ROGER MARSH

From Peter B. Davenport’s column, National UFO Reporting Center, with photos by Illinois State Director Sam Maranto

Chicago, November 4, 2008, @ 9:20 p.m. (LOCAL)—At 8:05 p.m., on Wednesday night, November 5, 2008, I received a call over the Hotline from a concerned mother in West Virginia, who reported that on the previous evening, Tuesday, November 4, her daughter had experienced a very unusual occurrence, which both mother and daughter were alarmed and confused by. 

The mother briefly described that her daughter, an undergraduate in Chicago, IL, was driving her car during the previous evening, when suddenly, the daughter’s late-model Japanese four-door sedan, was simply “shoved” one lane to the right.

Given that I field a broad spectrum of calls that have nothing to do with UFOs, my initial reaction to the call was that the case would be of little interest, but how wrong my preconception was.

Curious to know more, and having little else to do that night, I telephoned the daughter in Chicago, and obtained a more complete picture of what had happened. 

At approximately 9:20 p.m. (CST), the young woman had left her apartment, gotten into her car (a compact, late model Japanese four-door sedan), and had started to drive north on Lake Cook Road toward Interstate 94.  She was planning to meet with a friend to discuss school matters.

Just a block or two from her apartment, and still south of the entrance to the interstate, the witness reported that she felt a strong “nudge” against her car, which was strong enough to shove it very quickly from the center lane of the three-lane road into the far right lane.

The driver was mystified by what had happened, but thinking that she might have hit something, or someone, and she began looking actively all around her car, and in her rear-view mirrors. She saw nothing that caught her attention, but her scanning of her immediate area satisfied her that she had not been hit by another vehicle, since none were visible anywhere near her location, and she could see nothing in the road behind her. The one thing she did note, however, is that her outside driver’s mirror was missing.

Realizing that her car might have been damaged, although it seemed to drive normally, the driver turned right onto Revere Drive, and turned on her emergency flashers. She then exited her car, but she was not prepared for what she saw. The whole left side of the vehicle appeared to her to be “pressed in” in an irregular fashion, as if the metal had been melted, leaving deep furrows in the metal doors and body. Making the situation even more baffling to the driver was the fact that the metal didn’t appear to be torn at all, and the paint did not appear scuffed, cracked, or missing, and none of the glass windows or plastic light lenses was damaged. It appeared as if some type of mysterious force had just pressed the metal into deep furrows, leaving the rest of the car unaffected. 

Thinking that some kind of accident had occurred, which she didn’t fully understand, and concerned over the condition of her relatively new car, the woman called the 9-1-1, explained the situation to the operator, and a police officer was dispatched to her location. The driver was interested in having a formal police report generated, most of all to be able to satisfy her insurance company that the incident had occurred, and that it had occurred as she described the events to the investigating officer.

When I spoke via telephone with the young woman, she sounded to me to be both eloquent and sincere, so I decided to pursue the case further by turning it over to Mr. Sam Maranto, the State Director for MUFON/Illinois. Within a very short period of time, Mr. Maranto had visited the driver, and had taken several photographs of the damaged car, copies of which he forwarded to NUFORC in Washington State.

Based on the baffling appearance of the left side of the car, I immediately offered to purchase the vehicle, in order to preserve the evidence in the case. However, the owner declined the offer, Mr. Maranto reported, explaining that she liked the car, and she preferred to have it repaired, and restored to its original condition.  As a result, she took the car to a nearby repair facility, which initiated the repair, part of which involved either replacing the doors, or cutting out the damaged metal and replacing just the panels. Mr. Maranto arranged also to remove a few paint chips from the damaged area of the car, and conveyed them to a laboratory at the University of Chicago for analysis, which was conducted, and apparently completed by mid-February 2009.

Making an already strange case stranger still, sometime during mid-January, Mr. Maranto discovered that the damaged doors, which were being held for him at the body shop, mysteriously had disappeared. Mr. Maranto reported to me that because of the sincere and contrite reaction of the proprietor of the body shop over this strange disappearance, Sam felt that the proprietor was reporting the mysterious theft honestly.

What compounds the mystery still further is that approximately two weeks after the disappearance of the doors, an unidentified male entered the offices of the University of Chicago laboratory, where the paint chip analysis had been completed, represented that he had been sent by Mr. Maranto to pick up a copy of the completed report, and to retrieve the paint chips. The report and samples were given to the stranger, he left immediately, and he has not been seen since. No one knows who he was, and no one knows who had sent him. Tragically, the laboratory had not kept a copy of the report in its computers, so both the samples, and their analysis, were lost permanently, together with the doors.

Someone must have wanted that evidence very badly, I conclude. The only logical conclusion is that someone who is very interested in the UFO phenomenon, for whom expense may be no concern, and who prefers anonymity, appears to have organized a very well-orchestrated effort not only to obtain evidence related to the case, but to deny others access to the  same data.  The rather daring double theft must have been well planned, and it was superbly well executed.

*        *        *

Many months after the above incidents had occurred, and as I continued to ruminate on the case, searching for some explanation for what had happened to that car, something quite surprising suddenly occurred to me. Whether it is merely a coincidence, or whether it is some type of very subtle message, intended to convey information, I cannot say, but I feel duty-bound, as an investigator, to share honestly with the readers my epiphany…

The damage to the automobile, a black sedan from Chicago, occurred at almost precisely the same time, 9:20 p.m. (Central Time), that the momentous announcement was being made on the east coast that the presumed victor in the Presidential election, held on that date, November 4, 2008, was U. S. Senator Barack Obama, the first Black American to win a Presidential bid, who also was from Chicago.  Not only did these two events occur on the same night…they occurred at the same time.

Whether there is any possible message here, or whether it is just one of those rare, and meaningless, coincidences, I cannot say.  However, it is an example of how a UFO investigator, if he delves deeply enough into a case, may gain very subtle insight into an incident, even if he does not fully understand what its significance may be.

Selected and edited witness testimony and field investigator notes from the fourth quarter 2011 are reviewed in this fourth and final feature on cigar or cylinder-shaped objects from closed cases with a final determination of Unknown UAV.

The year-end cases begin on October 7, 2011, in Morgan County, GA, where multiple family members were driving home and noticed something odd in the night sky.

October 7, 2011 – Morgan County, GA. AN1, Category 1. Case 32471.

On October 7, my Mom and me were coming home from my sisters. When we came across Brownwood Road , I noticed something in the sky. I asked my Mom what is that? She looked and she said right away, “That is a UFO”. We pulled off the road and watched it for at least  5 to 10 minutes. It was way longer than an airplane and it had lights. I was looking at Mom when I first noticed it and I just knew it was a UFO. It was very long and green, blue and white lights were under it. It was moving very slow. I thought it was very cool. This is the first one I have seen and I believe they are here and they live among us. We just wish they would reveal themselves to us. They have not caused any problems that we are aware of.  The UFO just disappeared.

Field Investigator: There does not appear to be any celestial body that could have been misidentified according to the time and date check. The METAR data also corroborates the witness statement of no cloud cover. A check for over flights of a possible airship blimp was done through the Internet site for MetLife flight operations.  The events calendar showed that no MetLife aircraft were in the state at the time and date of this sighting.  This rules out the possibilities of a lighter than air commercial aircraft being seen.  In addition, this rural area of Morgan County has limited over flights of visible aircraft.  During the interview I did not see any aircraft pass over. It is in my opinion that both these witnesses did in fact witness something that they cannot explain.  Using all available resources I cannot definitively find any made-man object that could have been mistaken or misidentified.  However, with the described size of the object I am hopeful that there may be a radar signature found.  I contacted a local certified meteorologist to check the radar and see if anything was captured during the time of the observation.  I am awaiting his findings and will make an amendment to the case once I have a response. At this time I am concluding that this is an unknown phenomenon, described as a craft or object (UAV).

October 17, 2011 – Randolph County, NC.  CE1, Category 2. Case 33039.

Went out to get dog approximately 9:45 p.m. on very clear night. Out in field next to our property above the tree line approximately two football fields away was a large, glowing, orange object with the red aura floating, then very quickly disappearing, leaving a light path. Ran quickly inside, locking my doors, very upset.

Field Investigator: 2011-12-06. I am going back and documenting this case with more information the witness has given me. A few days after I had initially talked to Witness A, she called me back to tell me the following. She ran in the house and she got her husband, Witness B, to come out to look at the orb. By the time he came out the orb was gone. The orb had been about 100 yards away from where she was standing. She said it was about the size of a car or a mini-van. (By chance a similar sighting occurred nearby within the same month. See case 31921.) She said that she felt like it was watching her and that it was there to get her. A week or two after this event had occurred she shared with me that the following morning around 2 a.m. she woke and found herself standing naked in her bedroom with her cloths in a pile next to her. She feels very uncomfortable even being undressed, even in her own house so this was exceptionally strange. She does not remember getting out of bed and much less having gotten undressed. When she got back in bed her husband asked where she had gone. She responded, “I don’t know.” The next day she complained to her husband that she had a pain on the lower part of her back. Her husband looked at her back and described a small red dot inside a bruise that was in the shape of a triangle. I have attached the image. It is not too clear in the image, but she said she felt like it was a burn from a laser because it left a small round burn mark. January 24, 2012: The second image imagejpeg952.jpg is a bruise she received on Monday, January 23, 2012. The third image is a rash on her son that appeared this week. He gets the same rash every year on the same date. This is an on-going case with many reports. I am closing this case only because there are already newer reports for Witness A and other members of her family.

October 26, 2011 – Cobb County, GA. CE1, Category 2. Case 33044.

I had been taking a customary walk around my neighborhood and stopped at my driveway to try to spot a hawk that was making hawk sounds from a group of trees behind my neighbor’s house. His trees were around 80 to 100 feet high. Slowly this UFO appeared to rise up from behind the trees. My first thought was excitement that I was going to see my first UFO. Then I realized that it only appeared to rise up. It was moving in a straight line. I then thought it was a dirigible and I started looking for a gondola, windows, lettering or towing a sign. There were none and I became less excited. There were no engines, propellers, jets nor steering mechanisms. The bottom half was silver colored and the top blue of what I could see. It didn’t appear to be over 200 feet high and about 100+/- feet long and 20/30 feet in diameter. It was moving in a straight line from the south in a north/northwest direction at 30mph+/-. It disappeared out of sight and I thought no more about it for a day or two.

Field Investigator:

A. WITNESS INTERVIEW ON January 29, 2012. The witness was at the foot of his driveway at Robinson Road, trying to see a hawk in the trees behind his neighbor’s house at about 10 a.m. on October 26, 2011. The conditions were clear, sunny, and with no wind.  He noticed a silvery object moving in his direction from the southeast, from behind the trees where he was looking for the hawk.  It first appeared to be a large, round, silvery object, but as it got closer, the witness could see that it was elongated, and he was looking at the front of it.  It moved steadily from southeast  to northwest maybe 100 feet or so above the trees (which are maybe 100 feet tall).  The object crossed Robinson Road northeast of the witness; he was looking up at it at maybe a 60-degree angle.  The object could be seen as being silver or silvery white on the bottom, and dark blue on top.  There was no sound, no lights on the object, no ribbing, no surface features at all.  There were no fins, no steering mechanism, no gondola, and no markings.  The object appeared to be maybe 100 feet long and 30 feet in diameter, tapering towards both ends (“like a stretched out football”).  It continued to the northwest until it was out of sight.  I asked the witness to hold up his hands and show me how large the object was at its closest point; his hands were at least three feet apart.  The witness told me that he spoke with one of his friends about this, and his friend said he had seen a Metlife blimp in the area near the sighting date.  The witness suggested that I look online for the Metlife blimp.  Images on-line of their blimps usually show dark blue sides and white top and bottom.

B.  Additional Witnesses: None.

C.  Natural phenomena do not come into play here.  Weather conditions (from wundergound.com) at 9:55 a.m. were as follows:  57.2 degrees F, 73 percent humidity, 10 mile visibility, wind direction/speed – calm, no precipitation, and clear conditions. 

D.  Man-Made Objects:  On January 31, 2012, I spoke with a gentleman who works in the blimp operations department at Metlife.  Metlife blimps used to have a color combination of dark blue on sides with white lettering, and white on top and bottom, with a figure of “Snoopy” at the anterior end on each side, with red tail fins.  I was told that in February of 2011, the colors were changed to red and white.  A Youtube video from July, 2011, shows one with white sides and blue lettering, with red on bottom, blue on top, with a figure of “Snoopy” at the anterior end, and red tail fins.  The gondola is quite obvious, and has one propeller on each side of the gondola.  Interestingly, a Metlife blimp was traveling from Lawrenceville, GA, to Gadston, AL, during that time, and would have passed over Marietta on the day of the sighting.  In fact, on globe-guardian.com, someone reported seeing a Metlife blimp over Marietta on October 26, 2011. However, given all of the facts of the sighting, and the characteristics of a Metlife blimp, this does not seem to be a plausible explanation for this sighting.

E.  Other Possibilities:  Spoke with Public Affairs office at Dobbins AFB who checked with the field manager and air traffic controllers.  They reported to have no records of anything in their airspace on that date and time (no hits on their radar).  Spoke with the Marietta PD (911 dispatch); no UFO sightings were reported for October 26, 2011.

