firbeck 860 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 This has been prompted by Stan on the Aviation Day thread. Has anyone ever seen anything strange and inexplicable in the sky, do you believe in such things, or do you think it's just natural phenomena. I admit to getting carried away with all that George Adamski/Erich Von Danniken stuff many years ago, but a lot of their findings turned out to be fake anyway. I've always tended to think that alien visitations are unlikely, but then look how alien this computer is to even my mothers generation, even in the Swinging 60's, communicating world wide on a piece of kit smaller than a briefcase would be incomprehensible to most people. I've seen a few odd things that can't entirely be explained away. I used to live in a remote farm cottage with incredible pollution free skies, you could sit out at night and lose yourself in the stars, coincidentally it was next to RAF Wethersfield as well. Some of the objects seen moving across the sky were pretty wierd, I tend to think that they were probably space junk, tumbling about in erratic orbits, they probably were, but it's so easy to use your imagination and wish them to be something else. I've recently seen a couple of wierd things from here as well. We get quite a few overflights, airliners at very high altitude from the continent heading west, lower level stuff to and from Stansted, light aircraft from two local airfields, warbirds in transit to and from Duxford and military helicopters from Wattisham, never a dull moment. The night skies are fairly clear too, only last week I saw a phenomenal meteorite, bright green with a hell of a trail, that might have made some people wonder. Last year though, one lunchtime, I saw a very high object heading north at a hell of a speed, it wasn't leaving much of a contrail and by the time I got my bins, it had gone. I reported it on an aviation site and someone else claimed to have seen it off the coast near Sunderland about 10 to 15 minutes later, working out the approximate course and distance would have made it doing about Mach 3, not impossible, but where was the sonic boom. In January, my missus and I watched a mysterious orange light heading towards us, military helicopter? no sound, Chinese lantern? heading against the wind, it took a very sharp left turn and went up into the clouds, can't explain that one. Has anyone else seen anything like that recently. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ayupmeducks 1,730 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 My nearest "town" is ten miles away, and I have no light pollution whatsoever, an astronomers dream, one might say! Although I do believe we cannot be alone in the universe, I have never seen anything abnormal in the night skies. Seen a few Auroras over the last few years though, what a beautiful light show put on by Mother Nature. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Limey 242 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 Many years ago I spent several weeks in the Kalahari desert - talk about zero light pollution! It felt like you could reach up and grab the stars! Before that I did witness a UFO event that was also seen by somebody on the same road shortly before I saw it - a light, almost like a motorcycle headlight, that followed my car then suddenly disappeared across a field. The other person's sighting was similar and reported in the newspaper. That said, I do not believe in UFO's as being alien spacecraft - just some strange natural phenomenon. I do believe that to think we are alone in this universe is somewhat narcissistic, but I also do not believe anybody can break the laws of physics (travel faster than light) so the possibility of them travelling here - or us there - is pretty remote. Besides, who would be interested in this mess? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ayupmeducks 1,730 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 I think some of the writers of science fiction have got the idea Eric, like Stargate. No I cannot accept traveling beyond the speed of light, for one, that would put the travelers in danger of hitting large objects and destroying themselves. I believe maybe they have discovered time travel or maybe there could be parallel universes?? And they travel between those parallel universes? Who knows? But it makes more practical sense than traveling at the speed of light. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Bip 88 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 I'm sure I read somewhere or was told it on one of those science programs that it's impossible to travel at or beyond the speed of light. if one wants speed buy a Diesel 2 litre Picasso...that's my time machine. The only thing I've seen in the night sky which at the time couldn't figure out was those chinese lanterns.... Bip. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
firbeck 860 Posted March 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 I think that you'll find, that according to Einstein and his 'relatively' untested theories, if you travel faster than the speed of light, you pass through objects rather than collide with them. As my knowledge of all this extends not much further than knowing that E=MC2, whatever that means to us mere mortals, I can't comment other than the fact that I'm sure that Einstein and Stephen Hawkin were and are, probably aliens themselves sent to confuse us all, and that they've succeeded. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 Done an awful lot of sky watching , one way or another, over the years ,including standing outside the maternity ward smoking a cigar whilst waiting for our Charlotte to relinquish her grip on the womb and join us in this big wide world. As I looked skywards a beautiful shooting star went across parrallel to the ground and lasted a good 4 seconds, (Doesn't sound much , but it is for a meteorite!!) I could even hear it. I decided it was time to go back inside as our Charlotte was ariving on said "shooting star" . Lo and behold she was with us in less than 2 minutes!! Only ever had one real wierd experience, driving past Stoke on the M6 at about 8pm when all of a sudden all the cars around me started swerving all over the place, i looked to my left and there was a bright glowing object floating at about 300' a couple of miles away. Everybody was staring at it and nearly colliding with each other. It wasn't till the next day that the penny dropped , I had seen a "Goodyear Blimp" hovering over the new Brittania Stadium home of Stoke City FC ( probably their first game at the new ground) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
poohbear 1,360 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 Einstein and Stephen Hawkin were and are, probably aliens themselves sent to confuse us all, and that they've succeeded. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ayupmeducks 1,730 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 Hmmm food for thought Firbeck, so let's say Einstien was right, that you pass through solid objects at the speed of light, worappens when you slow down to stop??? SPLAT... Oh dear! !laughing! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ayupmeducks 1,730 Posted March 25, 2009 Report Share Posted March 25, 2009 On another note, I do get a good light show from the space station, which is visible most nights when the sky's clear. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
