Monday 28 May 2012

Missouri residents witness multiple UFOs (Video)


Residents in Blue Springs, Missouri have seen multiple UFOs in the night sky for the past two weeks. The objects are described as bright hovering orbs that change color. A witness even claims to have seen one of these orbs rapidly drop in altitude. Other witnesses have described zig-zagging behavior, and have observed these objects disappearing and reappearing.

Strange light over Blue Springs, Mo. (Credit: KCTV5)

Some sources indicate the lights have been seen in nearby Independence, MO as well.
According to KCTV5, Missouri MUFON (Mutual UFO Network) is investigating these sightings. Assistant State Director Margie Kay interviewed witnesses, then set up telescopes to observe the lights for herself. Her initial assumption upon viewing the first light was that it was the bright star Vega–the brightest star in the constellation Lyra. But as other similar lights appeared in the sky, Kay was stumped. After reassessing her opinion, she told KCTV5, “I don’t think it’s a planet at this point. I don’t know what it is. It’s unidentified.”
KCTV5 reportedly contacted local police, but police have received no calls about the mysterious lights. KCTV5 also contacted the FAA, but was redirected to NORAD, where a spokesperson confirmed that a similar sighting had been reported, but the objects have not been identified.

Ufo triangle over Moscow (Video)

By Scott Waring



Date of sighting: May 24, 2012
Location of sighting: Moscow, Russia

This is an interesting but shaky video from Moscow of several glowing orbs over the city. It seems that they flash to communicate with one another as well as staying in a triangle formation most of the time.

Adamski and the Occult




I’m very often asked words to the effect of: What evidence did the Collins Elite (the clandestine think-tank group in the U.S. Government whose activities are the subject of my Final Events book) find to support their highly controversial idea that the UFO phenomenon is demonic in origin? Well, as far as can be ascertained, they didn’t find any evidence.
Rather, they developed a vast body of beliefs relative to such matters – which is what often happens in paranormal-themed situations when hard evidence fails to materialize and the researcher either becomes frustrated by the quest for the truth, or has an emotional need to gravitate to one idea or another, something which often results from weakness and insecurity, or an arrogant and ego-driven conclusion that one is right, despite being unable to prove it.
But, that’s not to say the Collins Elite didn’t uncover a wealth of intriguing threads that they wove together into an extraordinary scenario. They most certainly did. One of them relates to none other than a certain George Adamski. Born in Poland in 1891, Adamski had the distinction of being the most supported, celebrated, and ridiculed of those who claimed direct contact with human-like extraterrestrials in the 1950s.

The controversy largely began on November 20, 1952, when Adamski claimed that he witnessed, along with six other people, the landing of a UFO in the Californian desert and then made contact with its pilot, one Orthon of the planet Venus.


FBI documentation of 1953 on Adamski’s claimed encounter with the extraterrestrial Orthon states:
“At a point ten and two-tenths miles from Desert Center on the road to Parker and Needles, Arizona, Adamski made contact with a space craft and had talked to a space man. Adamski stated that he, [deleted] and his wife Mary had been out in the desert and that he and the persons with him had seen the craft come down to the earth. Adamski stated that a small stairway in the bottom of the craft, which appeared to be a round disc, opened and a space man came down the steps. Adamski stated he believed there were other space men in the ship because the ship appeared translucent and could see the shadows of the space men.”
The alien that allegedly confronted Adamski, the FBI noted, was “over five feet in height, having long hair like a woman’s and garbed in a suit similar to the space suits or web suits worn by the US Air Force men.” (The image to the left is a scan of one of the many pages contained within the FBI’s dossier on Adamski).