F.  Witness Check:  The witness is a 71-year-old retired engineer.  He worked at Lockheed.  Retired from Lockheed and became interested in Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) training, which he now teaches.  The witness seems very credible, and had only a passing interest in UFOs prior to this sighting.

III. SIGHTING EVALUATION AND CONCLUSIONS. Unknown – UAV.  The research I conducted could not satisfactorily provide an explanation for this sighting.  Although the initial impression I got was that this was a blimp, it had neither tail fins nor a gondola, nor any visible means of propulsion, and it was totally silent.  Therefore, it must be classified as an unknown.

November 3, 2011 – Horry County, SC. CE1, Category 1. Case 40688.

I was in Myrtle Beach around the 3rd of November, 2011, staying in a beach front hotel top floor. Approximately around 10 p.m. I was sitting on the balcony having a beer and listening to the ocean sounds of night when suddenly maybe 100 feet away, an amber-colored light appeared out of nowhere. It stayed on for maybe five seconds, then turn off, then back on and off sort of like a flashing effect. This lasted probably another 10 seconds, and then it shut off completely. A few seconds later another amber light appeared just to the left of the first and did the same pattern. The lights were parallel to the beach as if signaling something further south. What transfixed my mind is that I could see some detail around the lights as they flashed on and off.  It seemed to be mechanical similar to the type of lights you see in studios for photographic and filming lights, the kind that have shutters or lighting supports on all four sides. To me, at first I was thinking how could something this big appear out of nowhere and in total silence? And how did they get it up there, maybe 75 feet off the surface of the water, and how did they keep it so stationary? Not once did I think it was a UFO because it hadn’t hit me yet to realize it. And of course I didn’t think about my cell phone camera until it was gone. Actually I didn’t look into this at all until a friend told me South Carolina had many amber light sightings around that time. Maybe when I couldn’t hear anything due to the ocean? It was close enough for me to hear something. But just silence.

Field Investigator: He states he has had previous sightings similar to this one.  The sighting was of an amber-colored light about 100 feet from his location.  A few seconds later another object same as the first appeared and then disappeared.  There was no sound associated with the object.  The case is classified as unknown.

November 4, 2011 – Mahoning County, OH. CE1, Category 2. Case 33143.

I was stopped at the intersection of Route 46 and Mahoning Avenue in Austintown, Ohio, this afternoon. I was on Route 46 facing Mahoning Avenue in the left turn lane. The sun was shining and it was around 2:45 p.m. I was staring straight ahead and there was a lot of traffic.  It’s mid day rush hour and cars were everywhere. From my left an object came directly into my eyesight. What caught my eye immediately was the sheer length of the object. It seemed to be glowing, bright white and had no appendages. It was very bright there in the sky. Not necessarily reflecting the sunshine, more of a glow. It was gliding along very low and slow in the sky. The sheer size of the object was 2-3 or more of full airliners placed in front of each other. It wasn’t big in girth, just really long. I see airplanes everyday flying low. I know what they look like and this thing was long. There’s no way this could have been mistaken for a commercial airliner. I watched it glide over the gas station in the sky. Others have had to seen this. It was heading towards Ohltown/ Norquest Boulevard direction towards the interstate. I had no method to record it, no camera, which was very upsetting. I pulled into the gas station parking lot and watched it go over the treetops. Had it not been for the rush hour traffic and having to get my kids from school I would have tried harder to follow it. I had to get back home. There is a nearby bank, gas station and other stores with surveillance cameras. One of them had to have captured this object. It was glowing and big enough to see on cameras for sure. They would be the best in gathering more information. Hopefully more people come forward. There has to be others that seen it.

December 15, 2011 – Buchanan County, MO. FB1, Category 1. Case 34431.

I’m in Saint Joseph, and last night I saw a UFO around 7:40 p.m. It was very low (under 1,000 feet) off the ground, and it slowly flew overhead, heading north east-ish. From what I could see, it was cigar-shaped. It had two lights, a green one at the front and an orange one at the back. I know it wasn’t a plane, because it was travelling in the direction of the green-orange light. It probably went about 5-10 miles, then it started changing directions. First it would move left, then right, then forward, then back. And it was moving without making the turns a regular aircraft would make. Probably watched it for about 10 minutes or so (unfortunately it was too far away to get any pictures or video of).  When it was flying overhead, there was another low flying plane about 500-1,000 feet above/behind it, however, it took a different path, and both plane/UFO went in different directions.   The UFO lights I saw for some time, however, the plane went out of sight within a couple of minutes, however, the UFO lights continued to move back/forward/left/right.

Field Investigator: I believe the witness to be a credibly, trustworthy person.  He had nothing else to add to the description, except to say that he was certain of what he saw.  Note that there have been a number of cigar or blimp shaped objects across the U.S. lately.

Reports of the cylinder or cigar-shaped objects continued in 2011 during the third quarter as we review seven selected CMS cases for Part Three in the series. Selected witness testimony and, when available, edited field investigator notes are used.

Today’s story begins in Pennsylvania’s northwestern Erie County on July 16 where an on-duty police officer is on patrol and has an encounter with a UFO.

July 16, 2011 – Erie County, PA, MA1, Category 1. Case 30329.

“I have been a police officer for 10 years, and I served active duty in the United States Army in a reconnaissance unit.  One of my duties in the military was to observe and be able to identify aircraft from many countries, primarily those from the United States and the former Soviet Union.  I am also a huge fan of helicopter aviation. I was working patrol on the night of July 16, 2011, on the 10:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m. shift.  I was in uniform and in a marked patrol car.  While patrolling on a main street in town, I was driving southeast away from the lake and toward the downtown area.  At approximately 10:52 p.m., I noticed a single, white light in the sky moving northwest.  The light appeared to be at an altitude of approximately 1,000-2,000 feet over the downtown area.  I first thought the object was a helicopter.  Just up the street from me was a large hospital which averages probably 4-5 medical helicopter transports a week.  I am very familiar with the medical helicopters which frequent my area, and after a few seconds I realized that what I was seeing was not a helicopter.  As the light came toward me, I realized that it had no navigational or hazard lights (the green and red lights which flash on an aircraft).  It had a single, white light.  It was very bright at first.  As it got closer to being directly overhead, I noticed that the light appeared to be cigar-shaped.  But as it got even closer to being overhead, the light seemed to dim.  By the time it was overhead (approximately one minute since I first saw it), it was as dim as most of the stars in the sky.  In fact, if it hadn’t been moving, I probably would have thought that it was a star. I actually stopped my patrol car in the middle of the street and had to stick my head out of my driver’s side window to look up at the object because it was directly overhead.  The object continued to move northwest, but it was dim and appeared to be much higher than when I first saw it.  In fact, it appeared then that it was 10,000 feet or higher.  Then I was amazed when the object stopped dead in its tracks and began to zig and zag, back and forth!  It went in all directions.  I would estimate that if it was 10,000 feet high, it was probably moving maybe 200 feet in each direction around the point where it had stopped. It became difficult for me to watch the object with my head sticking out the car window and looking over the roof of the car to my west, so I made a u-turn and parked along the curb.  I could now see the object by looking out of my window toward the west.  Shortly after I parked, I phoned my wife to tell her what I was seeing.  My cell phone indicated that I called my wife at 10:53 p.m. on July 16, 2011. Just after I started talking to my wife, the object stopped zigging and zagging and it began to move toward the east.  Just then, another police unit with two officers pulled up and asked what I was doing.  I ended the phone call with my wife and I informed the officers about the object that I was watching.  We then exited our respective vehicles while we watched the object.  Both officers saw what I was seeing.  One of them believed it to be an aircraft.  The other officer said she wasn’t sure what it was. As we watched the object continue east, we noticed an aircraft far out in front of it, also flying east.  The object and the aircraft appeared to be around the same altitude, but the object had become so dim that it was hard to determine how high it was.  In fact, several times the object’s light appeared to fade out completely and then quickly fade back in.  However, at no time did the light of the object appear to flash or blink. All three of us watched the object move east and, once again, it stopped in mid flight and began to zig and zag around the point it stopped.  The one officer continued to believe that the object was an aircraft, and the other officer said she didn’t know what it was.  Then the other officers had to move their vehicle because they had stopped in the travel lane and they were blocking traffic.  I got back into my vehicle and drove east and parked in a parking lot one block east of my original location where I continued to watch the object.  It continued east and its light faded in and out a few more times.  I lost track of where the aircraft, which I had seen in front of it, had flown.  Then I received a call for service from my dispatcher and I had to leave the area. The total time I watched the object was approximately 15 minutes. Later that night I looked to the sky in the direction I last saw the object but I didn’t see it again.  Through the course of the night I did see two meteorites, one to the north of town over the lake and one to the south.  However, I am familiar with what meteorites look like and the object I watched was NOT a meteorite. Later in my shift I tried to call the local international airport to see if they had any aircraft or any other contacts on radar at that time.  But I only got an automated system and was never able to get through to anyone there.

July 27, 2011 – Madison County, KY, CE1, Category 2, Case 30381.

“I was outside on my front porch with my camcorder, because my dogs where taking  a fit, so I went out there to see what they were barking at. About that time the phone rang and it was my niece, and it just so happened we were talking about UFOs, when right out of the blue, this low fiery looking, egg-shaped object came over the field west of me, heading northeast. It was moving real slow and lights were flashing from it. I grabbed my camcorder and filmed it while I was telling my niece what I was seeing on speakerphone. It did not make any noise at all. And it was close enough to hear, but I couldn’t hear nothing. Then it looked like it was changing shape or something. Then it went behind the trees and I couldn’t see it no more. The pictures I am sending you are actual photos of what I filmed.”

Field Investigator: “The witnesses’ home is in a low area, the lowest in the trailer park, with I-75 directly east of her running in a north-south direction with a slight turn towards the east going south.  Her viewing of these different events included on this tape are from her front porch (I-75) side from about 310 (WNW) degrees to about 180 (south) degrees.  As you can see in the videos, they are moving different directions.  Her angle of viewing is typically 30 degrees to about 80 degrees from horizontal.  One view was of a light going south to north off to the ESE of her.  Another was lights going north to south off towards the ESE of her.  Another was a group of lights that came out of the ESE and passed just south of her.  On this video is also a daylight scan of where these objects (lights) have been seen from the witnesses’ front porch. She states that she only sees these on clear nights. Hopefully, someone with the capability to analyze these tapes can determine what she’s seeing.  It would put her mind to ease if they were objects known to humans.”

August 5, 2011 – Montgomery County, PA, CE1, Category 2. Case 30686.

“1) Driving on 422 East between Trooper and the Oaks Exits directly across from the Christian Academy but on the Valley Forge side of the road. 2) Unusual.  3) From far away it looked like a radio tower, but there were three white lights and no red flashing light. 4) Twenty feet  off ground, object did not move while I was watching. There was three white lights (not blinding, however, I could not see above the side of the UFO).  5) Called my friend who was following me to make sure she saw it too. She did and we both were in complete shock. She first thought it was a fighter jet, however, when we got closer there were no markings, no color, no ammo and it did not move. 6) Continued to drive on 422.”

Field Investigator: “Assigned field investigator was not able to get in touch with witness.  Through several other independent sources we were able to collaborate the witnesses’ sighting.  We were able to triangulate the object and it was Unknown.”

August 6, 2011 – El Dorado County, CA, CE1, Category 2, Case 31250.

“I was driving north on Eldorado Boulevard at exactly 2:25 p.m., Saturday, August 6, 2011, just passing Bowmens Club on the right when I noticed two bright lights in front of me in the sky above the hill and houses about 400 feet up and descending slowly down and to the left. They looked like two boxes a few feet apart. My first thought was maybe a kid’s kite in the park that I knew was just over the hill. I was driving up a hill at the time so it was really easy to notice and there was other traffic right next to me and behind me. My thought was they have to being seeing this too! As I was driving over the hill watching these two boxes descending down toward the ground, they were just a few feet apart. I thought maybe it could be two white birds descending in perfect formation until they started turning downward and the two boxes stretched out longer into two perfect shapes, like rectangles. At this point I got excited and looked for a place to pullover. Then these two objects kind of leveled out and moved north towards Folsom Lake away from me. They moved about a thousand yards away in just a second, then quickly faded away from view. So I kept driving just maybe one block and they reappeared again getting brighter in seconds. My thought at this time was maybe it was an airplane reflecting in the sun. A real white airplane. But it was two objects just a few feet apart. At this time I reanalyzed the size of the objects were about the size of two cars. I glued my eyes on these and slowed way down and almost completely stopped at the green light in front of the park. Then the two objects slowly faded away again, so I pulled over and got out my binoculars. The objects were gone, but there was a vulture flying around up there where I last saw it so I focused on it and hoping the object would return. After a few minutes it did not, so I took off driving north again on Eldorado boulevard towards Green Valley Road. I crossed Green Valley Road as this turns into Salmon Falls Road about two miles still looking towards the west when the object appeared again. This time it was one object, but looked like a square box. I immediately pulled over. It was moving north rapidly about 600 or 800 feet high and got behind some trees blocking my view. So I took off after it and could see it in the next few minutes through the trees as I was hurrying to get about a mile up the road to a place I knew was clearer of trees. I noticed the object kept pulsating in and out of brightness and vision, and turning while I was chasing it. Right when I was getting to the clearing it got real bright and stopped for a second. It looked like a perfect big ,white box in the sky slightly rotating about 800 feet above the Folsom Lake with a hill in the background behind it. Then it started moving slowly to the west and faded away. I stayed there for about five more minutes hoping to see it again but I did not. I realized this whole encounter lasted about 12 minutes and over five miles.

