- UFO SEEN HOVERING OVER COLUMBUS,
OHIO
-
- On Friday, December 12, 1997, D.F. was
driving north on Highway 71 in Columbus, the state capital of Ohio when
he spotted an unusual object hovering in the sky off to the right of the
highway. The UFO was hovering about one mile east of Cooper Stadium, near
the Scioto River and the intersection of Broad Street and Brown Road. "Because
I have an interest in the phenomenon of UFOs, and also a long-standing
hobby of astronomy, I do try to pay attention to the sky whenever I am
outside," he reported. "This is a conscious effort on my part
to increase my chances of seeing things of interest, be they natural or
unusual." At 1 a.m., just as he drove past the Interstate Highway
70 turnoff, he "saw the object at a distance of approximately 100
yards or so. Its angle was perhaps 20 degrees up from the horizon. As
I came nearer, its outline and size became clearer...I would estimate it
at approximately 30 to 40 feet off the ground, and above a spot about 15
feet to my right. As I passed it, its position angle was about 65 degrees
above the horizon." "I estimate seeing it for about seven seconds.
I couldn't describe any color other than dark, except for the color of
the lights on it...The best way to describe the thing would be a classic
fish shape...it had what looked like a fin at the closest end, was bulky
toward the middle and tapered some at the furthest end." "The
lights seemed to be at the ends. One was a dull red, darker and dimmer
than a streetlight, and the other was a pale green. The size of the lights
appeared at the time to be as large as traffic light bulbs, and it was
the lights which first attracted my attention up into the sky." "The
object wasn't moving but I was doing between 45 and 50 miles per hour.
I remember thinking about getting off at the next exit and trying to get
another look. But there wasn't one right away and because I had to get
up early the next day for work, I decided to go on home." D.F. said
the condition of the sky was "light snow, wind about 10 to 15 miles
per hour, temperatures in the high twenties (Fahrenheit)" at the time
of the sighting. "I have driven by that spot several times at the
same time of night, and different times during the day, and I haven't seen
it, or anything like it, since." (Email Interview)
-
- UFO FLAP IN TEXAS KICKS OFF
THE NEW YEAR
-
- Texas rang in the new year for UFOs with
two sightings in the eastern part of the Lone Star state. On Friday, January
2, 1998, at 6:15 a.m., Mike H. of Arlington, Texas (population 261,721),
a city 20 miles (32 kilometers) west of Dallas, "had just entered
our kitchen and glanced out our window when I noticed the very bright,
large white or yellow light appear. It was quite bright. The object moved
very quickly in a northerly direction across my viewing area as seen from
my window. It then made a zigzagging turn going down and then dropped,
reversing direction and losing altitude." Altering course again, the
UFO "moved behind a building where I lost sight of it. My observation
of the bright light had lasted approximately three seconds." "I
also noticed a white strobe light that blinked on the object similar to
an aircraft," Mike reported, adding that he had seen many aircraft
"from my window and I have never seen one move as quickly as this
one did. I also noticed that the light source remained at a constant brightness
even though it was turning." (Email Interview) On Saturday, December
27, 1997, Linda N. was driving on a highway west of Harlingen, Texas (population
48,735), a city 477 miles (763 kilometers) south of Dallas when she saw
an unusual light in the sky. "This object was in my line of vision
as I was going over a highway overpass," she reported. "It lasted
about three seconds and was traveling from north to south. (i.e. towards
the border with Mexico--J.T.) It appeared as a thin green streak across
the sky and ended in a large yellow/white ball of light that disappeared.
No residue was seen in the sky." "I drive home from work well
after nightfall. I drive an extended distance on flat Texas countryside,
without trees or other obstacles to block my vision. I often times look
upward to see the beautiful stars and to watch for unexplained objects."
A longtime "meteor shower watcher," she added, "I have never
witnessed one like that. It was just exciting." Two days later, on
Monday, December 29, "while again driving home from work, I saw another
meteorite. This one was traveling from the northeast to the southwest.
