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- THREE ORANGE FIREBALLS VIDEOTAPED
IN CLEVELAND
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- On Friday afternoon, October 10, 1998,
people walking along the lakeshore in Cleveland, Ohio (population 503,000)
were startled to see three bright orange fireballs moving slowly through
the blue sky over Lake Erie. A cameraman for WJBK-TV in Cleveland, Channel
2 Fox News, went outdoors and videotaped the UFOs' overflight. The video
shows two orange fireballs proceeding across the sky at a slow pace, above
telephone poles and treetops, with a third UFO in the lower right-hand
corner, barely visible. Channel 2 aired the video on its news broadcast
with this voiceover commentary: "Now look at this and judge for yourself.
What do you think? You can see three streaks of light, the third you
can barely spot in the right-hand corner moving into the trees...Witnesses
said the lights were visible for half an hour." After seeing a rebroadcast
on a Detroit TV station, Rev. John E.L. Tenney of Michigan Anomalous Information
Network (MAIN) telephoned Channel 2 in Cleveland to learn more about the
sighting. "The news director that I spoke to in Cleveland said that
the local weather crew eventually determined the lights to be a plane,"
he reported, adding skeptically, "Three planes? Three planes moving
so slowly?" (Many thanks to Rev. John E.L. Tenney for this report.)
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- FIFTEEN UFOs CAVORT OVER NOWRA,
NEW SOUTH WALES
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- On Monday, October 12, 1998, just before
11 p.m., a 31-year-old housewife went outdoors at her home about 6 kilometers
(3 miles) from Nowra, New South Wales, Australia and spotted a group of
UFOs "in tight formation flying low toward the south." The house
is in a rural area "with only one dirt road from Nowra to Sassafras
and on to Braidwood." Nowra is on Australia's east coast about 180
kilometers (108 miles) south of Sydney. The UFOs "appeared to be at
35 degrees elevation and hovered there before moving south again."
The witness "said they only had a visible shape when using the binocs
(binoculars--J.T.) but appeared to be as large as a 5-cent piece at arm's
length when using them. They were bell-shaped with a white or bluish-white
light at the top, quite steady. They appeared 'translucent,' 'like a jellyfish'
and displayed multi-coloured flashing lights around the sides in no recognisable
pattern. Central underneath was a steady bluish glow." "When
they came back" toward the farm, "they wove about" in the
sky "about 6 to 8 kilometers southwest of her property, where they
stayed for about twenty minutes and appeared to be flying erratically,
'like a conductor's baton or a ballet dance.' Just after 11:30 p.m., they
flickered off to the west-northwest, dipping behind some trees." The
case was investigated by Brad Mildern of Paradox UFO Group, which covers
sightings in New South Wales between Wollongong, Shorehaven and Batemans
Bay. Commenting on the Nowra UFOs, ufologist Diane Harrison said, "Description
reminds me of the photos from Gulf Breeze." (Many thanks to Brad
Mildern of Paradox UFO Group for this story.)
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- SPHERICAL UFOs SEEN IN WALTHAMSTOW,
UK
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- On Sunday, October 11, 1998, at 7 p.m.,
ufologist Tony Colbourn of the Essex and London UFO Network (ELUFON) was
working in his back garden at his home in Walthamstow, a suburb north of
East London. "At approximately 1900 hours, I spotted what I could
only describe as a gold orb traveling in a north easterly direction at
an approximate altitude of 2,000 feet," he reported, "It is usual
to see aircraft stacking above my house, as it is located in one of the
main flight paths for Heathrow Airport. Whilst observing this object, I
also noticed a satellite going over, which due to the visible differences,
convinced me that this was not a satellite because (for example) it was
brighter, bolder and moving a lot faster." "A few minutes later,
I noticed two additional orbs, white in colour, traveling northward. As
they approached me, the one on the right turned in a north easterly direction
and the other continued straight on north." Colbourn rushed into the
house to grab his videocamera. But when he returned to the garden, "all
(UFO) activity had ceased." The next night, Monday, October 12, at
6:45 p.m., "I noticed that the gold orb had returned, traveling the
same route. I rushed in and grabbed my camcorder, called Roy (Hale of
ELUFON) on the phone and went back to the garden. I then noticed another
white orb which whilst traveling became brighter. The size was similar
to the end of a pencil but gradually expanded to the size of a tennis ball
and then seemed to implode inward and disappear altogether." Colbourn
then telephoned ELUFON member Brian Jessop, who quickly hopped into his
car and drove to Walthamstow. On his way there, at 6:55 p.m., Jessop spotted
a strange light in the sky. "As it got closer, he realized it was
a triangle-shaped object." ELUFON is investigating these and other
reported UFO sightings in Walthamstow. (Many thanks to Tony Colbourn and
Roy Hale of ELUFON and to Errol Bruce-Knapp for forwarding these reports.)
