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by UFO History Buff & Author, Charles Lear 

In last week’s blog, we looked at a case that is typical of UFO reports in the news these days: it originated on social media, there was no proper name for the source, and a great deal of fruitless speculation and arguing followed. As if in answer to our complaints, a case showed up that has just about everything a researcher/investigator could hope for. It involves an Air Traffic Control recording of multiple pilots reporting strange lights moving around in unusual patterns near Eugene, Oregon. Supporting the fact that the recording is genuine, one of the pilots has come forward and talked to the news media.

According to the article by Flynn Nichols headlined “Pilots told to ‘maneuver’ around Oregon ‘UFO’ in leaked cabin audio” published on the Newsweek website on December 12, 2024, a 44-minute recording was posted on Reddit by user SabineRitter on Sunday (which was December 8, 2024). The link to the original recording on LiveATC.net no longer works (the recording seems to have been deleted from the site), but there is an edited 13-minute, 28-second version still available on Youtube as of this writing. The article was updated later the same day with the statement from the FAA that “a pilot reported seeing unidentified lights while flying in Seattle Air Route Traffic Control Center airspace on Saturday, December 7.” It is explained by Nichols that “The URL of the archived recording from LiveATC.net contains a timestamp (Dec-08-2024-0430Z), which specifies the date and time the recording began: 4.30 a.m. on December 8 in Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) or 8:30 p.m., December 7, in Oregon (PST)” and that “The URL also contains the code KEU, which is the airport code for Eugene Airport, and ZSE, which is the official abbreviation of the Seattle Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC).” Read more →

by UFO History Buff & Author, Charles Lear 
Amidst the reports of drone incursions over military bases and northern New Jersey, there was a story that made the news involving video footage reportedly taken by a co-pilot of an unidentified object in the sky above Manchester Airport in England, along with still shots of what was said to be the same object, seen to be a blue sphere, hovering over the tarmac. As is typical of UFO coverage in the news these days, when it’s not about what government officials think about the phenomenon, the origin of the story was a post on social media with no real names provided for the poster or the source. All that was left for those with an interest in the case was to conduct some rather imaginative analysis of the footage and argue back and forth over the possible alien origin of the object. Read more →

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by UFO History Buff & Author, Charles Lear 

John Keel, most well-known as the author of the 1975 book, The Mothman Prophecies, was a controversial figure in flying saucer/UFO world back in the late 1960s and throughout the 70s due to his unorthodox views. He was first and foremost a fortean (interested in all things strange) and it was his view that whatever was behind the flying saucer/UFO phenomenon was not extraterrestrial and might be behind other phenomena as well. From May 1969 to April 1974, Keel put out the “irregular newsletter,” Anomaly. He asked those wishing to receive a copy to send him a self-addressed, stamped manila envelope, and the number of copies he printed depended on the number of envelopes he received. For fans of Keel, issue No. 1 provides a detailed look at his views and investigative methods (in the form of “concrete suggestions for investigating the phenomena”) just after his adventures in West Virginia and New York that he chronicled in The Mothman Prophecies. Read more →

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by UFO History Buff & Author, Charles Lear 

On November 24, researcher/investigator Christopher O’Brien died in a tragic mishap. According to the post by Loren Coleman on his site Cryptozoonews, O’Brien was staying at the house of Ron James in Sedona, Arizona, helping him with the sequel to his film, Accidental Truth, when he started experiencing what James described as “catastrophic breathing difficulties” and tried to drive himself to the hospital. According to James, he likely lost consciousness and “crashed his car into a stone sign and was fatally wounded.” James wrote that he asked for a sign from his “departed friend” as he was returning from San Francisco and stopped by the crash site. He includes a picture of what he found, which was a piece of stone on the ground with the words “Church of Chris” (the final “t” was covered by debris). O’Brien leaves behind many friends in the UFO/Paranormal community who mourn his loss and celebrate his contributions.

