Saturday, January 30, 2010
More on the Newfie UFOs
We're not any closer to solving the mystery of the Newfoundland UFOs yet, although everyone seems to have their own theory. One astronomer has suggested to me that the photos must show a French missile gone astray, since we know the French did launch several that same day, although at a different time and thousands of miles away in the wrong direction to the Earth's rotation. Hey, if it works for you, fine.
The trouble is, we're not getting any bones from the government or National Defence, either. First, the RCMP tells the witness it's a missile launched from St-Pierre-et-Miquelon, then they say it's not a missile from there, but it is "something."
That by itself has fueled suspicion that something funny is going on. The government seems to know what it was, but isn't saying. There was even a flippant remark that the UFOs must have been some model rockets shot off by Newfoundland amateur rocketeers, but that particular group denied it when contacted. Besides, the photos don't look anything like model rockets.
The proliferation of explanations range from the silly to the sublime. Newfoundlanders just want to know what the objects were. None of the witnesses ever talked about aliens, but politicians and many armchair debunkers have enjoyed pointing fingers and laughing about little green men and UFO landing pads.
I had originally suggested the objects were either missiles or high-flying planes catching the rays of the setting sun. I get lots of photos like that every year and the Newfie shots bear a resemblance to these. However, as I understand it, there were no aircraft in the vicinity at the time. Of course, there could have been military air exercises at the time, and we wouldn't necessarily have access to those details.
We had a brief bit of excitement Friday night when there was a report on CBC Halifax that some people had reported a UFO streaking over the city at about 5:03 pm AST. It turns out a woman was doing some sledding with her kids near Inglis School by St. Mary's University, and saw a multicoloured object shoot overhead, heading eastward towards the ocean. Other reports were called in, including one from a man near Cow Bay who saw a coloured "paintbrush" soaring overhead. In all cases, the object was only in sight for a few seconds, and suggests the obvious explanation of bolide or fireball.
I created a Facebook group: "Did You See the UFOs Over Newfoundland?" but it hasn't attracted any takers so far. We need more witnesses, though. As I noted in a previous post, I have descriptions of the UFOs from other locations besides Harbour Mille, including Buchans, Doe Hills, and Marysville in Newfoundland, as well as a spurious report from New Brunswick.
And oh yes, there is a 63-year-old precedent to these recent photos of missile-like UFOs over Newfoundland. In 1947, an odd flying object was seen flying over Harmon Field, near Stephenville, Newfoundland, an American air base. The object left an odd smoke trail which was photographed. Here's the link to the photos and to a NICAP report on the case. The photos are some of the first of the "Flying Saucer Era."
The investigations of the Newfoundland UFO reports continue.
The trouble is, we're not getting any bones from the government or National Defence, either. First, the RCMP tells the witness it's a missile launched from St-Pierre-et-Miquelon, then they say it's not a missile from there, but it is "something."
That by itself has fueled suspicion that something funny is going on. The government seems to know what it was, but isn't saying. There was even a flippant remark that the UFOs must have been some model rockets shot off by Newfoundland amateur rocketeers, but that particular group denied it when contacted. Besides, the photos don't look anything like model rockets.
The proliferation of explanations range from the silly to the sublime. Newfoundlanders just want to know what the objects were. None of the witnesses ever talked about aliens, but politicians and many armchair debunkers have enjoyed pointing fingers and laughing about little green men and UFO landing pads.
I had originally suggested the objects were either missiles or high-flying planes catching the rays of the setting sun. I get lots of photos like that every year and the Newfie shots bear a resemblance to these. However, as I understand it, there were no aircraft in the vicinity at the time. Of course, there could have been military air exercises at the time, and we wouldn't necessarily have access to those details.
We had a brief bit of excitement Friday night when there was a report on CBC Halifax that some people had reported a UFO streaking over the city at about 5:03 pm AST. It turns out a woman was doing some sledding with her kids near Inglis School by St. Mary's University, and saw a multicoloured object shoot overhead, heading eastward towards the ocean. Other reports were called in, including one from a man near Cow Bay who saw a coloured "paintbrush" soaring overhead. In all cases, the object was only in sight for a few seconds, and suggests the obvious explanation of bolide or fireball.
I created a Facebook group: "Did You See the UFOs Over Newfoundland?" but it hasn't attracted any takers so far. We need more witnesses, though. As I noted in a previous post, I have descriptions of the UFOs from other locations besides Harbour Mille, including Buchans, Doe Hills, and Marysville in Newfoundland, as well as a spurious report from New Brunswick.
And oh yes, there is a 63-year-old precedent to these recent photos of missile-like UFOs over Newfoundland. In 1947, an odd flying object was seen flying over Harmon Field, near Stephenville, Newfoundland, an American air base. The object left an odd smoke trail which was photographed. Here's the link to the photos and to a NICAP report on the case. The photos are some of the first of the "Flying Saucer Era."
The investigations of the Newfoundland UFO reports continue.
# posted by rutkows @ 1:31 PM 