Field Investigator: “The UFO looked like a box kite with one box above the other. It was bright white and the exterior looked like a Lowes’ sign. The object then changed shape; the box on top moved down to the side and both boxes stretched out about four feet into a hexagon shape.  It sped up and looked like it would hit a hill when it pulled away and dimmed. The witness estimates that the object moved about one mile in a second. It disappeared briefly then reappeared as a single box.  The witness followed the object in his car and watched as it brightened and dimmed repeatedly. Witness estimates speed of the object while he was following it to be around 50 mph. In its final form, the object is square, spinning, pulsating, and about the size of a large storage container. Witness last saw it when it stopped moving, then shot off the left and disappeared. All of this happened in broad daylight around 2:30 in the afternoon.  The witness seems sincere and concerned about what he saw.”

August 13, 2011 – Dane County, WI, CE1, Category 2, Case 30912.

“My wife, daughter and I were returning home shortly after sunset last Friday night, driving east on Highway 12 just west of Cambridge, WI. I saw a floating orange light at about 1 o’clock, floating perhaps 200 feet in the air. I pointed it out to my wife and daughter and they saw it too. It looked to me like a glowing orange light bulb, and I could not distinguish any shape of the object. It appeared to hover or float in one spot the whole time we observed it. After a few moments of observation, my daughter said, ‘I keep trying to imagine a tower holding it up, but there’s no tower.’ We observed it for perhaps a minute or two, then lost sight of it. It never moved the entire time we saw it. I wish we had pulled over to observe it more closely!”

Field Investigator: “The witness seemed very comfortable discussing the event. I asked him if he or his family members have had any headaches or missing time. He stated no. I also asked the witness if this was his first sighting and he stated ‘yes’.  During the event, he remembered some other observations. The object looked like it was glass or translucent and kind of frosty. I checked for airports in the area and checked the weather from that evening, and it matched what the witness stated. He did seem very genuine and eager to talk about his experience. With more than one witness to this object to back up the witnesses’ observation, I would have to conclude that this object is unidentified.”

September 5, 2011 – St. Louis County, MO, FB1, Category 1. Case 31649.

“(Ellisville southwest of St. Louis, MO). While relaxing in the backyard on the deck laying in lawn chair with my granddaughter sitting next to me enjoying the nice afternoon and watching humming birds at the feeder and looking into the sky with a few clouds I noticed a flying craft with brilliant, silver cylinder-shaped with small hump, no wings, moving very, very slow from the southeast to northwest direction just barely above thin clouds. My granddaughter saw it too. As it went over a small cloud and the cloud drifted it never appeared again. As we watched, it was as if it disappeared into the blue sky. She yelled for her Dad to come out, but he was too late and just dismissed the incident but did believe we saw something. From watching airplanes at that height in the past it was the size of a Southwest Airline plane. About 5 minutes later, the same place in the sky a huge craft just appeared. It was 10 times larger than the smaller craft we observed earlier as it moved slowly from the northwest to the southeast for two minutes. Wonder how something that big with no wings or tail can stay in the sky moving that slow. I must assume they don’t need aerodynamics but use another source of power to move. Then all of a sudden it just disappeared as if you would turn off a light. It was a brilliant, sliver color. Having served in the military, I’ve seen flying craft from the B-1, B-2 and B-52 bomber. Been in fighter planes and touched, walked around and looked into the cockpit of the infamous supersonic  Blackbird and have seen aircraft carriers. That was not swamp gas, optical illusion or a weather balloon, or any known craft I’ve ever observed. It was as large as an aircraft carrier. Cylinder-shaped, but had a slight hump on top. My granddaughter and I thought we were lucky to have witnessed the UFO event. She believes in them now. I always have since I saw one in 1957 as a teenager along with thousands of people across the city and as it went north of St. Louis in the early morning on a Saturday or Sunday when we were out on the school yard playing ball and it was silver and huge , but never had MUFON then. The government stated then that it was mass hallucination or possibly swamp gas (ha… no swamps north of St Louis). Well, that’s the end of my sighting. Keep your eyes open and please report what you see as that’s the only way to understand what’s happening out there. Good luck.”

September 19, 2011 – Platte County, MO, CE1, Category 1, Case 39329.

“My mother and I were watching it out the windows facing east and it was coming just over the tree tops from the west heading southwest.  After it passed over the apartments, I ran out to the front and continued to see it ascend over I-35 and into the low lying rain clouds. It was all black in the back part and looked flat there, unlike the sides and cone front, which were white with 7-8 glossy lights, navy blue window trim with the window part white too. A design in the same blue color was observed on the larger, front window but I couldn’t make it out. The best I remember it was a zigzag type like a lightning bolt of some sort.  Two blinking lights; one on the front and one on the back part. I remember red and green and blue lights blinking. Two long antenna; one top and one bottom with blinking, colored lights on the top and bottom. There were many lights around the complex and other complexes and it helped reflect off of the craft and was very visible to see because of this fact. I have seen blimps up close and they are real loud with their propellers and this craft made no noise at all. It did not wobble or appear to be swayed by the breeze, but made an intended straight line over the complex and I-35. Also, no undercarriage for a crew and passengers was ever noticed like a regular blimp and no rudders at the back also. We viewed it in the back of the building about 60-70 yards away and it was only about 40 yards off the ground and looked about 30-40yards long. We saw it at an angle going southwest. I have wondered why the craft had the antennas on the top and bottom and after thinking about it thought the most practical reason is that it uses them for sensors and markers since the large, silver, metal power lines were just a feet below these antenna. My guess is they are retractable and that explains why I never saw them on any cigar-shaped UFO on Google image search. I will download the picture to you tomorrow from the sketch I took just an hour after we saw this object. Yes, I have often wondered how drivers on I-35 didn’t get a million dollar shot at this object, but by then it was just starting to descend into the dark rain clouds.”

Field Investigator: “I have communicated with this witness by phone and email.  He called me and I suggested that he file an official report at mufon.com first, and then we would follow up. He stated that there was no sound whatsoever. He sent me a drawing of the object he and his mother saw (see attached). The only discrepancy I can find is the weather history from weatherunderground.com says it was clear at that time, but the witness says there were dark rain clouds.  I have seen this on other occasions where the weather website was wrong. He seems very credible, and has been doing research since seeing the object in an effort to explain it. Note: This was just before the huge UFO flap in Kansas City in October.  This is one of the most unusual reports I’ve worked on.”

Multiple witnesses are a positive thing for any UFO investigation, especially when they are scattered and you have accounts from different perspectives.

One of the toughest parts of the UFO investigation business is often something as simple as having a witness come forward at all. We all realize that many good cases go unaccounted for because the witness does not want to tarnish their reputation or career with being a UFO witness.

A new witness has surfaced this month that may relate to a rather good case that occurred in southern Illinois in early January 2000 – an account with multiple witnesses that included police officers in several towns that were chasing the object. The story was told on Bill Birnes’ network show, “UFO Hunters”.

Illinois State Director Sam Maranto recalls the case well and says the story played out the evening of January 4 and into the wee hours of January 5, 2000.

The new witness recently read a story of mine about a Missouri case and he decided to come forward with his account of what happened in early January 2000. In a telephone interview, he says he heard the news about what happened in southern Illinois, assumed it was the same craft, but he did not report it.

In part, the witness stated, “I lived in a little town south of St. Louis, MO, back in 2000. I was the assistant fire chief for our district. I was coming home from a fire call at a neighboring township about 3 a.m. I picked up all the radio traffic from the local law enforcement channel.”

The radio traffic was rather unusual. He said he made the decision to investigate and met up with local police officers.

“Seems they were chasing this craft that had come across the Mississippi River and was heading right to the police officers and myself.”

They were able to locate and observe the object.

“We picked up the craft off of Highway 50 & I-44 traveling southeast  about 25-30 mph, about 500 feet above our cars.”

The group of professionals decided to give chase.

“We kept up with it for about an hour before it took off across country and disappeared.”

They were not able to capture the object on camera.

“We did not have a camera with any of us and the dash cameras on the two police cars would not pan up to film this craft.”

The witness decided to build a model of what he saw that night and an image of that is included with this story. The information from this witness was passed on to both Illinois and Missouri MUFON and both states are currently conducting an investigation.

Maranto pointed out that this case “came on the heals of a mass sighting in Rockford, IL, just days earlier.” He said that if the new witnesses’ date and time matches, it could very well be the same object seen by multiple police officers in Illinois. The object could then have traveled southwest and into the area where these witnesses were located that same night. 

Cylinders or cigar-shaped UFOs played a major reporting role in MUFON’s 2011 database as another silent shape popping up randomly across the U.S. In this month’s Part Two, we examine edited witness testimony and, when available, selected field investigator notes, from the second quarter.

The following five cases all occurred one mile or under from the witness as we begin on May 26 in Minnesota.

May 26, 2011 – Sibley County, MN, FB1, Category 1. Case 29340.

“At around 2 p.m. on a cloudless, sunny afternoon in a parking lot we saw clearly a cylinder moving forward and stopping, reversing backwards, then flying forward and disappearing.  It was clearly metallic, without wings or tail. We have never seen a UFO before.  We were amazed.”

Field Investigator: “Witnesses had discussed their sighting in detail and for this reason they were interviewed together. Object was moving across the witnesses’ line of sight at about the speed of a commercial airliner for about a minute, then suddenly stopped and reversed direction, stopped again, and hovered for 5-10 seconds, then resumed forward direction, began to ascend, and accelerated to a speed considerably faster than a commercial airliner and disappeared as a point in the sky.  Both witnesses appear well educated. The military base is 2-3 miles away from the location of the sighting and the witnesses were certain that the object was not a plane or helicopter. Neither witness had prior interest in UFOs.”

May 28, 2011 – Pueblo County, CO, MA1, Category 1. Case 29305.

“At my home in my backyard playing horse shoes, I was walking southwest looking at the distant mountains. Looking up approx 800 to 1,000 feet flying southwest to northeast in a straight line, it moved without noise, first hovering, then moving out of sight within 45 seconds to a minute. A very eerie sight. Rotated at its center while hovering when I first observed it, it shown a white beam like light two or three times. Watched it pass directly over my house. I ran into the bottom back door, up the stairs and yelled at my wife to follow me outside through the front door. She did and by the time I pointed to where it was, it was already at the horizon of a ridge approximately one mile away. My wife saw it as it disappeared over the ridge. The object at first appeared as a cylinder shape, round on top and squared at the bottom (honestly it really reminded me of R2D2 in appearance). It was able to and did rotate at its center. There were what looked like two single extensions at its base when I first saw it. I later thought they may have been landing gear. But as it passed over, the extensions were no longer visible. The object was almost translucent in its appearance, kind of darker at the top and clear at its bottom half. I am a registered nurse, 59 years old and an Air Force vet. I am familiar with all sorts of odd looking craft being stationed Holloman AFB for the last two years of my enlistment. I think the oddest thing of the entire experience was that there was absolutely no noise made by this craft. In fact, for just a moment as it passed over head, I thought it may have been some sort of weather balloon, however, it had structure, was solid and very multi-dimensional in its character. It had left me astounded, dumbfounded and wondering if it was something my mind made up. But my wife saw it as well. A very out of this world experience. “

Field Investigators: “Witness walked us around property to where he was when noticed object. Note: Witness was in backyard playing horseshoes. Witness was facing in the direction of object when noticed it.  Stated it just seemed to appear and had a shimmering effect above it and what appeared to be landing posts under it. Witness states object never touched down, kind of hovered with what appeared to be a rotating center, then had a white beam appear two or three times on the ground. Witness stated he felt like or got the impression that it was looking for something – used word ‘purposeful’. Witness states was feeling apprehensive, embarrassed, confused, very tense.  Stated if had not ran in and gotten wife to come out front of house to see it moving away, would have questioned if he actually experienced it and would probably not have reported the incident.  Witness had drawing as requested of what he saw, which has been attached. Showed witness computer generated forensic composite illustrations based from actual CUFOS/MUFON/APRO and UFO evidence case files/chose # 24 & 36 as closest to what he observed. June 20, 2011, contacted Ft. Carson Public Affairs, questioned any experimental aircraft research going on in area.  Response:  No – stated home of 10th SFG(A) Airborne/helicopters, which is for unconventional warfare-special reconnaissance and foreign internal defense missions. Stated most training/military maneuvers done at Pinon Canyon. No other information obtained. June 30, 2011, it is the opinion of this investigator along with co-investigator that this was not a weather balloon or manmade object based on description provided.”

June 22, 2011 – Shawnee County, KS, AN1, Category 1. Case 29688.