This was a story greatly expanded upon in a 1953 book entitled Flying Saucers Have Landed that Adamski wrote with an Irish aristocrat named Desmond Leslie. It was this Adamski-Leslie connection that got the members of the Collins Elite all worked up and bent out of shape. One of the former Collins Elite staffers told me that the group quickly became concerned by the working relationship that existed between Adamski and Leslie, and for one very stark and eye-opening reason: Desmond Leslie had a long and rich link to the world of the occult, including – in a roundabout way – Aleister Crowley himself.
As Dr. David Clarke and Andy Roberts note in their book, Flying Saucerers, Leslie’s father, Sir Shane (who was a second cousin to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill) was a truly colorful character. Indeed, he caused a sensation by converting to Roman Catholicism and the Nationalist cause. In addition, he spent part of his early years in Russia, where he became friends with Leo Tolstoy, before traveling across Europe.
It was during these travels that Sir Shane became obsessed with the world of the supernatural, which led him to carefully collect stories for his Shane Leslie’s Ghost Book, published in 1955. Sir Shane’s closest friends at this time included the acclaimed paranormal novelist M.R. James and the eccentric Lord Tredegar, who dabbled in the black arts, under the influence of Aleister Crowley’s teachings, at his country estate in Wales.
So Desmond Leslie was, in a roundabout and convoluted fashion, someone who had been exposed to the occult and the teachings of Crowley. Just like rocket scientist and Crowley devotee Jack Parsons – another character whose 1940s/early 1950s actions greatly troubled the Collins Elite. And that Leslie was digging into the world of Flying Saucers with George Adamski only troubled them even more and amplified their beliefs that the UFO phenomenon was/is demonic.
Unconnected threads that happened to occasionally cross paths, or evidence that the Collins Elite members were correct? In the absence of evidence one way or the other, it all comes down to belief and interpretation of the data and facts.

UFO movie news round-up (Video)

Robbie Graham

Prometheus: the making of a new myth
 

“What made Ridley Scott revisit the world of his iconic movie Alien more than 30 years later? The reasons are complicated, writes Damon Wise, and the results aren't what you'd expect.”

Article featuring comments from Ridley Scott indicating that Prometheus might be the beginning of a whole new franchise. Read it here.

Men in Black 3 stuff
MIB 3 director Barry Sonnenfeld tells io9 what he has learned from the second movie’s mistakes and how his threequel is better as a result.

Meanwhile, Lee Spiegel of The Huffington Post reminds us of the real-life MIB encounters that inspired the movie franchise.

Finally, on the MIB front, it’s an “illegal alien” face-off between MIB 3 and Mars Attacks over at Bryce Zabel’s Movie Smackdown site. Go see who wins!

Former SETI Director: Hollywood’s aliens are too nasty!
Former SETI Director Jill Tarter tells Universe Today that Hollywood’s alien invasion movies are a big bag of bollocks… but phrases it more politely than that…

“While Sir Stephen Hawking warned that alien life might try to conquer or colonize Earth, I respectfully disagree. If aliens were able to visit Earth that would mean they would have technological capabilities sophisticated enough not to need slaves, food, or other planets. If aliens were to come here it would be simply to explore.
Considering the age of the universe, we probably wouldn’t be their first extraterrestrial encounter, either. We should look at movies like ‘Men in Black III,’ ‘Prometheus’ and ‘Battleship’ as great entertainment and metaphors for our own fears, but we should not consider them harbingers of alien visitation.”

Read the full article here.

ALF! You know, from the ‘80s?

Lovable ‘80s TV alien ALF is headed for the big screen according to his creator Paul Fusco, who tells The Hollywood Reporter:
“ALF could be more outspoken now than ever, because the world is a whole different place than the '80s. And I think the character still stands up and certainly has more to say now than ever,” he says. “I think we would approach it in a fresh way. I don’t think we would duplicate the TV show, but I think we would maybe put it in a storyline where we would explain how ALF got here and put him with a new family and let the character speak for himself.”

Read more about the history – and possible future – of ALF, here.

Sticking with the ‘80s theme...

Thunder, Thunder, ThunderCats... ho!!!

This is old news (it was first reported in February of last year), but I’ve never mentioned it on Silver Screen Saucers until now. Five years ago, Warner Bros. Pictures announced it would be producing a big screen CGI adaptation of the 1980s animated TV series, ThunderCats. However, the project got lost in development hell, and there it remains to this day. Fans of the heroic alien cat-people thingies might be interested in the following test footage for the movie that found its way online last year (don’t get excited, though. It’s naff)...
 
