OT: My UFO Encounter.. (True Story)

[Saber Cherry]

Did you wear contacts in 1974? The jerky path you describe (zoom, hover, zoom, hover) is quite similar to what one would expect from "search" eye motion, or a contact lens recentering itself from such motion. So if, say, this was an ocean bay with phosphorescent plankton, and a plankton blew into your eye and stuck to your contact lens, such a pattern would be not only possible, but expected.

Other possibilities include a semidetached retina (minor retinal damage can cause strange flashies, and yet still repair itself), neural disorders (brain tumors and bloodflow irregularities can cause such visual anomalies), or phosphorescent bacteria actually living inside your eyeball, not to mention a viral optic nerve infection.

Astronauts in orbit have been noted to see gigantic lightning displays in the upper atmosphere, where no such electrical activity has been noted through other means (e.g., ground-based observations or instrumental detection). Such sightings have been attributed to cosmic rays directly stimulating the optic nerves. Of course, such sightings also tend to be a single short-lived blotch rather than a longer-duration zigzag.

Well, other than those, and perhaps the possibility of 9 independant meteorites (5 moving perpendicularly to yourself, and 4 moving directly toward you so as to appear stationary) or the Brownian motion of a very small, very bright meteorite... ok, I'm kidding about that one, but perhaps it could be the Cerenkov radiation of a hitherto-unknown hyper-lightspeed massive particle buffeted by weakly-interacting dark matter? That's what I'm betting on...

At any rate, these are all highly plausible scenarios, and it should put your mind at ease that there are so many common, natural phenomena that can explain what you saw, without resorting to crazy sci-fi mumbo-jumbo about UFO's and the light of Venus refracting off swamp gas.

[Raging Deadstar]

Saber Cherry said:
Did you wear contacts in 1974? The jerky path you describe (zoom, hover, zoom, hover) is quite similar to what one would expect from "search" eye motion, or a contact lens recentering itself from such motion. So if, say, this was an ocean bay with phosphorescent plankton, and a plankton blew into your eye and stuck to your contact lens, such a pattern would be not only possible, but expected.

Other possibilities include a semidetached retina (minor retinal damage can cause strange flashies, and yet still repair itself), neural disorders (brain tumors and bloodflow irregularities can cause such visual anomalies), or phosphorescent bacteria actually living inside your eyeball, not to mention a viral optic nerve infection.

Astronauts in orbit have been noted to see gigantic lightning displays in the upper atmosphere, where no such electrical activity has been noted through other means (e.g., ground-based observations or instrumental detection). Such sightings have been attributed to cosmic rays directly stimulating the optic nerves. Of course, such sightings also tend to be a single short-lived blotch rather than a longer-duration zigzag.

Well, other than those, and perhaps the possibility of 9 independant meteorites (5 moving perpendicularly to yourself, and 4 moving directly toward you so as to appear stationary) or the Brownian motion of a very small, very bright meteorite... ok, I'm kidding about that one, but perhaps it could be the Cerenkov radiation of a hitherto-unknown hyper-lightspeed massive particle buffeted by weakly-interacting dark matter? That's what I'm betting on...

At any rate, these are all highly plausible scenarios, and it should put your mind at ease that there are so many common, natural phenomena that can explain what you saw, without resorting to crazy sci-fi mumbo-jumbo about UFO's and the light of Venus refracting off swamp gas.

Ok...Now thats Crazy Talk, give me space cows anyday!

[David E. Gervais]

I didn't wear contact lenses. (never have) the bay is on the Saint-Lawrence river. (no plancton, especially the glowing kind.) It was a clear night, the kind of clear night that does not exist anymore thanks to modern industrial society. I remember very clearly what I saw, I'll be replaying and analizing this memory for the rest of my life. current theory on what I saw? either a firefly (which does not exist in my neck of the woods) or a mysterious object that defied known principles of aerodynamics. hmmm, since fireflies do exist 'elsewhere' on this planet (or so I've been told) the first theory has slightly more merit. But I believe that what I saw was truely "Unidentified", and as to it's "flying" well if it defied the known laws of aerodynamics then it can be agrued that it was not actually "Flying" so with this in mind it might be more accurate to say I saw an "Unidentified Moving Object" Althought all the movement I saw did take place in the sky above the mouth of the bay. The fact that at it's lowest point I also saw it's reflection on the water of the bay as well as the trees on the edge of the island get 'illuminated' kind of supports the fact that this object was indeed 'airborn'... Final analisis = I saw a UFO, yup I did, difinately did. I cannot confirm it being of "Alien" (extraterrestrial) origin however and therefore simply say "It was, what it was. Brief in appearance and everLasting in my mind, forever my own private memory that even when shared remains unbelievable."

Cheers!

P.S. it looked alot like that thing in the madonna painting.

[Captain Kwok]

Thanks for sharing your story David. It is interesting to say the least. By the way, do you get the Space channel? They had a great series of documentaries about UFOs and the different amateur/"professional" organizations that cover them. It was on Saturdays for a few weeks in a row a month ago.

[gregebowman]

I had a UFO experience. It happened while I was camping with my troop of Boy Scouts sometime in the mid-70's. A bunch of us were taking a walk at night when someone noticed what looked like a satellite crossing the sky. It was a solid dot, like what you would see if you did observe a satellite. However, as it approached the horizon, it did a 90 degree turn and travelled horizontal to the ground. We watched it go until it traveled out of our sight. It was the weirdest thing I've ever seen, and have never seen anything like that since. Was it a UFO? Who knows, but it almost made a believer out of me. But I'm more Scully than Mulder. I'll have to see it, hear it, touch it and taste it before I'll believe. But I do hope we're not alone in the cosmos.