“My wife and I were outside standing on the porch when I noticed from the southeast a strange, shining object. I said to my wife, ‘would you look at this, it’s weird.’ There’s no sound at all and no fuel trail lines in the sky behind it like a plane. I think it’s a UFO. She tried to take a picture with her camera phone, but couldn’t get it in frame. My neighbors were trying to figure out what we were seeing right in front of us in broad daylight!! It was moving pretty slow, so my neighbor went in her home and retrieved her binoculars. It was shaped like a short, fat missile with two large, circular lights beneath it. We watched it travel from east to west until it was no longer visible. About five minutes later it returned heading from the east to west. Today (June 23, 2011, about 3:10 p.m. )we witnessed three or more military choppers flying the same directions as if they were tracking something in the air. They flew back and forth for about 45 minutes.”

June 28, 2011 – La Porte County, IN, FB1, Category 1. Case 29801.

“We were in a parking lot on Pine Lake Road in LaPorte, IN.  I noticed a silver ‘plane’ flying to the west, but when I looked at it, there was no tail and no wings, although there did seem to be dark, vertically rectangular areas in the middle near where wings would be. It was flying low, at a descent altitude for planes, but flying horizontally, also much slower than a plane would appear to be moving at that altitude.  I was staring at it, trying to make out wings because I thought they had to be there. There was definitely nothing where the tail should be. We were looking at it from the side. I didn’t say anything to my husband because I felt silly, but a few seconds after I noticed it he said, ‘What is that thing?’.  Neither one of us had ever seen anything like it before. We watched it for a couple of minutes until it was small in the distance to the west. It was much too slender to be a blimp. I still think there must be some explanation that doesn’t involve aliens, but I sure can’t think of one.”

Field Investigator: “This report is very similar in description and time as that of report #29773. Occurrence was just about a half-hour earlier. I called the witness of the La Porte sighting on July 1, 2011. She and her husband’s sighting occurred about 9:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, June 28th. She said the apparent size was that of golf ball and the elevation was 60 degrees. The actual size is very difficult to determine and can only be approximately estimated. The witness believed it was at a low altitude, which if the case would put its actual length in the 32-100 foot category. There was some apparent structure on the object in the middle. Other than a first time sighting and the excitement of it there were no other unusual occurrences associated with this event.  Couple with the other events noted in the above referenced report it would indicate this was a UAV event. “

June 30, 2011 – Hartford County, CT, AN1, Category 1. Case 29935.

“This evening at approximately 8:01 p.m., I was sitting in the TV room with my wife; I mentioned I heard a band playing. She mentioned that’s probably the celebration for the completion of the world’s tallest sand castle at Winding Trails. As I stepped out the back door to identify the tune being played (looking west), I looked up and noticed a large cloud formation in the midst of the beautiful blue sky. The sun was setting, so it was crystal clear around this one large cloud, with the exception of a few smaller dissipating clouds. The sun had been setting so the sky was blue around and behind the clouds (west). I then noticed to my upper right (north / northwest), a shiny, silver cylindrical fuselage, ‘bullet-shaped craft’. As the sky was perfectly clear, this thing was traveling from the north side of my house towards the west approaching the cloud. At first I asked myself, ‘Is this a plane?’ I felt it was something different. Then I noticed it had no wings or tail. It had what looked like two small fins with two white, short air streaks following (less than half the size of the craft). This was coming off the fins (not a contrail). I also noticed it was silent, no sound, no engine was heard. We have much traffic from Bradley Airport and you can hear jet engines or prop engines readily at even higher altitudes. The craft seemed to be traveling in an arc toward this (cloud) destination. Now as it went into the cloud, I wanted to verify this was not a plane, as well as observe it further. As the trees seemed to be blocking this view, I quickly ran through the house to the front of the house to our driveway. I was viewing the cloud and sure enough no objects came out the back end. Since I could see this thing clearly, I believe it was traveling very slow – perhaps 100 to 200 mph. It seemed to glide upward toward the cloud. Upon looking at the cloud, to see where it might be, I then noticed it was becoming stationary near a small cloud. As the cloud drifted, it seemed to go with it in our direction. It was now over our home. I looked up right under this thing. It had a haze around it and seemed semi-transparent. While looking under it – still at cloud level it – had one red light (blinking) directly in the middle of the craft. As it hovered over my home, it then blinked once, then twice, and disappeared. It was something to watch. After checking cloud ceiling levels from New Britian weather channel, they were reported at 4,900 feet. The distance to the object was walked off and calculated to a distance of 6,169 feet. The object was initially in a cloud bank directly over the park event which was located at 3,748 feet. On a conservative calculation, using the cloud levels (weather.com), the distance to the event over which it was stationed (once at my home) and (just one-half mile away over the outdoor event), the craft size would be approximately between 100 to 150 feet long. It had what looked like a black streak down the middle of the craft’s length and what looked like windows. I hereby allow MUFON to study this case to see if similar cases have been reported. I heard Channel 8 news captured a few unidentified crafts in the storm clouds last week.”

Field Investigator: “[Weather: 56 deg.; barom, 29.89 rising ; wind: W;  visibility: 10 mi., WNW, 5.8 mph]

Witness viewed a cylindrical object that moved, hovered, appeared as in a haze, went into a cloud. Not sure if it was a plane; seemed semi-transparent. He drew and sent FI elaborate and detailed drawings (said he drew pictures of planes, etc. when a child). Not drinking, no drugs; on a diet. Drawings show lots of detail – uncertain how this can be viewed from one mile or so in distance. Enthusiasm of witness was noticeable. Trees blocked his view ; Bradley airport traffic is often in area. Witness gave estimates of height and distance, and size of object. Behavior of object did not seem to be that of a plane/jet. Unusual shape, colors. Uncertain if an IFO – man-made. Not a plane or helicopter as such. Summary: Unknown UAV.”

The cylinder or cigar-shaped UFO remains in the top 10 most reported objects each year for MUFON witness testimony. While we understand that many contemporary winged aircraft can easily be misidentified when viewed from the right angle, there are good cases where the witness is close enough to the object to rule out known craft.

In the early 1970s there was a rash of cigar-shaped sightings in southwestern Pennsylvania where the objects were very low – hovering and moving directly over building rooftops – and in multiple cases were spotted above electric company transformers where multiple fuses were blown.

I had an opportunity to videotape an interview with an eyewitness to a September 1987 sighting in this same region where the witness watched the object with two additional witnesses and later spoke with a power company employee who was repairing a transformer the morning after a sighting. The employee admitted he was aware of the UFO phenomena and in fact his company had actually issued a memo asking employees to be on the alert for these objects that were disrupting service in the area. The case was investigated at that time by UFO researcher Stan Gordon and this interview can be seen at YouTube.

The following is Part 1 of a four-part series covering CMS cylinder or cigar-shaped witness testimony from 2011 for cases closed as Unknown UAV. Edited witness testimony and, when available, an investigator statement is included.

Using the CMS variable “one mile and under” and lower object altitudes, there are five closed cases from 2011 from three states – Arizona, Kentucky and Texas. Our story begins early in the year, on January 4, in Arizona’s Prima County, part of the state’s south central region with a 2010 population of 980,263 and a land mass of 9,186 square miles.

January 4, 2011 – Prima County, AZ. FB1, Category 1. Case 27254.

“I am visiting my sister here in Tucson and last evening coming home out on Tanque Verdie Road west, ‘hopefully spelled right’, we noticed what honestly looked like an airplane to me. It was coming straight at us at about 3,000 ft, ‘I am a pilot’. Suddenly, a relatively bright ‘star like object’ appeared to drop from it slowly. It was under control by someone or something as it stopped a few seconds, then headed west several seconds. It then quickly headed back east toward us in the truck, maintaining altitude. It was changing colors from red to white but in a twinkling ‘star like fashion’. There was no place to pull over in the first few seconds, but we kept the object in sight. Then a second ‘star-like’ object came out, only this one was smaller. I got out and the ‘plane or whatever’ passed overhead. It was dark but I could see what looked like a long cylinder with very slim ‘wings’ at the very back. There was no audible sound. It had two white lights on the front, and two red lights at the rear close together in the center. There are lots of aircraft with a rear set wing, but these wings were coming from the very back where the horizontal stabilizers are normally located, and appeared to be more like sticks than wings as they were very narrow. It did not have the normal marking lights of an airplane. No red light on the port wingtip, no green light on the starboard side, and no white light at the rear, just the two red lights close together. Having never seen anything like this before I was caught up in the moment and lost sight of the smaller object as it was like a far away star you almost had to look away from slightly to see. I had binoculars in the truck but by the time I got them out I could not find the first star-like object any longer and the people in the back seat were making jokes about my sister and I as we were the only ones who could see it from the from the front seat of the four-door pick up. We were just a minute or two from home, and I again tried to relocate any part of what we saw, but could not. I just can’t understand what or why an aircraft would release something like that.”

Field Investigator: “Witness A called me and we discussed his sighting for approximately 45 minutes. I got the impression of Witness A as being entirely sincere about what he had witnessed. Given his background and life experiences I believe that he did indeed see something that is unexplainable.”

March 1, 2011 – Brazos County, TX. CE1, Category 2. Case 29274.

“One morning, around 2 a.m. in early March of 2011, I walked into my backyard to have a cigarette before going to sleep. Before I proceed, I want to state that I am an avid observer of the sky, particularly in the city of College Station. I can therefore attest that I am very familiar with seeing planes (commercial and military), stars, meteors, cloud formations, and just about anything else you would see if you spent a lot of time sky-watching. Going back to 2 a.m. early March of 2011, I had just walked outside and looked up like I always do facing southwest. About 45 degrees off the horizon, I noticed a rusty orange-colored object flying from south to north (my left to right). This object was close (less than 200 feet off the ground and less than 250 feet away from me) and made absolutely no sound. It was shoebox-shaped (cubic) and appeared orange-ish in color but only because it was reflecting the orange hue of street lights it was flying over. Had there been no streetlights, this craft would have appeared black. The craft was not very large, maybe only several cubic meters in volume. My immediate reaction to explain how it moved so straight at constant speed and constant elevation, made no sound, and was so close to me was that it had to be a glider. This cannot have been the case, however, as a glider would have a very visible wing structure, which this craft definitely lacked. Eventually, this object flew out of my sight bearing north. I have never seen an object fly like this before or after this event. Several days later, standing in the same backyard and looking in the sky northwest, I noticed an even stranger event. A few days later (no more than 4) right around sunset (approximately 7:30 p.m.), I was sitting in my backyard and noticed a white, vertically oriented cigar-shaped object, relatively far away, about 15 degrees off the horizon, that appeared to be moving. This object was brilliantly white, in stark contrast to other clouds in the sky that were painted red and orange by the setting sun. As I stared, this object appeared to be changing and moving as I could see the object crossing below and then going back above a non-moving power line that happened to be in the same line of sight between me and this object. I watched this object for about a minute, and during that time its color remained this odd white, but its shape changed from vertical cigar, then shrunk into a sphere maybe a quarter the size of the cigar, then elongated into a horizontal-shaped cigar, and then shrunk back into a sphere. When it shrunk back into a sphere the second time, a bright orange point of light began shining from within this cloud-like sphere. The light was not moving, was colored bright orange, and was not any star or planet I have ever seen. It was still daylight out and maybe a few other stars or planets were even visible at this point in the evening, but this light was 10 times brighter than any other object/light in the sky. This convinced me to run inside and get out a half broken telescope and viewing the object through the starfinder of the telescope (similar angular resolution as a rifle scope). Looking through the starfinder at the still shining sphere revealed something incredible, and something I will do my best to describe in words. The orange light appeared star-like (a point source) and was very bright. It was orange, and its color stayed constant. Its position remained constant with regards to the ‘sphere’ and in my line of sight, making it seem as if both the orange light and the cloud-like sphere it came from were not moving with regards to each other or me. The orange light was coming from under what looked like a mushroom cap that colored this cloud like white. The best way I can describe what the cloud-like shapes (that turned into the mushroom cap) looked like would be very similar to the vapor cone that forms around a jet as it breaks the sound barrier. Very similar in texture and color. Eventually, both the orange light and the cloud-like mushroom cap disappeared into invisibility. They more or less faded from sight as I was looking at them. I have not seen anything unusual since these two sightings, but because of them I find myself constantly watching the skies with an undying anxiety of seeing something similar. I know what I saw and I know it was no object, natural or man-made, that I had ever seen before or have ever seen since.”

Investigator: “The object was first reported in the south to be about 200 feet above the ground and about 250 feet from the witness. Witness stated that the object was in the shape of a shoe box about 6 feet long by 3 feet wide and about 2.5 feet thick. The object was reported to have an orange glow but the witness seems to think that it was picking up the street lights below. The object was last seen in the north and just disappeared in front of the witness. There are three minor airfields location in the Bryan College Station area. West of College Station is Texas AM Test Station. To the northeast is Coulter Field and to the south is Easterwood Field. At this time this Investigation can’t determine what the witness may have experienced.  It should be noted that that College Station is the home of Texas A&M and it has been the experience of this Investigator that we have gotten some hoaxed reports in the area. The witness was reluctant to give any further information about his personal information. This leads this Investigator to believe there should be some question about this report. The size and description given by the witness is also in some question. At this time this Investigator can’t prove or disprove what the witness saw. This case will be closed as an Unknown UAV.”

