UFO's

[The Warthog]

Well, lately we've learned that they are hostile and want to eat us, or blow us off the planet, or make us into fertilizer. The news ain't good.

[ChrisEdu]

Well, lately we've learned that they are hostile and want to blow us off the planet

Wow! They must have strong lungs, or whatever their equivalent is!

[Tiny]

I still reckoned the best aliens were in the film Mars Attacks marching round with a phonograph playing 'We come in peace' while they ray-gunned every human in sight.

[ollypenrice]

To take a big step back to near the beginning of this thread, I think the idea that you have to keep an open mind about the unknown is patently crazy. You can't prove negatives by scientific method, so as soon as someone says 'the inhabitants of Io support Man U' the person who feels he has to keep an open mind has to say 'maybe you are are right.' You can't live like that. If i say to this terminal agnostic 'the next time you turn on the kettle you will extinguish the sun' what does he do? If he really believes in his own agnosticism he can't possibly turn on the kettle. On the other hand if his agnosticism is just a philosophical party game (which it will be) he can make himself a cuppa...

Olly.

[darditti]

Well-made point Olly.

David

[The Warthog]

Indeed - there are those that argue that no good would come of an alien visitation.

It would be fun watching all the nations of the Earth falling over themselves to ingratiate themselves with the aliens, and be the first to get their technology. United Nations, hell! It would be every nation uber all the other nations in the mad scramble. Assuming, that is, the aliens didn't just start shooting.

[The Warthog]

To take a big step back to near the beginning of this thread, I think the idea that you have to keep an open mind about the unknown is patently crazy. You can't prove negatives by scientific method, so as soon as someone says 'the inhabitants of Io support Man U' the person who feels he has to keep an open mind has to say 'maybe you are are right.' You can't live like that. If i say to this terminal agnostic 'the next time you turn on the kettle you will extinguish the sun' what does he do? If he really believes in his own agnosticism he can't possibly turn on the kettle. On the other hand if his agnosticism is just a philosophical party game (which it will be) he can make himself a cuppa...

Olly.

The open-minded person can simply say to that, "Any statement about the inhabitants of Io makes no sense, as we know there are no sentient inhabitants of Io." Really, we do. If we don't know that a statement is nonsense or false, we can still with an open mind, ask for evidence. Therefore, when I make a statement about God, someone open-minded who doesn't believe in God can legitimately ask for evidence. When I fail to produce convincing evidence, then my open-minded questioner can either decide my statement is nonsense, or mentally shelve it as 'undecided.'

I would have to admit to not being very open-minded about UFOs, because the weight of scientific probability is against them. I ask for evidence, which I question very hard. I would accept the possibility of alien visitation if I were presented with convincing evidence, which I have not seen in anyone's work. Conspiracy theories are not enough to convince me. I think that is open-minded enough.

[thing]

Just supposing there were aliens who could travel vast distances (which I don't believe for one second) then why the hell would they want to come here? You have a whole universe of wonders to look at and they say 'Tell you what, looks look at that terminally boring yellow sun over there in the Orion Arm 'cos there's a planet there with some folk on it doing things like accountancy'..........yeah right.

[The Warthog]

Yeah, but have you seen South Dakota?

[Sam]

If aliens ever travel here, and I find it very hard to believe how they could given the distances involved, then they would have a very warped sense of the earth from watching the myriad of reality TV shows they would pick up the closer to the earth they got.

[dave1978]

Why is it that people like us "astronomers" who lets admit it spend a lot of time looking at the night sky with either naked eye, binoculars or telescopes have never (to my knowledge) seen an extraterrestrial UFO? and people who arnt astronomy inclined seem to spot them all over the place?

Surely astronomers, if ET-UFO's exist would have seen them by the 1000's!

I personally think that ET's are surely out there on other planets but like has been said before they are way, way too far away, have never been here and never will as its not possible. They are beings like me and you with similar levels of technology who also stare out into the night sky wondering "what is out there"!

If there were advanced beings they would have had to be around in the Universe for 10's of thousands of years longer than us! As we already know we are a huge fluke and have luckily been allowed thousands of years of uninterupted evolution to get to where we are now. I think the possibility of "super advanced" beings is very unlikely as there is a much higher chance of them being wiped out by a comsic event than the chance of them evolving for long enough to become "advanced"

[Jeff RV]

We can only theorise withing our own scope of knowledge, and who really knows in practice that thousands of times the speed of light is not possible without one disappearing up ones own a***.