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- STUDENTS SIGHT A UFO IN SORMANO,
ITALY
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- The evening of September 12, 1998, a
group of college students gathered at the observatory in Sormano, Italy
to do some skywatching as part of their astronomy course lab work. "We
were going to spend the night observing the stars and at first noticed
nothing out of the ordinary," Giancarlo S. reported. "Then,
at about 11 p.m., we saw over the mountain a big sphere like the full moon.
At first it stopped, then it moved very quickly behind the mountain.
For a moment, I saw this object suspended above the peak." Unable
to keep their big telescope fixed on the object, the group reached for
their binoculars. "Having grabbed our binoculars to better observe
it, we watched as it moved steadily in a westerly direction away from the
mountain until it could no longer be seen." This case is being investigated
by Italy's Centro Ufologici Nazionale. (Grazie a Marco Guarisco di CUN
Como per questo rapporto.)
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- GLOWING UFOs REPORTED NEAR
PUERTO VALLARTA
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- On Saturday, September 26, 1998, at 9
p.m., three luminous white UFOs appeared at an elevation of 30 degrees
above the western horizon just south of Las Varas, in Nayarit state, Mexico,
about 40 kilometers (25 miles) north of the popular Pacific Ocean resort
city of Puerto Vallarta. The UFOs were described as "three bright
white lights...the lights, except for a few brief seconds of flashing,
were otherwise non-blinking and stationary for nearly 35 minutes before
flying away." "On leaving, they moved laterally with the Mexican
coastline for about five minutes and then moved out of sight. Within a
few seconds, the three lights 'streaked' back to near where they had originally
been seen...Local newspapers have had two articles on the phenomenon.
The Mexican lights are capable of great speeds and hover for long periods
of time." (See Filer's Files #41 for 1998, item copyright by John
C. Thompson. Many thanks to George A. Filer of MUFON for this news story.)
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- MORE CROP CIRCLES ARE FOUND
IN SASKATCHEWAN
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- Two more crop circles were found in Canada's
Saskatchewan province during September. According to Paul Anderson of Circles
Phenomenon Research-Canada, the circles were originally made "in late
August or early September" but were not found until the wheat fields
began to be harvested later in the month. On September 14, 1998, residents
found a counterclockwise circle measuring 11 feet (3.3 meters) in diameter,
with a tight spiral lay of the stems, in a wheat field on the outskirts
of Wapello, Sask. (population 429), a town on Provincial Highway 601 about
112 miles (179 kilometers) southeast of Regina. A week later, on September
21, 1998, residents discovered a circle with a ring in a wheat field near
Spy Hill, Sask. The circle measured 24 feet (7 meters) in diameter, was
counterclockwise and also had a tight spiral lay. Spy Hill is on Highway
8 near the Manitoba border, about 130 miles (208 kilometers) east of Regina.
(Many thanks to Paul Anderson of Circles Phenomenon Research-Canada for
these reports.)
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- NEAR ON LAST LAP OF ASTEROID
RENDEZVOUS
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- One of the unsung Earth spacecraft cruising
the depths of our solar system is NEAR, the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous
satellite. Looking like an inverted, four-bladed ceiling fan, NEAR was
launched from Earth in 1996 and "is just weeks from becoming the first
man-made object to be placed into the orbit of a distant asteroid."
"The Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous spacecraft will fire rockets on
Dec. 20 to settle into an orbit of an asteroid called Eros that is streaking
across space about 163 million miles (261 million kilometers) from Earth."
"The satellite will start orbiting the asteroid on Jan. 10, 1999."
"During months of circling the asteroid, the craft will be slowly
lowered until its orbit is just 21 miles (33 kilometers) above the space
rock. The craft will give the first prolonged up-close look at an asteroid,
which are minor planets in space." "Six instruments aboard NEAR
will analyze the composition, magnetic field and mass of the asteroid,
sending the data back to Earth by radio." "Eros is something
of a mystery. The rock is 24 miles (long) by 8 miles (wide). Scientists
don't know if the rock is solid or if it is a highly porous body with empty
cavities or chunks of ice...What isn't known is whether Eros was once part
of a bigger planet or if it formed independently." According to Andy
Cheng, a Johns Hopkins researcher and the project scientist for NEAR, the
spacecraft may try for a soft landing on Eros. "After months in orbit
of Eros, researchers may attempt to put the craft onto the surface of the
asteroid. Cheng said the spacecraft was not designed to land but that
is one option the researchers are considering. The density of Eros is
unknown, but the asteroid is so small that its gravity force will be only
a fraction of Earth's, making landing there less violent." (See USA
Today for October 13, 1998, "Satellite is moving into orbit of asteroid.")
