Have you ever seen a UFO?

[Iroscato]

This has most likely been asked before on this board, but I'd like to create a new discussion on it.

Have you ever seen what you suspect to be an extraterrestrial event? Something as simple as a few lights in the sky, but it can cover full-on contact and/or probing . When did it happen, at night or during the day? What was your reaction? How did it affect your life, and to what degree of severity? Did it change your opinions on such matters?

Personally I haven't really seen anything strange or unexplainable so far, though my dad and my uncle have both separately seen lights in the sky. My dad saw two lights approach each other near the horizon, then spin around each other extremely fast, then fly off together out of sight. My uncle (fairly recently) saw about 6 orange lights, again moving extremely fast, zoom across the sky.

So, please share your experiences...

[Flagg]

Nothing that couldn't easily be explained.

[Broomstick]

Well, I saw something that I couldn't explain at the time. Specifically, several lights in a V-shaped array in the sky around dawn near Phoenix, Arizona. It was clearly something artificial, but not any type of flying machine I was familiar with at the time.

Some years later I learned it was an experimental vehicle, which I sort of suspected all along. If I see something weird in the sky I'm more inclined to think "secret government project" than "aliens".

[Crossroads Inc.]

You know, I think with all the 'Nutters' out there, the term does get more than a bad rap. I'll admit I HAVE seen things I would classify as "Unknown"

Now, I don't think I saw a spaceship, or secret government space thing.. I just wasn't sure WHAT I did see. I think the most bizarre thing I saw was either Ball lightning (it was a stormy day) Or some sort of flares (at the time I lived near a national guard testing range)

[Zwinmar]

I didn't know it was a dc10 at the time so UFO....

[The Xeelee]

Yes, I have seen a UFO. But I don't belueve it to be aliens.

[Terralthra]

Neil deGrasse Tyson has an interesting bit about this from a seminar in "Cosmic Quandaries." He points out that even the term "UFO" is we humans pushing our ignorance onto the item in question, as if it's some sort of defining characteristic that Joe Skywatcher can't figure out what something is. The lack of identification is entirely in Joe's head, and nothing to do with the object or entity in question.

He compares it to so-called "optical illusions", which are really, if we want to be accurate, "brain failures." They're lines on a page, pixels on a monitor, etc. There's nothing illusory about them. The "illusion" is in our visual cortices' inability to process them consistently or coherently, but we push that cognitive failure onto the image, like it's the image's fault we can't figure it out.

[Ahriman238]

None that didn't turn out, with a bit of time and a different angle, to be a plane, dirigible or spotlight.

[Jub]

I recall seeing ball lightening as a child, but nothing beyond that.

[Srelex]

I once saw a couple of strange, round orange lights moving over my neighborhood once--not paper lanterns as they were too fast and straight, and their light too constant. Didn't seem like any planes I've seen.

I didn't immediately go 'OMGWFTALIENS', but it did weird me out at the time. Can't really think what they were, so that's unidentified enough for me. Light aircraft maybe?

[Hawkwings]

I have seen some unidentified flying vehicles above El Mirage lakebed, which is near Edwards AFB.

When I visited Skunk Works in Palmdale they said they would show us the aliens and spaceships, but we never got around to it.

[Zaune]

I remember once seeing a weird circle of spotlights being projected against the clouds one night, never could figure out what they were. I was about eight years old at the time so I did think "aliens", but with the benefit of an adult's hindsight I expect it was probably a rave or something.

[Kojiro]

I once saw something in the sky I could not identify. It zipped into view, was stationary for maybe three seconds, then appeared to zoom off into the atmosphere. For all I know it was a reflection on my glasses or a spotlight though, so I'm not even sure it was an object, let alone an alien one.

[Alyeska]

I've seen plenty of planes flying at night, satellites, shooting stars, weird clouds. Even seen two B-1s flying in formation at high altitude. Never seen a UFO. Unidentified aircraft, sure. But nothing mysterious in the sky.

[Covenant]

I once saw a silver saucer (from a hilltop away from it) with a series of lights around the rim over the city and slowly descending, but then realized, as it got a little closer, that it was just a passenger jet that was coming in to land. For a good 15 seconds it was a totally legitimate UFO though, given how my perspective made it look (at night, of course) like a little saucer instead of a big long plane. If they line up just right and you're far enough away, it can be a momentary shock, especially if you want to see one.