 
The best alien invasion movie ever?!
 
Last but not least, visionary filmmakers Michael Bay (Transformers) and Peter Berg (Battleship) have teamed-up to bring us their dream project ;-) Could this be the greatest alien invasion movie ever? View the trailer here...
 

The UFO sighting that convinced a Government minister

By Jasper Copping

One of the most tantalising ever accounts of an apparent encounter with a UFO – deemed so credible it apparently convinced a British minister – can be told for the first time.
 
Flight Sergeant Roland Hughes
After the sighting, Hughes – who was known as Sam, after a character created by Stanley Holloway, the actor and comedian – was nicknamed 'Saucer Sam' by colleagues, who painted a cartoon of a flying saucer on his jet.
 
The UFO sighting that convinced a Government minister
 The RAF logbook of Flight Sergeant Roland Hughes
 
It is one of the most tantalising ever official accounts of an encounter with a UFO – deemed so credible it even convinced the government minister who investigated it.
Now, for the first time, the sighting of a flying saucer by an RAF fighter pilot and the subsequent high level inquiry it prompted can be revealed.
The sighting occurred in 30 July 1952, when Flight Sergeant Roland Hughes was on a training flight over West Germany in a de Havilland Vampire FB9.
As he was returning to base, he reported being intercepted by a "gleaming silver, metallic disc" which flew alongside his aircraft before speeding off. The mystery object was also detected by RAF radars on the ground, which recorded it travelling at speeds far in excess of any known aircraft.
Hughes reported the sighting to his senior officers who sent him to see Duncan Sandys, the then aviation minister, to brief him personally.

Following the meeting, Sandys went on to tell senior civil servants he was convinced by the airman's story.
The UFO sighting is not only one of the most detailed by a serving member of the armed forces but also shows how seriously such reports were taken by the authorities. British governments have historically downplayed the suggestion that such sightings have been investigated.
The existence of the sighting has emerged in papers released by the Churchill Archive, at Cambridge University. The centre contains the papers of Sir Winston Churchill, as well as Sandys, who married the former prime minister's daughter, Diana.
In one document – written a few days after the interview with the 23-year-old Hughes – Sandys tells the government's chief scientist, Lord Cherwell, about the meeting and states that he found the airman's account and the supporting evidence from radar "convincing".
The sighting came shortly after a number of similar "flying saucer" reports from US airmen and Sandys added: "I have no doubt at all that (Hughes) saw a phenomenon similar to that described by numerous observers in the United States."
Lord Cherwell had dismissed the US sightings as "mass psychology", but in his memo Sandys takes him to task for this attitude and makes clear his position on the existence of UFOs.
The minister, who was later promoted to Defence Secretary, went on: "Until some satisfactory scientific explanation can be provided, it would be most unwise to accept without further question the view that 'flying saucers' can be dismissed as 'a mild form of hysteria'." Sandys also wrote that there was "ample evidence of some unfamiliar and unexplained phenomenon".
The documents are among thousands released by the archive in recent years. Their disclosures were uncovered by David Clarke, a Sheffield Hallam
University academic, while he was conducting research for a new edition of a book he has written on UFO sightings for the National Archives.
By chance, shortly after his discovery, Dr Clarke was contacted by the fighter pilot's son, who had read the earlier edition and wanted to share information about his father's sighting.
Roland Hughes had died in 2009, aged 79, but had recounted his version of events to his son, Brian, who passed on the account to Dr Clarke, as well as his father's log book, in which he had noted the sighting and subsequent meeting with Sandys.
The incident will now feature in the latest edition of the book, to be released in September, following the release this summer of more government UFO files from the National Archives.
In the airman's account, relayed via his son, he was in one of four aircraft from No. 20 Squadron, of the RAF's 2nd Tactical Air Force, returning to RAF Oldenburg, in northern West Germany, flying in formation at high altitude in clear visibility.
He reported seeing a sudden flash of "silver light" in they sky high above him which rapidly descended towards him until he could see that it was a "gleaming silver-metallic disc".
The airman said its surface was shiny, "like tin foil", and "without a single crease or crinkle in it". He could see, with "astonishing clarity", the aircraft's "highly reflective and absolutely seamless metallic-looking surface". He estimated its size at 100ft across – "about the wingspan of a Lancaster bomber".
It flew alongside him for several seconds before flying off at great speed.
None of the other three pilots saw the object – it is thought because they were all executing a "banking turn" at the time and would not have been looking in the right direction – but radar on the ground had picked it up.
Six days later, Hughes – who later worked as a commercial airline pilot – was sent to RAF Fassberg, another base in northern West Germany, to give his account to senior RAF officers and Sandys himself, who was visiting. The minister's first question to Hughes was how many beers he had had the night before.
After the sighting, Hughes – who was known as Sam, after a character created by Stanley Holloway, the actor and comedian – was nicknamed "Saucer Sam" by colleagues, who painted a cartoon of a flying saucer on his jet.
Brian Hughes, 45, a Ministry of Defence civil servant based at Bovington Camp, in Dorset, said: "We knew about the sighting in the family when we were growing up but my father didn't talk about it a lot. We learned about it more from prompting him.
"He was very matter-of-fact about what he saw, just describing the details. He never did any research into UFO or flying saucers and didn't have any interest in the supernatural of science fiction.
"If it was someone other than my father who had told this story, I would be sceptical. He once said to me 'People think you're mad if you say you've seen a flying saucer – I've only ever seen one once; I've never seen one since.'"
Dr Clarke, who is sceptic on UFO issues, said: "There is absolutely no doubt that something was seen by Hughes. He is not making this up. But the only honest position to take is that we don't know what it was. But there could be some sort of scientific explanation, before you start jumping to conclusions about alien visitors."