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- From the UFO Files...
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- 1978: DELTA SIERRA JULIET
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- Twenty years ago, on October 21, 1978,
at 6:10 p.m., Frederick M. Valentich, 21, began his pre-flight checklist,
walking around and inspecting his blue-and-white Cessna 182. Nine minutes
later, at approximately 6:19 p.m., Fred eased the Cessna off the tarmac
at Moorabbin Airport in Melbourne, Victoria state, Australia, heading south
over the Bass Strait on what was supposed to be a routine flight to Tasmania.
At 7:06 p.m., Fred, whose radio call letters were Delta Sierra Juliet (DSJ)
sent an urgent call to Flight Service (FS) in Melbourne. Here is the actual
transcript of that conversation. DSJ: "Melbourne, this is Delta Sierra
Juliet, is there any known traffic below five thousand (feet)?" FS:
"Delta Sierra Juliet, no known traffic." DSJ: "Delta Sierra
Juliet. I am--seems to be a large aircraft below five thousand."
FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet, what kind of aircraft is it?" DSJ:
"Delta Sierra Juliet. I cannot confirm. It is four bright...it seems
to me like landing lights." FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet, roger.
and it is a large aircraft, confirmed?" DSJ: "Er--unknown, due
to the speed it's travelling. Is there any air force activity in this
vicinity?" FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet, no known aircraft in the
vicinity." DSJ: "Melbourne, it's approaching now from due east
towards me." FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet." DSJ: "Delta
Sierra Juliet. It seems to me that he's playing some sort of game. He's
flying over me two, three times at speeds I could not identify." FS:
"Delta Sierra Juliet, roger. What is your actual level?" DSJ:
"My level is four and a half thousand, four five zero zero."
FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet, and you confirm that you cannot identify
the aircraft?" DSJ: "Affirmative." FS: "Delta Sierra
Juliet, roger. Stand by." DSJ: "Melbourne, Delta Sierra Juliet,
it's not an aircraft. It is (static)" FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet,
can you describe the...er...aircraft?" DSJ: "Delta Sierra Juliet.
As it's flying past, it's a long shape (static) cannot identify more than
it has such speed (static) It's before me right now, Melbourne."
FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet, roger, and how large would the...er...object
be?" DSJ: "Delta Sierra Juliet. Melbourne, it seems like it's
stationary. What I'm doing right now is orbiting, and the thing in orbiting
on top of me also. It's got a green light and sort of metallic like. It's
all shiny on the outside." FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet." DSJ:
"Delta Sierra Juliet (static) It's just vanished." FS: "Delta
Sierra Juliet." DSJ: "Melbourne, would you know what kind of
aircraft I've got? Is it a military aircraft?" FS: "Delta Sierra
Juliet, confirm the...er... aircraft just vanished?" DSJ: "Say
again." FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet, is the aircraft still with
you?" DSJ: "Delta Sierra Juliet, it's (static) now approaching
from the southwest." FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet." DSJ: "Delta
Sierra Juliet. The engine is rough idling. I've got it set at twenty-three,
twenty-four (2300 to 2400 RPM--J.T.), and the thing is coughing."
FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet, what are your intentions?" DSJ: "My
intentions are...ah...to go to King Island...ah...Melbourne. That strange
aircraft is hovering on top of me again. (static) It is hovering, and it's
not an aircraft." FS: "Delta Sierra Juliet." DSJ: "Delta
Sierra Juliet. Melbourne (static burst for 17 seconds)" The burst
faded, and the frequency fell silent. An air-and-sea rescue was launched.
But the searchers found no trace of Fred Valentich or his blue-and-white
Cessna. The Royal Australian Air Force report on the Valentich case contains
the following: "Degrees of injury - Presumed fatal." "Opinion
as to cause - The reason for the disappearance of the aircraft has not
been determined." (See the book WORLD ATLAS OF UFOs by John Spencer,
Smithmark Publishers Inc., New York, NY 1991, pages 169 to 172.)
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- _____________________
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- We'll be back next week with more saucer
news from around the planet, brought to you by "the paper that goes
home--UFO Roundup." See you then.
-
- UFO ROUNDUP: Copyright 1998 by Masinaigan
Productions, all rights reserved. Readers may post news items from UFO
Roundup on their websites or in newsgroups provided that they credit the
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