[Sky Captain]

Few years ago during summer night I saw a bright light flying low over the sea near the horizon that I and other people couldn't explain at that moment. Next day I heard on the radio a boat in that area was blown out to sea and a SAR chopper was sent to look for it. So the UFO turned out to be a chopper with searchlight that was too far to be heard.

[NoXion]

I've seen unblinking moving lights in the night sky that I was unable to identify, although if I had to guess I would say "human satellites" rather than "alien spacecraft".

I like to try and keep an eye out for the International Space Station. What's it supposed to look like from the ground?

[Sea Skimmer]

Nothing that seriously raised questions in my mind as to what it was; but I have seen airliners blatantly making the donuts on the rope contrails complete idiots claim is proof of secret government pulse detonation engine tests and or 'Aurora'.

[CJvR]

I once saw a light in the sky. It looked like just another star but it was moving. Even more strangely it was slowing down until it became stationary for about a minute before abruptly moving off at a sharp angle compared to it's original heading. At first I thought it was a high flying plane, then a satellite and finally I didn't know what to think.

[Broomstick]

Nothing that seriously raised questions in my mind as to what it was; but I have seen airliners blatantly making the donuts on the rope contrails complete idiots claim is proof of secret government pulse detonation engine tests and or 'Aurora'.

The stupid thing is, all of those "donuts" are established holding patterns and their particulars are even published on a regular basis. No matter how often you explain that the dumbshits just won't believe you.

[Zaune]

Oh, that's nothing compared to this "chemtrails" bullshit. You think the 9/11 truthers are bad? Well at least their evidence amounts to "Dubya and Co gained a lot by the World Trade Centre attacks". The evidence for these chemtrails, on the other hand, amounts to "someone saw a funny-looking contrail once".

[Simon_Jester]

Nothing that seriously raised questions in my mind as to what it was; but I have seen airliners blatantly making the donuts on the rope contrails complete idiots claim is proof of secret government pulse detonation engine tests and or 'Aurora'.

The stupid thing is, all of those "donuts" are established holding patterns and their particulars are even published on a regular basis. No matter how often you explain that the dumbshits just won't believe you.

Could you summarize? I am ignorant of what you mean by "established holding patterns" that might cause a contrail to get puffy 'donut' shapes strung along it.

[Shinova]

One time I saw a silvery, ovoid something floating in the sky. Not too far away, but not close either. It was midday. Also a couple of helicopters were hovering in position some distance away from the object, surrounding it. I stared at it for about a minute before it hovered over and disappeared from view behind a random building. I thought, "Oh it's a UFO," and went back to whatever I was doing. I didn't hear anything about it in the local news or anywhere else afterwards.

I suppose it might've been a blimp, who knows.

[Broomstick]

Nothing that seriously raised questions in my mind as to what it was; but I have seen airliners blatantly making the donuts on the rope contrails complete idiots claim is proof of secret government pulse detonation engine tests and or 'Aurora'.

The stupid thing is, all of those "donuts" are established holding patterns and their particulars are even published on a regular basis. No matter how often you explain that the dumbshits just won't believe you.

Could you summarize? I am ignorant of what you mean by "established holding patterns" that might cause a contrail to get puffy 'donut' shapes strung along it.

Not having an actual picture of this particular situation I can only guess it's one of two things:

1) Holding pattern - these are circular/teardrop shape paths at designated locations and altitudes near airports. When air traffic control tells someone to hold for landing they'll go into one of those designated patterns and simply circle until told it's their turn to get in line to land.

2) Spacing - because airplanes can't slow down below a certain point, if one airplane is overtaking another they will either do "S-turns" that allow them to maintain their airspeed but make slower progress in regards to their ground track and other traffic, or in some cases actually turn full circles to maintain spacing.

Unless this refers to something else, which it might. But most of the "chemtrail" stuff I've seen is easily explained by published approach procedures.

[Jub]

I think that he's referring to something that would look like this:

-----0-----0-----

So basically little rings surrounding the main contrail.