O’Brien was a rare breed of researcher, and his methods and integrity remain as a standard that other researchers should be measured by. He appeared on Martin’s show on December 14, 2021, where he mostly talked about a UFO data acquisition system (developed as part of the Unidentified Flying Object Data Acquisition Project) and his involvement with it. He describes duplicating footage shot in Salida, Colorado, in 1995 of what became known as the “Edwards Cigar” when he happened to see a long strand of spider web floating in the breeze and shot footage of it as it was backlit by the sun. He explains, “We need to be intellectually honest about this stuff.” He adds “I’m just as willing to debunk a case or explain it away as I am to confirm it as being high strange.

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by UFO History Buff & Author, Charles Lear 

The history of UFOlogy is made up of stories that range from genuine mystery to outright fraud. The choice of what to take seriously and what to discard can be difficult for those in the early stages of exploring the subject. A good maxim to start with might be “consider the source,” and some good claims to examine with this in mind are those involving metals (lately referred to as “metamaterials”) said to have been recovered from flying saucers/UFOs.

Metamaterial is a word that popped up in UFO world thanks to To The Stars Academy announcing in a July 25, 2019, press release that it had “acquired multiple pieces of metamaterials and an archive of initial analysis and research for their controversial ADAM Research Project.” It is explained that ADAM stands for “Acquisition and Data Analysis of Materials” which is an “academic research program” for the purpose of “exploiting of exotic materials for technological innovation.” Read more →

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by Martin Willis

At the last minute, I decided to make another trek to Washington, DC, for my second historic UAP Congressional Hearing. I flew up from Savannah, met with Randall Nickerson, and stayed with a nice friend of Chris Lehto’s, just a few miles from the Capitol. Staying there allowed me to do my regular Tuesday night show, though sleep was elusive on a sofa. I told Randall to call me if the crowd started gathering early—and sure enough, at 2:45 AM, I was up and took an Uber to the Rayburn Building, arriving to find 16 people already in line ahead of me. The frigid 38-degree wind tunnel sidewalk was brutal, and I regretted not bringing warmer clothes, as others huddled in blankets and down jackets.

As the crowd grew, it was uplifting to see familiar faces from last year, and I struck up conversations with new friends, like Sydney from Yale, who’d founded a UFO society and shared an amazing encounter story. Talking with fellow enthusiasts made the long, cold wait bearable. A fan of my show, a physician and his wife, stood nearby, chatting all morning, and another gentleman named Jason saved my stream by lending me the right charger during the hearing!

By 7:00 AM, we were finally let inside. After navigating the labyrinth of the Rayburn building, we grouped up to avoid people cutting in line—a repeat of last year’s chaos. I made a point of keeping the order fair, though a couple of people pushed back; they later apologized, which I appreciated. It was good to see familiar names like Robert Salas, Steven Bassett, and Darcy Weir, and I even ran into Representative Tim Burchett, who remembered being on my show. Later, Lue Elizondo stopped by to greet us, as did James Fox, Danny Sheehan, and Ryan Graves, who will join my show in January.

Once we were finally seated, the energy in the room was electric. My early morning paid off as I was just three rows back, dead center. I live-streamed the government’s feed, commenting along the way. Though many viewers hoped for groundbreaking revelations, most agreed that the focus is now on pushing for transparency and raising public awareness.

Overall, it was an incredible experience, both for the hearing itself and the connections I made. Talking to fellow enthusiasts in line and meeting dozens of fans was truly the highlight of the year, another memorable chapter in this mysterious UFO journey.

My next show, Tuesday, November 19 will be with Cinematographer Charlie Parish, who was also attending in the front row.

Here is a briefing below that I had generated.

Sources:

• Hearing Wrap Up: Transparency and Accountability Needed to Provide Accurate Information on UAPs to the American People – United States House Committee on Oversight and Accountability
• UFOs and UAPs should be studied by the U.S., experts tell congressional hearing : NPR

Summary:

A joint hearing was held by the House Oversight Committee subcommittees on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation and National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs on November 13, 2024, focusing on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs). The hearing featured testimonies from four experts: Retired Rear Admiral Tim Gallaudet, Author and Former DoD Official Luis Elizondo, Former NASA Associate Administrator Michael Gold, and Journalist Michael Shellenberger. Read more →

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