I personally think we haven't been visited, but i suppose i'm open minded in that it may be possible if it's beyond our understanding,

Jeff.

[The Warthog]

Part of the problem, Dave, is that if you and I see Venus from our car, and it seems to be following us at the side of the road, we know it's Venus. Joe the Plumber doesn't know that, and calls in a UFO report to the radio station. We see lots of things in the sky which we understand, and people who hardly ever look at the sky don't.

Have you heard that when there was a total blackout in Los Angeles, years ago, an urban legend sprang up that the blackout had been caused by the weird silver cloud that appeared in the sky during the blackout. Anybody guess Milky Way?

[Talitha]

Have you heard that when there was a total blackout in Los Angeles, years ago, an urban legend sprang up that the blackout had been caused by the weird silver cloud that appeared in the sky during the blackout. Anybody guess Milky Way?

:laughing3: :laughing3: :laughing3: :laughing3:

Thanks, WH.. best laugh I've had all day.

[Imahumanbeing]

WOW. So you guys have studied and can explain all of the unexplained UFO reports by pilots which have been tracked on ground and air Radar with visual confirmation on the ground and in the air and electromagnetic effects? www.narcap.org You must have also explained all the sightings of UFOs with video/photo evidence, multiple witnesses and ground marks from when these objects have landed. I guess you also have a complete theory which explains all the forces of nature and thats why you know we aren't being visited because it's not possible for them to get here.

This is a great website and the Astropictures are SPECTACULAR. Good to be able to speak about such silly topics as UFOs isn't it!

[Jeff RV]

WOW. So you guys have studied and can explain all of the unexplained UFO reports by pilots which have been tracked on ground and air Radar with visual confirmation on the ground and in the air and electromagnetic effects? www.narcap.org You must have also explained all the sightings of UFOs with video/photo evidence, multiple witnesses and ground marks from when these objects have landed. I guess you also have a complete theory which explains all the forces of nature and thats why you know we aren't being visited because it's not possible for them to get here.

This is a great website and the Astropictures are SPECTACULAR. Good to be able to speak about such silly topics as UFOs isn't it!

It's funny how there's no evidence!!

Welcome to SGL.

Jeff.

[Imahumanbeing]

Jeff

I take it you didn't check out www.narcap.org

[kev 102 42]

Things are getting strange, I'm starting to worry

This could be a case for Mulder and Scully

Things are getting strange, now I can't sleep alone..........kev

[The Warthog]

WOW. So you guys have studied and can explain all of the unexplained UFO reports by pilots which have been tracked on ground and air Radar with visual confirmation on the ground and in the air and electromagnetic effects? www.narcap.org You must have also explained all the sightings of UFOs with video/photo evidence, multiple witnesses and ground marks from when these objects have landed. I guess you also have a complete theory which explains all the forces of nature and thats why you know we aren't being visited because it's not possible for them to get here.

This is a great website and the Astropictures are SPECTACULAR. Good to be able to speak about such silly topics as UFOs isn't it!

No, we don't have a theory that explains it all, but there's no reason because we can't identify a flying object to assume it must have come from outer space.

Personally, I suspect they may come from inside the Earth. It's hollow, you know.

[Talitha]

Jeff

I take it you didn't check out www.narcap.org

Hi and welcome to SGL, Imahumanbeing.

I went to the link you provided and found this on the front page in the 'Disclaimer' section (bold emphasis mine):

"NARCAP is aware of an intense debate regarding the existence, nature and source of so-called "UFOs". NARCAP Technical Reports and documentation have been used by various "UFO" groups to promote their theories and opinions regarding the existence of "alien spacecraft" and "extraterrestrials". NARCAP does not endorse any of these claims nor does it encourage this use of its material."

That about says it all, doesn't it?

[Naz]

Have any of you googled "2012 comet",

From what they say, we wont have anything to worry about after 2012

[dave1978]

WOW. So you guys have studied and can explain all of the unexplained UFO reports by pilots which have been tracked on ground and air Radar with visual confirmation on the ground and in the air and electromagnetic effects? www.narcap.org You must have also explained all the sightings of UFOs with video/photo evidence, multiple witnesses and ground marks from when these objects have landed. I guess you also have a complete theory which explains all the forces of nature and thats why you know we aren't being visited because it's not possible for them to get here.

