Introduction

In the course of investigating the odd and unusual in New England, I have ended up (of necessity) reading a considerable number of books on Unidentified Flying Objects.  In the course of my reading I have made several observations – all quite obvious – that have not (to my knowledge) been addressed in the literature.  Here is one such for your consideration.

 

Note: My writing this article does not imply that I am a believer in UFOs or UFO entities.  My position on all such subjects is a cautious skepticism.  Whether these objects are real is not the subject of this essay, rather these are observations made on events as described in the literature as I understand it.

   Acrobatic Nocturnal Lights

This observation has to do with a certain type of sighting of nocturnal lights in the sky.  There is a particular scenario that comes up repeatedly in UFO literature: a person sees what appears to be a star moving around in the sky forming geometric patterns.  Usually this episode begins with a sighting of a "star" that seems to be blinking and/or wandering around the night sky.  When the observer notices it and focuses on it, this seems to attract the attention of the moving light.  It is at the point that the observer becomes aware of the light that the light seems to suddenly become aware of the observer.  This is often indicated by the light suddenly rushing briefly right at the observer, and then returning to the sky, where it begins a series of maneuver that form geometric shapes and patterns.  [See In the Big Thicket by Rob Riggs, for example.]

 

On occasion this attention is said to be gained by the observer blinking a flashlight at it, only to find the light blinks back in the same patterns.  In any event, once the attention has been gained, the light typically goes from a wandering mode to a performance mode. 

 

 

A typical performance mode example includes a light tracing what appears to a large square in the sky, as seen from the observers position.  Other geometric shapes have been seen to be traced in the night sky as well by these types of lights.

 

  

Anomalous Aerial Lights Forming Patterns

 

Often, the star-like light will separate into several lights of the same size and intensity, and perform synchronized acrobatic maneuvers.  The lights may maneuver to mark the corners of squares, triangles, rectangles, and make patterns etc. – flowing silently from one geometric form or pattern to another with precision and timing. 

 

      

Anomalous Aerial Lights Forming Patterns

 

The lights move from position to position with rapidity, traversing large swathes of the night sky in split seconds, and apparently, at extraordinary speeds.  They also are seen to execute right-angled turns, again at what would calculate out to be extraordinary speeds and remarkable g-forces. 

 

Another similar scenario is when a glowing light – not mistakable for a star – performs the same routine at much lower elevations: splitting up into several glowing lights, forming geometric shapes between them, or morphing itself from orb shape to triangular to more complex shapes.  The lower level glowing light scenario may also include synchronized color changes.

   Assessment

What I initially observe in these accounts is that the geometric shapes and patterns created by the maneuvers are only recognizable as such from the viewing point of the observer.  From a different observational position, these maneuvers would not result in the appearance of perfect geometric shapes being traced in the night sky – they would presumably still be seen, but not acting with geometric coherence.  Also, that these maneuvers result in what appear to be exact geometric shapes, means that they can only be viewed as exact from the exact position of the observer. 

 

Let’s put ourselves for a moment in the position of the "star"-lights in the sky.  For the sake of illustration, let us say that each maneuverable light is piloted, and that you are one of these pilots.  First, thousands of feet down there in the dark is a person you are putting on the performance for.  Somehow you know that they are thinking of you, and you respond with a precision air show. 

 

To make your maneuvers result in geometric shapes – whether you are working alone or with other pilots – requires bearing in mind that your geometric figures are made not from your perspective, but from the viewers perspective.  What you do in the sky is only meaningful, geometrically, to how it is seen from an exact view-position thousands of feet below on the ground.  It is easy to stand in front of a blackboard and draw a square with chalk, but it is quite another thing to be the chalk (if chalk were able to move of its own volition) and maneuver singularly or with other chalks to create drawings on the blackboard in such a way that they present exact geometric shapes to a specific view-perspective somewhere across the room.

 

And, consider that the blackboard drawings are drawn on a flat surface, but that the sky-shapes are made in a three dimensional space.  Nevertheless, the sky-shapes have all the precision of drawings done on a blackboard positioned to be viewed from an exact location. 

   Challenges

The sky presentation scenario phenomena seems to have a number of challenges.  These being:

 

• It becomes aware that a person is mentally focused on it.

 

• This "awareness" happens at night in the dark from what appears to be miles away.

 

• It separates into other lights.

 

• The light or lights maneuver to make the appearance of geometric shapes and patterns in the sky.  These can only be seen as such from an exact view-position: the observers position.

 

• Reports do not come in of people observing these maneuvers from an off-position location.  Only exact head-on positions.  No one ever seems to be witnessing someone else’s show.

 

• The lights appear to make "impossible" right angle turns.

 

• The lights appear to move at "impossible" speeds.

   Are We Looking In The Wrong Direction?

Assuming that these events appear as reported, I admit I do not know what the reality of the situation is.  However, it does strike me that a literal different perspective might shed insight into the event.  Perhaps we are looking in the wrong direction.

 

Let’s go back to the blackboard illustration.  Let us say a person (the observer) was sitting in a classroom facing the blackboard.  Let us say the lights were off and the shades pulled.  Let us say a person (the presenter) entered the room unbeknownst to the observer and stands at the desk behind them.  Then let us say the presenter takes out one of those laser pointers used for making presentations.  The presenter doodles the light point across the blackboard until he has the observer’s attention.  When he has his attention, he then proceeded to draw squares and triangles on the blackboard.  If the observer gets up and moves over one seat, so does the presenter, thus keeping the shapes presented exactly dead-on to the observer.  The light point makes right-angled turns on the blackboard, and, if the observer were under the impression that the blackboard was the canvas of the night sky, this would give the appearance of it moving at impossible speeds over large distances, and making impossible turns.  Let’s say the presenter now takes out a small machine that holds 4 laser pointers.  This machine moves the pointers so their light points move in concert and make squares and other geometric shapes and patterns on the blackboard surface. 

 

Another excellent illustration of a sky-shapes presentation system would be a planetarium. 

   Conclusion

I do not know what the actual reality of these sky presentations are, but it would seem much easier to project them from behind the observer than to coordinate it and present it from the vantage point of the light in the sky facing the observer.  The laser pointer in the illustration is a metaphor, not a fact, but as such it gets the mind looking in another direction.  Perhaps a person being presented with such a display would do well to look behind themselves, at least metaphorically. 

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