March 2, 2011 – Jefferson County, KY. FB1, Category 1. Case 28068.

“Bardstown Road, MacDonalds in the Highlands. Driving around the back of the store to go through the ‘drive through’.  Looked up and saw object to the east moving north to south at a decent clip. Being in the car and the angle, we could not get a picture with our cell phones.  We kept looking for evidence that it was a plane and that with the angle of the sun the wings and tail fins were not evident.  As it passed we realized there were not any wings or tail fins and that it was longer than a plane.  It was close enough to see it decently.  It moved on to the south.  Not a usual flight pattern but not unheard of for planes.  But as we looked it did not have wings or tail fins. Currently I do not wish to be contacted by third parties, but could change this status if need be. There was no sound. We had the windows of the car open.”

Investigator: “The reporting witness was very well grounded and creditable. Her description and sighting reflects a pattern which is being reported across the state. Case closed and disposed as ‘Unknown’.”

March 2, 2011 – Coleman County, TX. FB2, Category 2. Case 28070.

“Large well lit craft with three huge lights appeared at a very low altitude and banked hard and lights went out. A dozen very light blue lights moved about the area and circled my location flashing very quickly in a random pattern but never going too far from my location. Large craft first spotted reappeared at times just above the tree line to the west. Then lights again went out. Blue lights flew directly over my location and what seemed like a small craft revealed they were a very large craft with almost no lights on and the only one on that was on was on the very edge of the huge craft. The craft was at least a city block long and holding a tight but slow circular pattern around my location. The large craft appeared close and higher above the tree line. One light disappeared as it rotated out of view and another came on large and bright in the center of the craft. I thought the object was going to pass right over me but it backed away instead and the lights went out again. I could hear the roar of a jet approaching. I saw its lights as it passed overhead. All activity ceased but started back up not three minutes after the jet left the area. The large craft reappeared with two lights showing and looked again as if it was going to pass right over me. Once again the lights went out and I could hear the roar of a jet approaching the area again. I saw the jet streak through the area and the activity stopped again. I left the area and  saw a large, bright object high in the sky. It was located directly over a rural home. I could see folks standing on the front porch and vehicle parking lights on. I stopped to get a picture of the object above the house. It began moving away and I could easily see it had triangular lights on the bottom but my pictures didn’t come out as good as they should have of this slow-moving craft. Captured many pictures and some video of these events, but they do not do justice to what I personally witnessed.”

Investigator: “. I found this witness to be credible.”

March 28, 2011 – Coconino County, AZ. FB2, Category 2. Case 28523.

“I run a paranormal blog, and I took a trip to Sedona, AZ, last week for fun and to see if I could capture anything on film for my blog. I had been told by locals that things often show up on camera near the ‘vortexes’ that don’t show up to the naked eye. As my parents and I hiked up Bell Rock, I took several pictures of the sky and carefully scanned first to make sure I wasn’t photographing any planes, hawks or helicopters.  The sky was totally clear to my eye when I took this. Upon reviewing my photos last night, I found several anomalies only in the skies of Sedona photos, but this was the strangest one. It appears to be disc-shaped, grayish or silver, with some kind of white vertical cylinder in the center. I have attached the un-edited, full-size original photo, as well as a close-up of just the object.  To find the UFO in the full-size, look at the center of the sky area, then slightly up and slightly left.”

Investigator: “This is a peculiar type of sighting because the object was only “seen” by a digital camera.  There were three persons present, but none of them saw the object.  It only appeared in the photo.”

The following are selected triangle cases that were investigated by MUFON during the fourth quarter 2011. All cases were closed as Unknown UAV. Field Investigator notes follow the edited witness testimony. The object in each of these nine cases was under 100 feet.

October 3, 2011 – Jackson County, MO. CE1, Category 2. Case 32621.

“We were driving back to Lees Summit via 291 Hwy South.  My wife was driving the U-haul 14-foot truck and I was on the passenger side.  Somewhere on 291 Hwy just past Woods Chapel (around 8 p.m.-ish), I saw through the front left corner of the windshield what I thought were lights on top of a building.  As I realized there were no buildings there I then thought it was a billboard with a series of lights on it as the lights were just hovering there motionless. (It was a pretty dark and on-coming traffic headlights made it hard to see eye level detail).  These lights I would say were around 100 feet off the ground and they looked like a Christmas tree lit up (with white/amber lights) lying on its side with the ‘tip’ of the tree pointing in the south direction.  As soon as I realized something was odd about the lights I quickly pointed them out to my wife.  As we got closer to the lights another object caught my attention. It was hovering at the same level as the first set of lights and about 100 feet south of it. This second object, I thought was a helicopter and got the impression that it was checking out the first object (either police or news crew helicopter). It too was odd looking as it had red and blue (and green?) blinking lights in an angular pattern outlining it and I don’t think it was a helicopter as it was a dark object hovering motionless with no tilt or wobble you see on a helicopter trying to hover in one spot. At the same time I was trying to start up the camera on my phone.  Although I managed to video a little just as we passed it, the movement and low lighting made it impossible to distinguish anything. Regretting not having my regular digital camera with me, my senses were at a heightened state after seeing such odd objects in an odd setting (odd objects hovering in plain sight next to a highway with heavy traffic). We continued on south on 291 Hwy. After a couple of minutes, the first object, being brightly lit against a dark sky, again caught my attention.  This time it was out my passenger side window, the rapid motion and lights from it got my attention as it flew fluidly (at about the same altitude) from a north to south direction. I watched it for a second or two and it separated into three separate objects; one set of lights continued to fly forward while two other sets of lights immediately turned on a dime and went the opposite direction (north). The one set of lights closest to me tilted slightly to the west as it made the turn allowing me to see the underside. It had three lights forming a triangle. None of these three objects had blinking lights at any time, only the constant white amber lights.”

Field Investigator: “The witness is very sincere.  He has had several sighting lately and has produced video and photos.  This sighting was on the night of the 3rd when no planes were scheduled out of the Lees Summit Airport.  The two objects he and his wife saw were completely different.  The first object is the one that I am more concerned with as the second one seems to have more conventional features.”

October 17, 2011 – Polk County, IA. CE1, Category 2. Case 32682.

“Looked like an airplane because of red blinking lights, but suddenly stopped and hovered and red lights turned off and it came back from the way it was going,” the witness stated. “Kept moving slowly at this point until I could no longer see it because of the trees. Once the red lights went away, a green light appeared on one point of the triangular object. The rest of the lights were yellow-clear. Also had very small lights on the bottom of the object that sort of outlined the triangular shape.

Field Investigator: “At 7:12 p.m. on Monday night, October 17, 2011, as the witness approached Exit 79 on Highway 65N, witness saw a dark-surfaced triangle with many lights, estimated at 50-60 feet to the right (east) at tree top level (witness estimates 50 feet altitude, and a size of some 30 feet).  Object moved away (east) from witness briefly, then stopped to hover briefly, then moved back toward witness, moving silently over witnesses’ car at 90 degrees, and continuing on to witnesses’ left (west) beyond some trees, and out of sight. Witness estimates a distance of 50-60 feet to her right, at treetop level when first seen.  Using 50 feet altitude as it passed overhead at 90 degrees, yields a possible size of some 32 feet, which roughly agrees with witnesses’ perception of the size of the triangle.”

October 18, 2011 – Arapahoe County, CO. CE1, Category 2. Case 32709.

“I came out to give mail to my cousin-in-law,” the witness stated. “He was showing me pictures of his new baby. We were standing on my front porch. He said something about a falling star. I looked up and saw nothing. A few seconds passed and I heard the neighbor dogs whine like nothing I’ve ever heard. I took a step forward and looked up again and suddenly a black triangle was right above us. No lights; nothing but a black object. I repeatedly asked if he could see it. He said ‘no.’ It moved slightly bearing southeast and it passed between two trees. I then saw the side – three orange colored lights. Then it changed angles and I was able to see two sides with three lights each. It made no noise as it faded into the horizon at great speed. I immediately thought a government drone or military craft. I live close to an Air Force base and have never seen anything like it. I have personally witnessed three drones and this was nothing like it. There were no lights on the bottom at all. There was a strange haze around the ship like a magnetic field around it. I’ve never had this kind of feeling. I’ve always been able to find a reasonable explanation. Not this time. 

Field Investigator: “Although there are many gaps in the information for this case, the amount of detail in the description seems to discount the possibility that the stimulus could have been any conventional aircraft, satellite or astronomical event.  Another case reported for the same date seems to corroborate this sighting as both reports describe a dark, triangular-shaped craft with indistinct edges at low altitude silently passing overhead.  Both reports contain strikingly different details, but none that can’t be explained by progressive, or alternative functioning at the varied times of sighting.  The Investigator contacted Offutt AFB, NB and Whiteman AFB, MO and found that neither had any B-2 or other ‘stealth’ aircraft in the area during the month of October 2011. No indication of deception or collaboration on the part of the witnesses of the two reports could be found. Taking the evidence available, it seems that, lacking any further evidence in either case, the only disposition that can be given to this case is Unknown Aerial Vehicle.”

October 24, 2011 – Summit County, OH. CE1, Category 2. Case 32919.

“On this particular night I was outside smoking,” the reporting witness stated. “My girlfriend was in our apartment and I called her on her cell to tell her to check out these bright, red pulsating lights. I felt like someone was listening to our phone call. Very creepy. She came outside and that thing disappeared. We were talking and next thing we know, she tells me to look up, and we see this triangle object, steel gray looking, no lights or sound, is hovering and headed towards us. It hovered over our heads. We ran inside because we were scared to death. I have a very uneasy feeling about it and I’m scared. We told a few people, but they think we’re crazy. It was too close and I feel like something isn’t right.”

Field Investigator: “Based on the narrative it seems to be an unknown object.  There are many sightings that fit this description and so far we have not been able to determine what it is.”

November 7, 2011 – Allegheny County, PA. CE1, Category 2. Case 33962.

“I was driving down East Willock Road and noticed a bright light in the sky,” the witness stated. “As I kept on driving down that road, which leads to Street Run Road, I noticed this thing was not moving at all. It took me 4 to 5 minutes to get to the actual spot that it was hovering on at Dalwar Road. As I got under it I noticed it was silent and huge with three lights that were like a yellowish white color. It looked to be like a boomerang/triangle shape to it as I was under it. It moved so slow I didn’t take my eyes off it at all. That’s when I only saw the left side of its shape. It was a dark object – huge. It was a very clear night. It moved so slow, then it disappeared, and there were no clouds where I was at this time. I also was the only car on that road at the time, which was weird. It’s a busy street. It was 9:20 p.m. on November 7, 2011.”

Field Investigator: “Object size at 100 – 200 feet – took entire hand width with arm fully extended to cover.  Silent, hovering, black, triangle or boomerang shape, three lights toward the midline of the craft, steady, no color changes. Visualized for 4 -5 minutes, suddenly vanished. No additional witness. No physical effects on observer or to the car or cell phone.”

November 8, 2011 – Anne Arundel County, MD. CE1, Category 2. Case 33217.

“Looking at field across from the house on Governors Bridge Road where normal flight path is for BWI flights,” the witness stated. “It is a very clear night no cloud cover. We noticed a large craft flying low that changed directions and tilted to fly towards where we were standing in front of the yard on the other side of the road. We questioned why it was so bright and low. We also heard nothing that sounded like jets or planes. As the craft reached towards the road, we noticed three distinct white lights on each corner and a flashing red light on top of the craft and the craft was approximately 5,000 feet up, which is not normal for planes that large to fly in this residential/rural area. It then flew over us silently, tilted once again to make a faint turn, and realized it was an isosceles triangle. It slowly flew past and above us down Governors Bridge Road towards Route 50. It was so clear and unbelievable that we witnessed this craft. I ran inside quickly to get my phone to take pictures, but it had flown off and didn’t return. Date: November 8, 2011. Time: 8:30 p.m. Duration: 2 minutes. Sighting City: Davidsonville. Sighting Zip: 21035. Sighting County: Anne Arundel. Witnesses: 2. Shape: Triangle. Number of Craft: 1.

November 29, 2011 – Sacramento County, CA. CE1, Category 2. Case 33721.

“At approximately 9:17 p.m. I was traveling northbound on I-5 approaching Del Paso exit and I saw a craft shoot up from the ground and steadily rise up with a bright blue light, a shade of blue which I can’t describe,” the witness stated. “It looked to be circular, but as it rose its lights made it look stealth bomber in shape.  As it rose the lights changed to a green color, then to a purplish pink. It then darted diagonal in multi directions and then went downward only to rise again. As the object entered my rear view mirror, the colored lights were now a pale blue and it was hovering, but making a small circle. It then dropped again and then I was out of view. This object was flying in/over a field and no other lights were present in the field.”

