c, Meteorological searchlights shine on clouds: you cannot
see the beam, only a light apparently dancing in the
sky.
J, A surprising number of reports relate to aircraft seen in
unusual conditions at unusual angles, some very high, some
at low level. One recent 'UFO' was confidently reported
on local. radio: we cannc.t prove that it was not a 'UFO 1 , bu·t
we do know that an RAF Vulcan bomber on ~ low flying mission
passed the same spot at the same time and on the same course
as the reported UFO.
~- .And satellites: there are some 5000 listed objects in orbit,
satellites ar11l space debris. l4ore are added each year, and
aboht 600 re-enter the atmosphere every year. Early this
year MOD received many reports of a large p~ce of debris
I
1-t:_-e.nr&'h-:1 across the South of England: most reports
1 were factual, but one spoke of an 'oval shaped thing wi t~h a
L · white cockpit which hovered for a while than shot off at
0
great speed'. We cannot prove it wasn •t a UFO, but it
occurred at the' same time and place as some known re-entry
of space debris.
7~ And of course there are optical illusions. Any phenomena
seen through glass are particularly suspect.
8. There are also genuine hallucinations, sometimes bn people
under stress; the excited tales of the gullible; the embellish!2lents
of the born story teller. Also, I fear, downright lies. There
are also hoaxes: there are some very effective aerlal hoaxes r-rhich
have been perpetrated by children - \'Thich I will not describe for
fear of preci~itating a new rash of UFO reports.