This is a great website and the Astropictures are SPECTACULAR. Good to be able to speak about such silly topics as UFOs isn't it!

NO but radar is notoriously unreliable especially back in the 80's! showing up allsorts like flocks of birds, air pressure variations etc as UFO's! I have taken this post as "ET-UFO" meaning "Alien Space craft" i dont doubt at all that these pilots etc have seen a UFO but most of these sightings are/were experimental aircraft or other phenomenon! but none have seen an ET-UFO

[Imahumanbeing]

:whip2: Nice one Kev, good old X-files!

I agree Warthog that there is no reason to assume a UFO is an object from outerspace. What would you consider evidence of a UFO being from outerspace?

Talitha - What does Talitha mean? I would be surprised if a serious UFO research organisation like NARCAP would encourage UFO groups and researchers with their own UFO theories to use its own TECHNICAL REPORTS AND DOCUMENTATION knowing the funny responses and reactions the UFO subject gets. Did you have a good look around the NARCAP website? Its packed full of info mate!

Dave 1978 - I would think that the people who work on radar are aware of what they are looking at on their radar screens! I hope!

I only found this part of the forum last night and was surprised to find this part on UFOs. I didn't see much positive remarks about the UFO subject and so thought I would try balance it out a bit!

[darditti]

My opinion is that UFOs are mainly to do with human psychology rather than physical reality.

It is interesting how the UFO thing comes and goes as a fashion. When, in the late 1970s or early 1980s, the astronomy club I belonged to then had a debate on the subject, a majority of the members believed in UFOs, and many claimed to have seen them. When this subject comes up today in astronomical gatherings, it gets short shrift, and anyone who claims to have seen a UFO is probably regarded rather strangely.

Is it really the case that we were being visited by lots of UFOs in the 70s, and not any more? Or is there more in the fact that in the 70s we were only 20 years into the space age, and only 30 years into the commercial jet age - so people were not so well-used to the many and various appearances that man-made objects in the sky present as they are now?

My attitude has not changed over those years, and has always been dominated by this big fact (already mentioned here): the people who claim to have seen UFOs are virtually never experienced observers of the sky. If UFOs were real, you would expect most of the reports of them to come from the people who spend a lot of time looking upwards - dedicated observational astronomers. I know many of the most dedicated observers in this country, and none of them has ever seen a UFO. So generally people who know the sky don't see them. And it is noticeable that the people who see them are often in remote places. My neighbours, living close-by the busiest airport in the world (LHR) don't see them. Maybe the aliens don't like London, but I prefer the alternative explanation.

Even when people are experienced, they can be deceived. Our forefather mariners claimed to have seen many sea-monsters which turned out not to exist.

Extraordinary claims require very good evidence. It isn't there. If it was, there would be general scientific acceptance.

David

[Imahumanbeing]

Hello David

There are probably more UFO sightings now then there has ever been, are your conclusions based on any research of the UFO subject? If so then you have probably seen all of these sightings by Astronomers on this webpage http://www.xdream.freeserve.co.uk/UFOBase/Astronomers.htm There are many many more reports by Military and Civilian pilots of UFOs who I would think are quite experienced observers of the sky. Sea monsters! I saw some cool footage of a giant squid that some chinese researchers got on a documentary on sky. Wouldn't it be nice for giant squid researchers if they had hundreds of radar tapes and electromagnetic effects, pictures and video footage as well as reports from thousands of witnesses to prove the existence of Giant Squid like there is for UFOs!

I quate scientist DR Haines : "What I found [in doing research for the book Project Delta] was compelling evidence to claim that most of these aerial objects far exceeded the terrestrial technology of the era in which they were seen. I was forced to conclude that there is a great likelihood that Earth is being visited by highly advanced aerospace vehicles under highly 'intelligent' control indeed."

NARCAP Science Director Dr. Richard Haines is a perceptual psychologist and former Chief of the Space Human Factors Office at NASA Ames Research Center and a former Sr. research scientist for both NASA and Raytheon. He acquired extensive experience with aviation and aerospace human factors during his 37 year career at NASA before retiring in 2001.

www.narcap.org

Here's a link to a few comments from scientists about the UFO subject www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc1744.htm

I am sure you could find more if you looked!

All the best