Field Investigator: “Though she couldn’t clearly see the object shape itself because of the blinding lights, she could clearly see lights which were in a delta shape, and changing colors.  The witness doesn’t believe that the object was a remote controlled plane or drone because some of the side to side movements she doesn’t believe could be done with conventional aircraft.  The object approached within 15 to 20 feet of her car. The witness seemed very straightforward and her story matched previous versions, making her credible in my mind.”

December 6, 2011 – Lewis County, WV. CE1, Category 2. Case 33856.

“My mother and I were coming back from my girlfriend’s house,” the reporting witness stated. We came driving up a hill and I noticed a light above the car that drew my attention. I looked up and I saw a dark object maybe 20-30 feet in size and within 50-75 feet above the car. It was in the shape of an oval and had lights coming from the bottom which shined the normal color, but the object itself was a grayish blue color with a definite shape and did not have wings of any sort. It seemed to hover for a split second, and then shot directly over the car. And when I looked out the back window as we passed, it was gone.”

Field Investigator: “Both witnesses agreed on the discription of the object, grayish in color with a blueish aura surrounding it, approximately 30 feet in length and 20 feet across at the widest point.  Witness A also noticed seven white lights on the underside of it.  He said it was roughly triangular in shape with rounded corners, roughly the shape of a guitar pick.  The craft had three white lights running down the sides of it, with a seventh approximately centered in it.  The witnesses stated that the craft seemed to appear in front and above their car while driving down a country road.  Witness B briefly but clearly saw the craft as there was another car approaching theirs.  Witness A continued to watch it untill the roof of the car blocked his vision.  He stated that it was approximately 50 to 75 feet above the ground at that time.  Upon looking out the back window, he stated that it seemed to have disappeared.  He didn’t know whether it went straight up or sped off, or simply disappeared.  Witness B was driving and stated that the cars lights and engine didn’t react to the proximity of the object.  However, the next day, all of the warning lights on the dash suddenly came on and stayed on untill she shut the engine off.  Upon restarting, it behaved normally.  She had just purchased it and didn’t know whether that was a normal occurrence for it or not.  Both witnesses stated that the craft made no sound whatsoever.  In fact ,they said that there was almost an unnormal quietness in the air at that time.  Witness B also stated that at approximately 4:30 a.m. the next morning she was awakened with a severe headache.  She said that she had never experienced one of that type or severity before, and she considered going to the hospital, but it eventually went away.  Witness A also suffered a headache of the same kind upon waking at 8:30 that morning.  They stated that they haven’t suffered any more since that morning.  I checked the vehicle for any signs of exposure to any electro-magnetic radiation, but found none.  Both witnesses seemed honest and straight forward in their report and we felt there was no reason not to believe them.”

December 17, 2011 – Prince George County, VA. CE1, Category 2. Case 34196.

“On December 17, 2011, at approximately 6:05 a.m., I was warming up my vehicle getting ready to babysit for a friend,” the witness stated. “As I was in reverse pulling out of my driveway I noticed a light. I looked out of the passenger side window and did not notice a vehicle headed in my direction. I immediately noticed to my right, and as I continued to pull out, right ahead of me approximately 100 feet just above the tree line was a triangle-shaped UFO.  The UFO appeared to have been coming from the right as I first saw it and changed its direction to the left flying straight ahead from where I sat in my vehicle.  At first, before it changed its direction, I only noticed a bright white light. After the direction changed I could see the entire bottom, which had one bright, white light on the front and two in the back and one red flashing light in the middle of the two white lights in the back.  I heard no sound emitting from this aircraft and only noticed it because of the light. It did not appear to be at a fast pace.  I did not notice it speed up or slow down. It continued on its path in the same pace. I then turned on a road heading in the same direction and tried to keep a visual with it on my left but lost sight of it.  In my mind I tried to debate it. I see planes in this area all of the time, but they fly at a much higher altitude and I could still hear them.  This craft was very low, just above the tree line, with no sound and a flashing red light. This lasted about two minutes.”

Field Investigator:  “The sole witness was a former Military Police Officer and as such has been trained to observe details. In her 9 years of service in the military she has been exposed to different military aircraft and readily admits that she had never seen anything like what she witnessed the morning of December 17, 2011. She states that she is unfamiliar with the subject of UFOs. Her reaction to the event was not one of being scared, but curious to find a realistic answer to what she was witnessing. Because of her background the information she provides is most valuable. Here is the information she provided the investigator. The morning was clear and at the time of the event there were twilight light conditions. ‘The craft’ she saw was in the shape of a triangle with equal sides. The edges were clear and well defined. There was not anything like an exhaust emanating from the craft or any noise related to the event. The bottom of the object appeared solid. She describes the altitude as 100 feet above the trees surrounding her. She added that the trees are no more than 20 feet high. She describes a white light on each corner of the triangle which appeared to be of equal intensity. There was a blinking red light between the two lights in the tail of the object. The witness saw the object turn and change directions. The object appeared to change direction by rotating on its axis. It did not dip towards the new direction.  She estimates the speed of the object as 15 to 20 mph. She was not aware of any other witnesses to the event. She did share her experience with her co workers and family. ‘They laughed as I knew they would.’ Because of the light conditions we have a very good description of the triangular object. Although appearing solid, and we can conclude ‘heavier than air’ its propulsion is soundless and the way it turns and its speed indicate that it does not rely on aerodynamics for lift. The object showed a steady course and did not wobble thus eliminating the possibility of a balloon or other lighter than air object. The triangular shape can be mistaken for a modern fighter aircraft. The closest Air Force Base to the location is Langley Air Force Base about 70 miles to the southeast. Langley is home base for the new F-22 Raptor fighter. The Raptor relies on two powerful and noisy jet engines and is unable to travel at 15 -20 mph unless on the ground taxiing. Conclusion: Unidentified Object.”

The following are selected triangle cases that were investigated by MUFON during the third quarter 2011. All cases were closed as Unknown UAV. Field Investigator notes – if available – follow the edited witness testimony.

PART THREE

July 3, 2011 – Orange County, CA. CE1, Category 2. Case 30861.

“While we were fishing at a local private lake my husband noticed an odd dimly lit triangle-shaped object coming our direction traveling in a southwest direction,” the reporting witness stated. “He turned to me and told me to look at it to make sure he was really seeing what we both believed to be a UFO. It was traveling at a steady pace at about 70-80 miles per hour at about one-quarter to one-half mile up. It was very clearly a triangle shape and had very defined points to it. We were both very baffled as to how something that shape could be flying in the night sky. The sky was free from clouds and it was very clear out. As it passed by it blocked the view of the stars, so we knew we were looking at a solid object. It was a very surreal feeling to be looking at this object. It kind of scared me a bit as well. Being a very logical person I was going through things it might be in my head as I was analyzing it as it flew over. There was nothing that I could logically say it resembled that I have ever seen and I have seen many TV programs about military aircrafts and prototypes and this looked nothing like anything I have ever seen in my life. I would say the size would be in proportion with a 747 jet. It had three very dim, square lights at each triangle point. The lights were a white glow similar to a florescent bulb and they were casting a glow in between each light showing the triangle shape. As it flew over we noticed that there was no sound whatsoever and as it passed us we could see the back of it as it glided over us. It was flying perfectly in a straight line and parallel to the sky. It never pivoted or veered off course. After it passed by we got a very good view of the back of the craft. It was a flat dark surface about 15 to 20 feet high. We continued to watch it until it was out of sight. I have to say that was a very eerie feeling and I will never forget what I saw that night.”

Field Investigator: “The witnesses were very observant and did a good job in providing a lot of evidence for this report.  This report fits the description of a typical Triangular craft seen by many witness before so I would say that it is an unknown flying craft since it could be extraterrestrial or one of ours.”

July 20, 2011 – Sacramento County, CA. FB1, Category 1. Case 30277.

“I was letting my dogs out on the porch when I noticed an extremely large, white, oddly-shaped aircraft above the trees across the street,” the witness stated. “The blinking lights first caught my attention. I immediately thought it was a UFO. It was flying from the north to south at a steady pace. I called for everyone inside to hurry outside to see what they thought it was. We lost sight of it when it appeared to make a left hand turn and started descending. It was an extra large, white, silent aircraft with huge triangular vertical wings on top with intermittent flashing blue lights and red lights on bottom.”

Field Investigator: “Although the witness is a 12-year-old child, he was very intelligent and clear in his responses to my questions.  I could not sense any fabrication or fantasy. His answers were clear and direct. When I asked him if he had ever seen anything like this object, he said no, and that it wasn’t any kind of aircraft that he’d ever seen before. He specifically described the object as being some kind of ship.  Given the information presented by the witness, I am classifying this case and an Unknown Aerial Vehicle.”

August 5, 2011 – Montgomery County, PA. CE1, Category 2. Case 30686.

“1) Driving on 422 east between Trooper and the Oaks Exits (directly across from the Christian Academy but on the Valley Forge side of the road.) 2) Unusual, never before spotted in that area. 3) From far away it looked like a radio tower, but there were three white lights and no red flashing light. 4) Twenty feet off ground, object did not move while I was watching. There were three white lights (not blinding, however, I could not see above the side of the UFO). 5) Called my friend who was following me to make sure she saw it too. She did and we both were in complete shock. She first thought it was a fighter jet, however, when we got closer there were no markings, no color, no amo and it did not move. 6) Continued to drive on 422.”

Field investigator: “Through several other independent sources we were able to collaborate the witnesses’ sighting.  We were able to triangulate the object and it was Unknown.”

August 5, 2011 – Chesterfield County, VA. CE1, Category 2. Case 30699.

“Was out on back deck on a smoke break,” the witness stated. “Was coming inside and caught a view of red lights in the shape of a triangle. Thought – how is that plane flying like that? More like floating or moving slowly, while keeping triangular shape. Seemed to turn slightly, slowly, changing shape. Then returning to triangle shape. Seemed to descend a little, noticeable cloudy substance appeared underneath which cast a shadow of what seemed to be a mass. Thought – what new stuff is the Air Force testing these days? Cool. Then it seemed to ascend a little and move behind the tree line towards the soccer fields.”

Field Investigator: “Salient feature of her observations was the fact that the object appeared to change shape as it turned. When questioned about the turn, she states that the object appeared to bank in the direction of the turn rather than turn on its axis. Most remarkable was the appearance of what she described as a cloudy substance that appeared under the object. She stated that it was not smoke, but it reflected from the object making it evident that it had mass. She offered that she did not know what plasma would look like, but it had that appearance. The witness appears truthful and bewildered by the experience. She tried to seek a logical explanation for what she was witnessing, e.g. airplane, helicopter, experimental aircraft, etc., but quickly realized that there was nothing she could compare the object to. Conclusion: Unidentified Aerial Vehicle.”

August 6, 2011 – Trumbull, OH. CE1, Category 2. Case 31000.

“I’ve been watching the skies for quite some time,” the witness stated. “Being an ex-military bomb tech whose primary job was to load the weapons on just about any military aircraft around, naturally I have a knack to look up at the skies. Well recently I have been noticing helicoptor-ish air craft in the air at night. Now not all nights, but most nights. Well I noticed that these certain aircraft would spend long amounts of time just hovering in one spot. I noticed they ‘flashed in a certain way’ and that their lights would completely change when another aircraft in the sky approached. Now where I live I am in quite an active air space as I am not far from a major airport. But it seems odd for these strange aircraft to just ‘hang around’. Not to mention it costs around $3,000 an hour to keep any type of aircraft like that in the air, let alone several. So naturally I assumed them to be government aircraft looking for marijuana growers. Well one night I was outside around 10 o’clock and I was bringing my dog in off the line when I stopped and noticed that there were three of these in the air that night. I noticed one beginning to travel to my left. Having been interested in these for quite some time I made the not-so-bright decision to flash my green led flashlight at it and it quickly vanished from sight. Shortly after the other two started to travel in opposite direction – one to the left (almost the same but not quite the same path as the previous) and one to the right. Within seconds I could hardly keep my eyes on both without turning my head from side to side. Then I began to have an interesting feeling, so I turned around and no more than 50 feet above my house was emerging a strange triangular aircraft. It was dull in color and seemed to have the front wing span flush with the front of the air craft. The wings had a red and blue light on the front outside edges. And in the very front there was a strange faint ‘tracing back and forth light’ in the very front right below what would have been the cockpit. All the while it never made a sound. I ran as fast as I could and got under the safety of my front door and out of the view of the strange craft. I immediately began to yell for my wife, who of course at the time heard nothing. After several seconds ‘which seemed like eternity’ of me yelling and noticing the craft was just hovering above the house, I made the decision to go get my wife. Better to have a witness, right? Upon getting her to the door, the craft had began moving again and was now about 100 feet away and headed out over the field behind our house. Shortly after it was joined by the other two and they all sailed out of sight. After five years in the military I have worked with all kinds of aircraft and all I can say is – well – let’s just say the next day my wife went out and bought a shot gun. They still appear quite regularly, nothing as close though, just waiting. The ball is in their court.”

August 8, 2011 – Alachua County, FL. CE1, Category 2. Case 30859.