Lasted about seven seconds, but it was different from the first one. This
one appeared to be like a regular meteorite... white tail...but moving
much slower than other meteorites I've witnessed. Then, halfway through
my viewing, its tail turned green...and then it exploded in a large blast...
and then more orange glowing pieces trailed behind it, as though it were
breaking apart. It was great!" (Many thanks to Steve Wilson Sr.
for this news story.)
-
- MORE UFOs REPORTED IN NORTH
CAROLINA
-
- On Saturday night, December 20, and Sunday
night, December 21, 1997, witnesses in the small towns of Marshall (population
809) and Mars Hill (population 1,611) in the Appalachian Mountains of North
Carolina sighted "a glowing object flying back and forth in the night
sky." The sightings were reported Monday, December 22, 1997 on radio
station WKSF 99.9FM in Asheville, N.C. (population 61,607). "Many
people in (rural) Madison County witnessed it," one man reported.
"At first they thought the object had been a downed aircraft. But
no private planes were reported missing." Marshall and Mars Hill are
on Highway 213 about 22 miles (35 kilometers) north of Asheville and 270
miles (432 kilometers) west of Raleigh. (Many thanks to Steve Wilson Sr.
and Tim Hagemeister of NACOMM for this report.)
-
- UFOs APPEAR OVER TWO CANADIAN
PROVINCES
-
- On Saturday, December 20, 1997, at 6:15
p.m., Sallie C. was outdoors at her home in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan (population
4,318) when she spotted "three bright lights in the northeastern sky."
"What caught my attention was that they were larger and brighter than
the stars and were moving together in a diagonal direction," she reported.
"I looked at them for perhaps four or five seconds and then they
disappeared." Meadow Lake is at the junction of provincial Highways
4 and 55, about 184 miles (294 kilometers) north of Saskatoon. (Many thanks
to Tim Hagemeister of NACOMM for this report.) On Thursday, December 18,
1997, at 1:30 a.m., a loud booming sound reverberated down the Illecilliwaet
River valley east of Revelstoke, British Columbia (population 7,729).
Immediately following the boom, "the whole valley east of Revelstoke
lit up as if daylight," according to Alan M. Young, an engineer with
the Canadian Pacific Railroad. "A large ball of light was seen hovering
above the peak of Mount Sir Donald," Young reported. "After
about ten seconds, the ball of light shot up into the night sky and disappeared."
Witnesses to this mysterious event in British Columbia's Selkirk Mountains
included two train crews of the Canadian Pacific, plus "another CPR
crew deadheading in a taxi." Revelstoke is on Highway 1 just west
of Canada's Glacier National Park, approximately 345 miles (552 kilometers)
northeast of Vancouver. (Many thanks to Errol Bruce-Knapp for this report.)
-
- DAYLIGHT DISKS HOLD SWAY IN
CENTRAL AMERICA
-
- Daylight disks dominated the skies over
the small Central American nations of Costa Rica and Belize during Christmas
week. On Thursday, December 18, 1997, Miguel Tirado Alvarez spotted mysterious
lights in the night sky over San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica. He reported,
"I saw various white points of light, approximately eight, hovering
above the capital city. It (the UFO) was moving around a great deal. It
was reported not to be an airplane." On Monday, December 22, 1997,
tourist T. Hickman was relaxing at his hotel on San Pedro Island, off the
coast of Belize. At about 11 p.m., he reported, "My wife and I saw
a UFO flying straight above us, just slightly to the south of the Pleiades
star cluster." The object "followed a very erratic flight pattern
and made many direction changes" during its overflight. Also on December
22, eyewitnesses in Golfito, Costa Rica, a port on the Golfo Dulce approximately
330 kilometers (198 miles) south of San Jose, near the Panama border, spied
several "daylight discs" crossing the sky. The saucers were
also seen in Puerto Jimenez, across the bay from Golfito. The same afternoon,
in San Jose, two camera crews from local TV stations "videotaped silver
'flying saucers' in the sky to the south of the city. Before the eyes of
hundreds of people, they made zigzag maneuvers for several minutes. Flight
controllers at (San Jose's) Juan Santamaria International Airport counted
approximately fifty thousand (radar) traces of these movements." Costa
Rican ufologist Carlos Vilchez noted that this was "the first time
that UFOs appeared in daytime" in his country. In December 1996,
a similar UFO flap engulfed Costa Rica. He warned of "an influx of
