did it grow in brightness, but remained one color. It came straight down in a vertical line to the middle of our city. At this point it stopped and hovered for a few seconds. I was completely aghast. My wife asked me, "Is that an airplane?" in a wavering voice.

"No...that is absolutely not an airplane. Believe me, I can tell."

There were no color strobes to indicate sides, no landing lights, nothing but a white ball hanging slightly lower than our level so that we had to look at an angle down towards it. It hung there motionless for a good count of ten, centered almost perfectly over the middle of the city, then, without a sound, the UFO began to grow brighter quickly until we had to look away and instinctively shield our eyes from the retina-burning glare. As I looked down, I was amazed to see the razor-sharp stark outline of my shadow on the deck!

Almost as fast as it grew bright, it grew pale again, then, while we watched with growing amazement, it shot straight up again in a perfectly vertical line. Up, up and up it went until it was almost invisible. I saw a gliding light pass by underneath it and I realized it was a satellite and the object was now far above Earth orbit. Finally it was gone.

My wife and I realized we had been on our feet and we both collapsed heavily into our chairs. We looked at each other from time to time without speaking, then she said finally, "Did you see what I saw?"

"Yes, I replied, " I sure did."

We sat without talking for a while. Later we went inside.

[ZAP]

Thanks for posting that, Saint. Double WOW!!

[K.Snyder]

Sort of like art, no one knows how bad it is until they hold it up to a masterpiece

Everyone feeds off of everyone else in order to keep an obvious lie circling about.

Next thing you know people cannot differentiate a proper UFO from a busted brain cell anymore

[Saint_]

K.Snyder;1331121 wrote: Sort of like art, no one knows how bad it is until they hold it up to a masterpiece

Everyone feeds off of everyone else in order to keep an obvious lie circling about.

Next thing you know people cannot differentiate a proper UFO from a busted brain cell anymore


Hmmm...I don't think I like your tone.

No, more like the know-it-alls that thought that the Earth was flat and ridiculed Columbus...until they were confronted with the evidence they were wrong all along.

[G#Gill]

Saint_;1331173 wrote: Hmmm...I don't think I like your tone.

No, more like the know-it-alls that thought that the Earth was flat and ridiculed Columbus...until they were confronted with the evidence they were wrong all along.


You see, Saint, it is very difficult for some people to believe that we are not the only planet with intelligent (? lol) life forms inhabiting it. I am loathe to admit that I have seen a 'UFO', simply because of the ridiculing I would no doubt get ! I also believe that there was intelligent life, more advanced than we are today, on planet earth - possibly just 'visiting'. There are numerous examples of this throughout the world, too numerous for me to add to this post. I have (with my son) seen a very strange craft near where I live, some years ago, which was thoroughly investigated by our National UFO Society at the time, and they could find no explanation for it! I have never been so arrogant or narrow-minded as to believe there is no such thing as an extra-terrestrial, or that there is no other inhabited planet similar to Earth. Why the hell should Earth be the only inhabited planet ? Maybe it is in this galaxy, but what about other galaxies? Travel through space must be attained by higher intelligence beings, to enable them to visit other galaxies in fairly short time, and we must seem very primitive to them. It would not surprise me at all if ET's visit from time to time just to check how advanced this planet's occupants have become, and no doubt finding us far too aggressive and war-like for them at the moment, so they leave well alone and just monitor the situation, until such time that they think they would not be attacked by us should they actually land or communicate.

[ZAP]

Saint_;1331173 wrote: Hmmm...I don't think I like your tone.

No, more like the know-it-alls that thought that the Earth was flat and ridiculed Columbus...until they were confronted with the evidence they were wrong all along.


There were those who scoffed at Da Vinci's sketches of a flying machine. And some skeptics laughed at the idea that man would ever set foot on the moon. Imagine that.

Leonardo Da Vinci and His Flying Machines

[Oscar Namechange]

I saw flying lights In the Sky once. It was some-what eerie. There were 3 lights that seemed to descend down onto the ground. It was over Heathrow Airport. I reported It to Police many times but they arrested me for wasting Police time.

[Saint_]

oscar;1331204 wrote: I reported It to Police many times but they arrested me for wasting Police time.


LOL! Sorry about that, Oscar!!!:yh_giggle

[Saint_]

G#Gill;1331190 wrote: I also believe that there was intelligent life, more advanced than we are today, on planet earth - possibly just 'visiting'. There are numerous examples of this throughout the world, too numerous for me to add to this post. I have (with my son) seen a very strange craft near where I live,.


Yep. I once asked my mother when I was young, "Why don't they just come down here, be friendly and talk to us?"

She answered wisely, "When was the last time you went outside, sat down and talked to the anthill?"

Meaning, of course, what could a species advanced enough to navigate interstellar space have to talk to us about? Smart woman, she.

[ZAP]

oscar;1331204 wrote: I saw flying lights In the Sky once. It was some-what eerie. There were 3 lights that seemed to descend down onto the ground. It was over Heathrow Airport. I reported It to Police many times but they arrested me for wasting Police time.


They were probably descendants of the fools who laughed at Columbus, da Vinci, and the Space Program. :wah:

[Saint_]

zap;1331240 wrote: they were probably descendants of the fools who laughed at columbus, da vinci, and the space program. :wah:


ROFL!!:yh_rotfl

[K.Snyder]

Saint_;1331173 wrote: Hmmm...I don't think I like your tone.

No, more like the know-it-alls that thought that the Earth was flat and ridiculed Columbus...until they were confronted with the evidence they were wrong all along.The literature was fine Saint it's the topic that is horrendous. You can place a load of flowers on top of a 15 foot high pile of horse fecal matter but it's still going to stink very much badly.

What makes it bad is that people actually think that flowers would serve sufficiently to mask the odor but all it ends up doing is wasting valuable time and money.

We can have all of the technology in he Universe and yet still pump out movies equally as putrid as that spaceship you'd mentioned full of human sh*t

[K.Snyder]

I'd place my life on the line to inform people that there is no doubt a planet out there circling another star in the habitable zone at the same time call someone a fool if they were to suggest one of them didn't sustain water and even an atmosphere very very similar to Earth.

The problem is that we have not observed a planet such as this close enough to Earth to not laugh at the thought aliens have visited this planet let alone doing so on one occurrence to obviously have to circle about due to the gas tank being far too close to half full. It's ludicrous.



"Alien" UFO's exist because of national "security". They exist because the government wants them to exist, whether through experimentation of airplanes to benefit themselves or encouraging it's citizens to implode into a Universal s*** fit so that other nations cannot distinguish valid descriptions of those very same flying objects.

"Alien" UFO's = an F in history.

[Clodhopper]

Those are amazing stories, Saint. Just to be certain - you aren't winding us up are you?

I had heard that pilots have been reporting this sort of thing for years, but this is the first time I've heard it from someone who was there.