“I was driving my truck down Hickery Hammock Road on my way home from work. A quarter mile from my street, I observed bright lights about a half of a mile ahead of me in the middle of the road. After getting closer it looked like a circus tent and upon getting closer the shape of a pyramid became more visible to me. They were shaped like three pyramids with mirrors and glowing lights outlining the objects. Two were hovering in the road about five feet above the road, and the third was hovering about 60 to 70 feet to the right above the power lines. My feelings during the encounter were at awe. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing and tried to figure out what it could be in the middle of nowhere. I then texted friends and family and told them of my sighting; four of whom believe me . I then drew pictures of what I had seen. I lost sight of the objects when an oncoming car was coming toward me behind them. Before the car got too close to them, they vanished through thin air; like cutting off a light switch.”

Field Investigator: “Talking with witness, his testimony is consistent each time. I am closing this case as Unknown UAV.”

August 10, 2011 – Howard County, IN. AN1, Category 1. Case 30792.

“Traveling north on US 31 at southern edge of Kokomo when an object appearing to be on fire appeared in front of us just at treetop telephone pole level from the west,” the witness stated. “Others on 31 had to have seen it because everyone was hitting their brakes (10:30 p.m.) Not having any idea what it was, we followed it a short way through a subdivision.  It ascended into the sky to the east for at least a mile and poof it disappeared just as it had appeared.  When we got home 45 minutes later, two large jets flew very low over our home heading east. (Grissom AFB is nearby).  A friend told me they flew over again about 3:30 a.m. and woke her up.  The jets are very unusual any more since Grissom is no longer a regular AFB. Wish we’d taken photos with our cell phones, but did not have time.”

Field Investigator: “She stated that on a clear sky evening of Aug. 9, 2011, she and her grandson were driving north on State Road 31 when, on the south edge of Kokomo approaching the Kokomo Mall vicinity, they saw from their car window what appeared to be an object that they first believed to be burning because of the red-orange glowing color and because the outline of the object seemed ‘fuzzy’ around the edges.  She observed the object to be of a triangular shape about half the size of a car and that she, at first, thought it to be a piece of cardboard on fire.  However, upon further observation realized that the object was not burning. The object first appeared to the witnesses as ‘just out of the blue’.  The witness could not discern whether the object was under intelligent control or not.  After traveling horizontally northward along the treetops the witness said the object began to ascend upwards in an eastwardly direction to about a mile high before disappearing as suddenly as it had first appeared.  The witness believed the object was observed by others in vehicles in front of her as they were braking ahead of her vehicle.  When she arrived home, she observed jets flying out of Grissom in eastwardly direction towards the location she had observed the object.  Witness B, the grandson, is in agreement on all aspects of the reported sighting.  Because of several anomalies of the phenomenon witnessed, including the sudden appearance, the lack of sound, the overall red-orange glow, and the sudden ascension and subsequent and sudden disappearance of the object and, with lack of photos, video, or other physical evidence, I am determining the object observed to be an Unknown Ariel phenomenon of an MA1 classification status.”

August 17, 2011 – Atlantic County, NJ. CE1, Category 2. Case 31221.

“We were pulling a horse trailer west bound on I-80,” the reporting witness stated. “Saw what I thought was an airplane with its lights on flying very low and headed directly toward us. We were coming up a hill and the lights were about 1-2 miles in the distance and just above the hill we were climbing. It almost looked like a very bright street light right on top of the hill we were driving except it was too bright and a little too high to be a street light. As we got closer it became apparent that it was moving too slowly to be an airplane. As we got closer we saw that is was a large triangular-shaped craft drifting over the roadway from southwest toward northeast. It made no noise and it had two green, pulsating lights on either side that did not appear to be attached to the craft. The lights looked to be about 10 feet off to each side. It had bright lights pointing forward attached to the forward point of the triangle and lights along the back line of the triangle. I slowed down to about 5-10 mph and passed directly under the craft as it drifted over the road. I then pulled to the shoulder and watched it disappear behind the tree tops. It looked to be 200-300 feet high and became out of sight when it passed over the trees along the edge of the roadway. There were other vehicles on the road that had to see it, but we were the only ones to slow down and pull over to the side to get a better look.”

August 20, 2011 – Harris, TX. FB1, Category 1. Case 31087.

“On the night of Friday Aug,20,2011, as i was going to get something to eat at 9:00 at night. I left my house and drove east over the F.M.1960 bridge crossing over Lake Houston. As i entered the bridge i could see an object moving very slowly almost stationary over the east side of the bride. As i approached the object i could see (thru my sun roof)a triangular shaped craft illuminated by its 5 bright white lights. The object was almost directly over me at an altitude of around 500 feet. I could make out the outline of the craft by its lights illuminating the object. It seemed to be almost drifting towards the Northwest had no sound and was around 150 feet in diameter. After crossing the bridge and wanting another look at this strange object i did a u-turn and crossed the bridge again heading west. The object was moving North at this point and was around a mile away. I know other people must have seen the object as there were others crossing the bridge as well. Ive lived here for 3 years and seen thousands of planes fly over the Lake. This was not ur typical airplane and unlike anything i have ever seen.”

Field Investigator: “The craft that the witness selected from a group of experimental aircraft is the well known TR-3B. This experimental craft is a possible back engineered vehicle by the US government. As of this date the US Government has not released an official statement in regards to the TR-3B. On June 6, 2011, at 11:30 p.m. a witness in Ennis, TX, saw this same craft (See case 29484). On June 10, 2011, at 4:05 a.m. a witness identified the craft in Conroe, TX (See case 29476). Disposition:  This case will be cleared as an Unknown UAV.”

The following are selected triangle cases that were investigated by MUFON during the second quarter 2011. All cases were closed as Unknown UAV. Field investigator notes follow the edited witness testimony.

PART TWO

April 4, 2011 – Tarrant County, TX. CE1, Category 2. Case 28545.

“I was letting my dog out in the yard and saw a triangular object moving very slowly to the northwest over my neighbor’s yard,” the witness stated.  “I was looking at mostly the underside of it and there were three white lights and one red light on the underside. The lights were what drew my attention to it. It was moving too slowly to be a plane, was only about 25 feet above the ground and I did not notice any noise. It was not particularly large, but I can’t estimate the size. I thought of the stealth bomber, since it was triangular, but it wasn’t big enough and was so close to the ground that I couldn’t believe that was what it was. I was quite frightened by it and made my dog come back in the house, closed the door and walked away from the door.”

Field Investigator: “Witness stated she was letting her dog out in the backyard when she noticed a green/gray triangular craft with dim, white lights on the tips of the craft and a red light in the center about 40 feet from her yard; stationary. The craft by her estimates was about 25 feet from the ground. Witness said she was frightened and retrieved her dog and went back into the house. Approximately 15 seconds elapsed.”

April 5, 2011 – Jackson County, MO. CE3, Category 2. Case 28549.

“I was awakened at 3:15 this morning by my German Sheppard who came to get me out of bed,” the witness stated. “She would not stop barking at something in the back yard. She wanted me to go to the back door. As I walked through the kitchen I stopped. I could see a whitish/bluish bright light coming in the window in the door and the back windows. I had never seen any lights like this and thought it must be a helicopter looking for someone. I did not hear any sound, though, and thought that was odd. I am a retired police officer and at that point, I felt uneasy, so I went back to the bedroom to get my gun, which is always loaded. I then went back to the kitchen and opened the back door. At that point the light just blinked out. I looked around the yard and looked up where the light was, and saw a very dark, dull black triangle shape above me. It had no lights on at that point. The object appeared to measure the width of my yard (50 feet) and just floated there, unmoving. I heard a noise towards the back fence and looked in that direction. Then I remembered my flashlight and went to get it from the kitchen drawer, when I heard a sound in the hallway behind me. It sounded like an animal of some sort (two clicks), so I shined the flashlight there for a few seconds but saw nothing. I then went back out to the back porch and shined the flashlight in the direction of the noise I heard outside and saw a very strange, short (approximately 4-foot-tall), gray, humanoid-looking creature with big eyes standing there looking at me for just a second or two. It just disappeared – it did not run. Then I looked up and the craft was also gone – I did not see it leave. I stood there, frozen in fear. My dog would not come outside, which is not normal behavior. I am hard to scare after 30 years on the police force. I have FBI training as well and I thought I’d seen everything, but this was not normal at all! My first instinct was to call 911 and I went to the phone, but after picking it up, I put it back down. I know everyone at the police department and even though we have received a few reports of UFOs in the past, I knew they would think I have lost my mind. But I haven’t. I know what I saw. I then locked the entire house up and went to the bedroom, not thinking about the noise I heard in the house before until this morning. My wife was sound asleep and I did not wake her, and I did not tell her about what happened. I thought I was gone only 10 -15 minutes, but my clock said 4:46 a.m. I don’t know what happened to the time! Now this morning I have a red sunburn on my face, neck, and arms like I stayed in the sun way too long. I told my wife that I saw a light outside and went to investigate because she is worried about the sunburn. I may go the doctor about it if it doesn’t go away, but won’t be able to tell him what I saw. I just had to tell someone that this is real and that I’m a 64-year-old believer now.”

Field Investigator: I asked the witness to keep in touch and call me if any new developments arose. I asked him to check the area where the entity was in the backyard and see if there was any evidence.  He stated that he is familiar with evidence collecting and would do so if he found anything.  He seemed very genuine and did not want any publicity.

April 20, 2011, 8:30 p.m., Santa Monica, CA  – CE1, Category 2. Case 28745.

“Two triangle craft roughly the size of a private jet with three lights per craft,” the witness stated. “Each light at the tip of every point of the triangle. The craft shape was elongated, not symmetrical. Both craft were in Santa Monica, corner of 9th and Montana at 8:30 p.m. 20th April 2011, flying east away from Santa Monica beach toward downtown Los Angeles. They were silent and eerie to observe as the moon is fairly big and the sky wasn’t very dark. I got a good look at the two albeit a short amount of time. The crafts were clearly not the usual craft seen around the area, as there is an airport in Santa Monica. They were both flying at low altitude. They were not flying exactly side-by-side. The second craft was at 5 o’clock from the first, but the same speed. I would put the speed at roughly 50-60 mph.”

Field Investigator: “The witness states that he got a really good luck at these objects. They were headed from Santa Monica towards downtown LA (easterly direction). He immediately called a friend of his in Westwood. The friend called back approximately 10 minutes later and stated that he could see just one of the objects. The friend was in Westwood Park near the FBI building.”

April 26, 2011 – Anderson County, KY. CE2, Category 2. Case 32179.

“I and four other persons were taking a late night drive at about 12:30 a.m. out in the country,” the reporting witness stated. “We turned onto an outer city road and were only driving for about 10 minutes when we saw a blimp-like object about 200 yards to our left and about 500 yards in altitude. There was a single row of lights that went all around the object that stayed illuminated and were bright white. There was a flashing blue and white light atop of the object. We followed that object for about a mile. I was not driving at this point, so I continued to search the sky for other objects. The first object made no noise at all. The second object, I spotted first. It was a few miles away and was covered by a cloud. It appeared to have a bright white light that was pulsating. I could only see the lights behind the cloud which looked to be heat lightning. Then the object came from behind the clouds and I realized that what I thought was heat lightning was really the light on top of the object. We then turned right onto another country road and after following the two original objects for about 5 or 6 miles several of us spotted about 5 more aircraft surrounding us. We pulled over and got out of the car when the original UFO was coming directly towards us. When it was about 100 feet away from us and 100 feet in altitude it made the strongest winds I have ever felt in my life; strong enough to almost knock me on my feet. The noise emanating from the object was loud enough for me to cover my ears. It then went to directly overhead and we tried to videotape the object, but nothing showed up on the film. It sped off at speeds unimaginable. We then got back in the car and drove towards the other 6 or 7 objects that were still in the sky. I was driving at this point because the original driver wanted to try to film this on her phone. I felt compelled to follow the objects. Once we had been driving for about 15 more minutes, we pulled over again in an open area. When we got out of the car this time, we counted about 15 objects in about a mile radius around us. We again tried to document the objects but the audio was the only legible thing in the video. At this point we looked in the fields around us and spotted several (5 or 6) objects on the ground about a mile away. They were about 100 feet tall. They had rows of lights on them. The rows were vertical. The first row had red lights. The second had white. The third had a bluish light. They all flashed in sequence and were all perfectly similar with one another. The flashing also was in sequence with the white flash of the objects in the air. After standing outside for about 30 minutes, we got back into the vehicle to see if we could find a roadway that got us closer to the landed objects. When we began to drive again, every one of our phones died. Not at the same time, but in succession. Then it began to rain, but the rain was only falling on the driver’s side of the car. We followed the objects for another 30 minutes and saw several of them coming very close to our vehicle. We stopped in the middle of the road at some sort of country road intersection with a rundown convenience store. This time when we were out of the vehicle, one of the UFOs flew about 50 feet above our heads. This object was triangular in shape and about 100 feet in length. The object was solid with what looked like weird carvings that looked like some sort of circuitry. It reminded me of a computer chip. There was a bright white light on each corner of the triangle. It got directly above our heads, but this made a buzzing sound. When it was there, it hovered and ascended slightly at an angle and then its two back lights went out. It then elevated rapidly and then a red light appeared and the lights were flashing. At this point it looked like an ordinary airplane. There was a second one that came close to us at this point that was disc-like in shape. It came within a hundred yards of us and looked to be about 50 feet in diameter. It had a grayish-black color for the base of the aircraft. It seemed to spin as it moved away from us. This one also had a white pulsating light at the base and the top. The third object that we saw at this point was about 100 yards above us. It was trapezoid-like shaped and on the side of it, it had the same patterned row of lights as the aircraft we saw landed earlier. It, too, pulsated in sequence with the other objects that we could see in the distance in the sky. This object was about 150 feet in length. While this one was hovering about 100 yards above us and about 100 yards away, another one seemed to appear and disappear behind it. The one that appeared, appeared as an orb of some sort that looked to me as if it was caught on fire. I believed at this point, that it had malfunctioned and blown itself up because before it disappeared, it appeared to be descending rapidly. When the object that looked to be on fire disappeared, so did all of the others. That is how we lost sight of the objects. This time that we were out of our vehicles felt like it lasted 10 minutes, but I think it was really about 45 minutes. At this point, we were about 45 minutes to an hour away from Lawrenceburg, KY. On the drive back, we all felt very anxious, and for the first time since we saw the first object, frightened. It was about 4 in the morning at this time. On the drive back, we didn’t spot another object in the sky. At every time that we exited the vehicle to get a better look, there were no visible stars in the area directly above us. It was completely dark. The whole sighting was about three and-a-half hours long as I remember it now.”