OVNIs (Spanish acronym for UFO) into the air space of the Central American
countries within the next two months." On Christmas Day, December
25, 1997, ten silver saucers flew westward from the Cordillera Central,
passing over San Jose. "They flew over the city for several minutes
and were filmed by TV cameramen." (Muchas gracias a Len Fedullo,
Tim Hagemeister y otros para esas historias)
-
- STRANGE SUBTERRANEAN HUM HEARD
IN INDIANA
-
- On November 30, 1997, Wayne T. was asleep
in bed at his home in Floyds Knobs, Indiana (population 600) when a weird
hum suddenly jolted him awake. The hum appeared to be coming from the gound
outside his home, he reported. "The hum was evident mostly at night,
but it may have been during the day also. It had a very low pitch. It
was of a very low frequency. It was not a constant sound. It became more
intense and then less intense. It was the same sound for just about ten
to fifteen seconds and then peaked and then subsided." "My wife
could barely hear the sound. Sometimes not at all." Asked if he had
suffered any physical effects as a result of the hum, Wayne replied, "The
only physical effect it had was that it made me irritable because it was
so constant." He said he first heard the hum "from about March
20 to about April 20" in 1997. The cause remains unexplained. Floyds
Knobs is on Indiana Highway 150, approximately 6 miles (10 kilometers)
northwest of Louisville, Kentucky. (Email Interview)
-
- CUICUILCO: MEXICO'S MYSTERIOUS
PYRAMID
-
- All experts agree that the Cuicuilco
pyramid is the oldest structure in the Anahuac Valley, which houses modern
Mexico City, and the very first monumental construction in the Americas.
Disagreements as to its antiquity and the people who built it continue
to this very day. Official records state that the Cuicuilco structures
can be no older than 600 B.C., but revisionist figures claim the structure
was built between 8,000 to 10,000 years ago, thus making it almost as old
as the "Tepexpan Man," the earliest prehistoric dweller found
in Mesoamerica. Cuicuilco measures some 17 meters (56 feet) in height and
has a diameter of 115 meters (380 feet). A series of ramps provided access
to its uppermost tier, which housed a temple with a statue of Huehueteotl,
the "Old God of Fire," the first deity worshipped on this continent.
The mighty circular pyramid is surrounded by smaller structures and rectangular
buildings with well-finished floors which must have been houses. The contented
lives of the prosperous, unwarlike Cuicuilcans came to an end when (Mount)
Ajusco, a 4,000-foot tall peak located on the same mountain range as the
Popocatateptel volcano began to exhibit volcanic activity. The earthquakes
which rocked Anahuac Valley caused an enormous hole to open in the ground--a
smaller volcano called Xitle, which poured a torrent of lava that destroyed
nearby Copilco before engulfing Cuicuilco itself. The inhabitants fled
before the destruction, and all that was left behind as an eighty square
mile (128 square kilometer) lava field known as El Pedregal. Debate also
rages around the date of Xitle's eruption, which geologists have placed
as far back as some seven thousand years ago, while archaeologists squarely
place it at between 500 and 200 A.D. The circular pyramid's base, twice
the length of a soccer field, has also yielded its share of mysteries.
The Spanish physician Hernandez, sent to Mexico by order of (King) Philip
II, visited Cuicuilco and wrote his sovereign about having found the bones
of large beasts (including the toxodon and the titanothere, now extinct--J.T.)
along with those of "men" in excess of five meters (17 feet)
tall. Natives expressed a belief that Cuicuilco's engimatic structure
had been built by giants. Whatever the case, serious archaeological work
was not undertaken until 1922 when a team led by Dr. Byron Cummings of
the University of Arizona began digging what could well be the oldest pyramid
on earth. The site was apparently visited one night by an unidentified
flying light which hovered over the ruins before speeding off into the
distance. (Direct reprint from the article "Mexico: Forgotten Ruins
and Ancient Astronauts" by Scott Corrales, which appeared in SAMIZDAT--The
Newsletter of UFOs and the Paranormal, Special Report: Mexico 1997) (Editor's
Comment: According to my old geology professor, El Pedregal is a typical
a'a lava flow of the late Pleistocene Period, meaning Xitle's eruption
probably took place around 8,000 B.C. Interestingly, one corner of the
Cuicuilco pyramid is buried in Pedregal lava, which presumably means its
construction predated the eruption.)