The Navajo Rangers investigating UFOs (VIDEO)


Rangers Dover and Milford. (Credit: Open Minds)

The Navajo Rangers have been modestly performing their duties on the reservation for more than fifty years now. The group has seen their numbers decline due to funding, but have remained dedicated to the needs of their people. Jonathan Dover and Stanley Milford provide law enforcement, public education, preventive patrols, and regulatory enforcement to the reservation as Navajo Rangers. And they keep open minds when unique cases come forward. Their investigations have included UFO sightings, paranormal cases, and big foot. Examining these occurrences has led to an array of skepticism from other law enforcement agencies.
A short time ago, the two Rangers attended the 2012 International UFO Congress and gained attention from a local TV station, which ran a story on what they’ve been investigating. This has sparked more interest in the pair, and how they go about their investigations. Dover and Milford carry on case by case though, listening intently to the witnesses and recording the evidence. Recently, the two presented on their experiences and investigations at a monthly meeting held by the Phoenix Chapter of MUFON. In the future, Open Minds will be travelling north to ride along with the Rangers for a glimpse of their practices, investigation techniques, and the affect this has on their people.

Jill Tarter comments on Hollywood aliens


SETI astronomer Jill Tarter objects to how extraterrestrials are portrayed by Hollywood on the big screen.

In a press release issued to promote the SETI Institute’s upcoming SETIcon II conference, Tarter explains her opinion that, if aliens came to Earth, “that would mean they would have technological capabilities sophisticated enough not to need slaves, food, or other planets.” She then offers her theory that “If aliens were to come here it would be simply to explore.” So, basically, “Alien life probably isn’t interested in having us for dinner, enslaving us or laying eggs in our bellies,” as Jason Major of Universe Today summarizes.


Movie poster for 'Battle Ship'. (Credit: Universal)

In voicing her disagreement with Hollywood’s portrayal of extraterrestrials, Tarter also takes issue with theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking: “While Sir Stephen Hawking warned that alien life might try to conquer or colonize Earth, I respectfully disagree.”
Although she disagrees with Hollywood’s versions of extraterrestrials, Tarter suggests that we should “look at movies like ‘Men in Black III,’ ‘Prometheus’ and ‘Battleship’ as great entertainment and metaphors for our own fears, but we should not consider them harbingers of alien visitation.”
SETI Institute officials announced on Tuesday, May 22 that Tarter, the director of the Center for SETI Research is stepping down from her position to devote her full time to fundraising for the Institute.