Field Investigator: All of them tried to get pictures with their cell phones, but to no avail. After talking to three of the witnesses, both myself and the other field investigator concluded these three were telling us the truth and were not making up a hoax.

April 30, 2011 – New Hanover County, NC. CE1, Category 2. Case 28871.

“At 1:36 a.m. on 30 April 2011, my brother and I walked out on the back porch of our house to smoke a cigarette. When lighting my cigarette, I noticed that the birds were not chirping and there was no noise at all. When I turned my head to the right I noticed a sudden change in color on the ground and trees. Immediately after seeing this I see movement in my peripheral vision and looked up and saw an aircraft in the sky moving northeast; moving over the corner of the house. The air craft is very hard to describe in words. It had 5 circular lights that emitted the orange reddish glow that was in a V-shape pattern, but the craft itself was not exactly V-shaped. It had a long body that seemed to narrow at the front and expand to the rear and it was a blackish metal that had a slight shine to it. The way it moved it was gliding at a slow pace, then slowed a bit more to a near stop, then started moving in at an angle, but the lights of craft did not turn at all and continued moving. Upon seeing it, I thought I was seeing things and pulled my brother out away from the house for him to see it. When we both acknowledged it, it was close to being overhead by then. I felt a sudden fear I’ve never felt in my life come upon me and forced myself into the house. Coming in, we woke our father up and took him outside, but by that time it was gone. Minutes after, the birds started chirping again. Afterwards we both felt very tired and shocked. It was very hard to sleep after that for me.”

Field Investigator: From an earlier report: The witness reported a V-shaped object smoothly gliding under 1,000 feet at approximately 8:40 p.m. on 13 Oct 2010. The witness in that sighting made the following statement, “It seemed to be smoothly gliding like a B-2 stealth Bomber, it was flying slow (200 mph. approximately). It had large low glowing lights emitting a warm, not shiny light. It had no tail, cockpit, or visible engines. Just a thin black V.” The witness also said, “almost yellowish, these large circular lights gave me the feeling it was very advanced technology. Maybe electromagnetic capabilities.” My Conclusion: Many triangular UFO sightings are attributed to the V-shaped B-2 spirit. But with the slow speed and low altitude of the observed craft in my North Carolina case, I think we are dealing with something else. The Osprey and Joint Strike Fighter are military vehicles that can hover but these craft both make a lot of noise and no sound was reported from my case. We know that military training exercises were going on at the coast of North Carolina during April and May. I have another case from 30-Apr-2011 involving orange lights being observed over ocean. This sighting could be part of a military craft observed doing training exercises, but there is enough compelling evidence to list this sighting as an unknown.

May 31, 2011 – Dallas County, TX. CE1, Category 1. Case 29338

“This is the story as it was told to me by my daughter and her boyfriend and I can collaborate it as I was able to witness and hear the UFO as it sped away,” the reporting witness stated. “My daughter and her boyfriend had entered our neighborhood, which is densely populated with live oak trees, around 1 a.m. and noticed there was a stationary object with two lights hovering about 25 feet above the tree line at their 10 o’clock NE about three blocks away. Her boyfriend noticed that the top part of the object seemed translucent and it seemed as though he could see through it and bottom part was more opaque and solid. They turned left on the next street towards our house and my daughter kept the object in sight the entire time. Then they turned right onto the circle where we live. It is a keyhole circle surrounded by trees and we live at the end of it. They then parked the car and got out so they could get a better look. The craft at this time was about a block away and at their 1 o’clock SE still hovering above the tree line. At this point I got a phone call from my daughter telling me to come out immediately as there was a UFO. I ran out of the house and could hear a whirring noise above my head. I looked up and could see an object speeding ahead of me with lights blinking, and then disappearing behind the SW tree line in the distance. My daughter’s boyfriend looked up as the craft passed directly over his head. He said that after they parked the car and got out, the object moved to the 8 o’clock position, then made a right angle turn, then passed directly over our house and over their heads speeding out of sight behind the trees. My daughter’s boyfriends description of the under belly of the craft was as follows; he said it was as big as a house and was about 50 feet to 75 feet from the ground. It was triangular with rounded corners, like a billiard ball rack. It had two round, white lights, one at each end of the bottom of the triangle and one amber light at the top, was gunmetal in color and had an inverted rectangular tray shape inset within the triangle which had parallel lines. He also noticed the whirring noise as it passed over, but it didn’t seem to be an engine noise, but more like a wind noise passing over something. My husband also heard the whirring noise and felt the vibrations as it passed over the house. Nobody heard the noise until it was moving directly overhead. My daughter was not able to get a picture because she was busy calling me and her boyfriend’s phone died just as he tried to take a picture. This is the second time they have seen a triangular craft in our neighborhood. The first time was around the same time about 6 months ago, a few blocks further away and higher up. It also sped away in a southwesterly direction.”

Field Investigator: This investigator studied this case very thoroughly. The interviews with the witnesses’ exceeded two hours. The interview was extremely detailed to look for signs of a possible hoax. While there are a couple of small contradictions, the overall testimony of the two witnesses fit together very well. It is the opinion of this investigator that the daughter is a credible witness, that she is not perpetrating a hoax, and that she did see an object of some sort.

Next month we will examine selected Third Quarter 2011 triangle sightings.

Holidays typically put more people outdoors and that translates to increased UFO sightings. New Year’s Eve 2011 was no exception and MUFON has received 52 cases to date.
Witnesses reported triangles, star-like objects, discs, fireballs, spheres and oval objects.
Looking only at the resolved cases, I offer up some selected witness testimony and field investigator notes this month from reports with a final determination of unknown.

Disc; Sacramento County, CA. CE1, Category 2. Case 34447.
“On the way to a New Years Eve party, a UFO descended to get closer to our car on E. Commerce Way approaching Del Paso Road,” the witness stated. “Was about to pull over, but parties in the car declined that idea. I was excited to see the UFO and disappointed we couldn’t pull over. When we drove away I couldn’t see it anymore.”

Field Investigator: A black flying object “shaped like the Jetson’s ship” approached the car, which was moving at about 30 mph, almost directly down from an altitude of 40-50 feet when first noticed, to an altitude of 15-20 feet at its closest approach. The object’s flat, circular base was about 6 feet in diameter, and the egg-shaped passenger area was about 4-5 feet tall. The object was black, with three green lights arranged in an equilateral triangle on the bottom surface of the object. The egg-shaped “passenger area” was also black. No occupants could be seen.

Triangle; Sonoma County, CA. CE1, Category 1. Case 35047.
“I looked up and was immediately intrigued by a larger triangle formation approximately 300 feet above ground,” the witness stated. “The lights (three of them) were bluish-white and had a strange glow to them. I knew immediately they were not stars and they were definitely not an airplane. There was no sound coming from the object at all. After staring in awe for approximately two minutes, one-by-one the lights disappeared.”

Fireball; 8 p.m., Brevard County, FL. AN1, Category 1. Case 34472.
“Myself (Ex law enforcement, military officer and current firefighter) and two other witnesses were sitting on the 8th floor balcony facing southeast of the Hampton Inn in Cocoa Beach. We were watching people shooting of fireworks and having fun before the New Year. Approximately 4 miles away in a south direction in the area of Patrick Air Force Base we observed a bright red/yellow light that appeared to look like a rocket shoot up from the area of the Ocean front (Atlantic). The object at first went up at a 45 degree angle heading west. At first we thought it might be a flair, but we noticed the object getting higher in altitude and gaining speed.”

Fireball; Lee County, FL. AN1, Category 1. Case 34486.
“I was outside my house watching the sky as I am an avid sky watcher,” the witness stated. “I viewed a bright orange light, approximately 2,500 feet above the ground moving in a straight line across the sky from the north toward me (south). It appeared to be moving slower than an airplane. Then seemed to appear to gain altitude and become smaller as it got closer to my house. There was no noise. I called my roommates out to view it. They also saw it. It continued to move southward, decreasing in size and then it disappeared.”

Field Investigator: Conclusion: Unknown. After researching the possibilities, I was not able to identify this as a manmade object or natural or meteorological phenomenon.

Fireball; 8:45 p.m., Bevard County, FL. AN1, Category 1. Case 34821.
“I was enjoying a backyard campfire with friends,” the witness stated. “The sky was very clear and we are in the flight pattern for a flight school in the area, so there are always small planes flying. On this particular night I had not seen any planes, which I assumed was because of the holiday. I was sitting facing south, when in the corner of my eye I saw movement in the sky. I turned to look and there was a bright orange fire ball moving steadily and silently across the sky in an arch. It had no trail, no sound, no edges, and no changes, but it was glowing. I watched it until it went out of sight into the tree line. I didn’t say anything to the friends I was with. I thought it was a Chinese/Japanese lantern made somewhat like a hot air balloon, as I have seen on TV. I continued on with my evening and about 45 minutes later it was back, going in the same path the opposite direction as before. This time I said something to the group, and we all agreed it look like a lantern. I am a firefighter who lives by the Kennedy Space Center and have never seen anything like this before.”

Field Investigator: Numerous reports of orange ball-shaped objects are recorded in the CMS and in NUFORC files for this date in Florida. Witness is clear, concise, and precise in her statements. I believe her to be sincere and truthful in her statements. Conclusion: Neither natural or manmade object.

Sphere; Baltimore County, MD. AN1, Category 1. Case 34478.
“When I turned to look, the three very bright yellow-orange objects began to move in sync traveling in a north to south direction,” the witness stated. “I quickly grabbed my HD camcorder and recorded this amazing event. After the three objects moved out of sight I turned off my camcorder. About three minutes later, another of the same objects came from the north, traveled in the same exact path and vanished. This happened two more times which I also caught on camera. We live in the Parkville, MD, area.”

Field Investigator: It may have been Chinese lanterns, but it seems odd that they split apart if you watch the video.

Fireball; 10:25 p.m., Monmouth County, NJ. AN2, Category 1. Case 34483.
“I noticed a red glowing light in the sky,” the witness stated. “It seemed very unusual because it was floating way too low to be a plane and was also much lower than I see helicopters typically fly in my area. I gave the object the benefit of the doubt thinking it may just be a helicopter coming at us from head-on. Yet as I continued to watch the object and as it got closer to us is when it became definitive that this object was flying way too low to be a helicopter. In addition to the low altitude this object was flying at, there were no FAA lights on the object and this object made absolutely no noise as it slowly made its way past us. It was just a glowing red orb. The object’s distance from us was about a block over and about 100 yards or so above the tree tops. The object flew in a north to south direction.”

Field Investigator: After talking to the witness and viewing the footage, I feel that there is enough evidence to classify this as unknown.

Oval; Charleston County, SC. AN1, Category 1. Case 34445.
“Observed two constant glowing, red spheres traveling in a west to east direction,” the witness stated. “Made no sound, had no flashing lights, had no green or white lights, just a steady red light. Objects were observed for about a minute until they went out of sight. Knew it was not a helicopter and never seen any type of aircraft like this.”

Field Investigator: The flight path became curved as if the lights were heading out over the ocean. The red from the light reflected on to what appeared to be two crafts, making each of the crafts to appear red. The witness stated there was not any sound associated with the objects.

Sphere; 11:30-11:34 p.m., Houston, Harris County, TX. AN1, Category 1. Case 34504.
“We were on the balcony patio of my apartment with a great view of the sky looking to the west from the southeast side of Houston in La Porte,” the witness stated. “It had 6-7 bright lights in the shape of a circle spinning around in all directions, not just from left to right. It also had a spotlight that seemed to extend about 20 feet out from it that would come on at random times. It was going all the way up to the fog and flying fast across the southeast area. The lights were changing from red, blue, green, gold and white.”

Field Investigator: The witness described the object as a circle of lights with different colors around it. He stated that the object would go around like a Ferris wheel, back and forth and moved very fast around the sky.