-
- From the UFO Files...
-
- 1948: THE MANTELL CASE
-
- January 7 marks the 50th Anniversary
of Captain Thomas F. Mantell Jr.'s fatal encounter with a UFO over southern
Kentucky. Here is the actual 1948 newspaper account of the incident, which
appeared in the January 8, 1948 issue of a local weekly newspaper, the
Franklin, Ky. Favorite.
-
- PLANE EXPLODES IN MID-AIR,
CRASHES KILLING
PILOT ON JOE PHILLIPS FARM
-
- A P-51 Army fighter plane exploded in
mid-air and crashed on the farm of Joe Phillips about 5 miles south of
Franklin yesterday (i.e. January 7, 1948--J.T.) afternoon about 3:30 p.m.,
killing the pilot wearing identification tag of Thomas F. Mantell (Jr.),
3533 River Park Drive, Louisville. The wrecked plane bore the (tail) No.
Ky. NG 869. Mrs. Joe Phillips said she was sitting by her fire when she
heard the plane, with the engine apparently in trouble, flying near her
house. Almost immediately there was a large explosion. Startled, she
glanced out the window and saw the disintegrating plane hit the ground
in a woodslot about 200 yards away from the house. Pieces of wreckage were
seen a quarter of a mile from the point of the crash. Several people in
Franklin reported they heard the explosion. A vapor trail still floated
in the sky an hour after the crash. Another eyewitness, Barbara Mayes,
a student in the Franklin Grade School said she saw the plane explode while
high in mid-air. She was waiting at the Lake Springs School for her bus
to take her home when she witnessed the explosion. The plane crash marked
the second in the past few months. The point of the explosion was perhaps
three miles as the crow flies from the spot of the crash which took the
lives of Ed Snow and Richard M. Thomason on April 29, 1947. Mrs. Joe Phillips
said she called the telephone operator and asked that an ambulance and
aid be called to the scene. The remains of the dead flyer were removed
from the scene by ambulance and carried to the Booker Funeral Home to await
instructions from the next of kin, who were to be notified of the tragedy
by Fort Knox officials. A veteran of World War II, Captain Mantell participated
in the (June 6, 1944) Normandy invasion, winning the Distinguished Flying
Cross among other decorations. He was discharged from the Army a year
ago (1946). His wife and two children survive. He left Louisville yesterday
morning for Atlanta and was enroute to Louisville on the return portion
of the training flight when the accident occurred. Authorities at Fort
Knox reported he left Atlanta at 2 p.m. yesterday. Reed Shoulders, assistant
chief of police, said Bill Horn, local constable, was standing guard last
night over the wreckage, pending arrival of proper authorities to assume
custody of the wrecked plane. The plane was operated by the Kentucky National
Guards. (Many thanks to local researcher Lee Trail and Lou Farish of UFO
Newsclipping Service for making this article available to UFO ROUNDUP.)
-
- (Editor's Comment: Well, it's been fifty
years since Tommy Mantell's run-in with that giant saucer, and a lot has
come out. But the key documents--the January 7 situation reports by Colonel
Guy F. Hix and other staff officers at Godman Field, plus the transcripts
of radio traffic between Colonel Hix and the Air Defense Command at Mitchell
Field, Long Island, New York--remain classified. If this was merely a
"training flight" and an "accident," why are these
documents still secret fifty years later?)
-
-
- UFO ROUNDUP: Copyright 1998 by Masinaigan
Productions, all rights reserved. Readers may post news stories from UFO
ROUNDUP on their websites or in newsgroups provided that they credit the
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