loppylugs 8,429 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 What part of the sky can the space station be seen in, John? Should be pretty similar for GA. Dave Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 If you sign up to http://www.heavens-above.com/ with your location in the world (It's free) you can find out when the ISS is nearest to you. (loads of others too) I have just had a couple of cracking passes over the last few days , but it has been lashing down ,stopping any views Quote Link to post Share on other sites
firbeck 860 Posted March 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 Thanks for that Beefsteak, a great site, I'm already signed up and looking forward to seeing the ISS tonight, unfortunately it's passing over quite low at 20:00 over in the west, the worst place for light pollution for me as our George's school sportsfield floodlights are likely to be on at that time. I was interested to note that two satelites crashed over Siberia last month, as my bright green meteorite suggests a high copper content and it was exactly below the North Star, I'm wondering whether it could have been debris from the collision. Incidentally, my son Jack had a very profound meeting with Stephen Hawkin in Cambridge a few years ago. Jack was rushing out of Woolworths and the great man knocked him over with his electric wheelchair, all Jack got out of it was a lopsided grin and a pre-programmed apology from the computer, he didn't wash for days afterwards though. I note the time of your posting, were you up to watch a particular interstellar phenomenon or still not sleeping very well. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
plantfit 7,634 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 I remember seeing something in the 60s about 65-66 when at school, what appeared to be a silver ball/globe very high up 20.000 ft plus it was heading west on a bright sunny day with not many clouds, what clouds there was were being blown in the opposite direction to the "ball" I know that don't mean much as clouds get blown all over the place at different altitudes but to us school boys it got us wondering, I've read the Von Daniken books as well as others and the one thing thats always gets me thinking is that all the strange phenomenon seems to happen in the middle and far east, whats your thoughts on that firbeck Rog Quote Link to post Share on other sites
firbeck 860 Posted March 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 It's Allah making his presence known to us, whats wrong with you for not understanding that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Ayupmeducks 1,730 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 Dave, look to the west at about "two o clock" in the night sky, it's a bright stationary object. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 It certainly isn't stationary John (You're probably looking at Venus) the ISS passes over taking about 3/4 minutes from horizon to horizon. If you look in that site you will see where it says Mag , the lower the number the brighter it can be seen. ie -2 is brighter than 2. I have a -1,4 tonight and a -1.9 tomorrow. (I have had a -3 (More or less overhead) but I didn't have a good lens then , I tried to photo it through my telescope, to no avail. Also visible to you who don't have light polution , is the tool bag that was lost !!! that is listed on that site too!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
firbeck 860 Posted March 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 Thinking about it Plantfitt, wasn't there a huge balloon put into orbit in the 60's. I seem to remember it being inflated on release from the delivery vehicle and being so big and reflective that it was visible in the daylight. I don't know what the point of it was and what happened to it, but I have a vague memory of seeing it pass over on a bright sunny day. Incidentally:- Having had another tedious trip in space, Firbeck goes off to the bar at Edwards AFB to commiserate with Chuck Yeager. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Fynger 841 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 That Shuttles gotta be good to land on that plane. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
firbeck 860 Posted March 26, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 That Shuttles gotta be good to land on that plane. Quite the reverse, Neil Armstrong was too busy checking his Lottery tickets and didn't notice the 747 landing beneath him. I've checked it out, the balloon satelite was called Echo 1, followed by another called Echo 2, they were supposed to have been installed to check the earths actual size and were up from 1960 to 1970, at 30m in diameter, they were pretty big and must have been the objects we saw at the time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Limey 242 Posted March 26, 2009 Report Share Posted March 26, 2009 Didn't you know that all those shuttle landings you see on the T.V. are computer generated fakes! In reality, they don't actually land the shuttle - they "catch" it from mid-air using this specially modified 747 - that way they don't have to build landing gear for the shuttle - anyway, NASA can't afford the tyres! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
loppylugs 8,429 Posted March 27, 2009 Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 Thanks John and Beefy. I'll check out that web site. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted March 27, 2009 Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 I don't know if anyone saw tonights UK pass, but there were two lights going across at the same time !! impossible to estimate their distance from each other but , they kept the same space apart throughout their pass. One was redder than the other (The ISS is normally bright white) the red one was the reverse of the two but was first in vision (to me) As it happened I was trying to video the pass but it is practically impossible with this new "Top of the range Video camcorder" as there is no proper line of site view, you have to rely on what you can see on screen , and in this case it's bu99er all. I shall down load said film and see what I can see tomorrow. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
firbeck 860 Posted March 27, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 Beefsteak I saw it, we had a lovely clear sky and watched the two pass right over the top of Orion at 20:00, no light pollution either, my youth was amazed. I'm assuming that the Shuttle had undocked from the space station and was probably following it in orbit. I was surprised at how quickly they passed by, presumably they were in a fairly low orbit. I've just checked out on the NASA website and this was indeed the case, here's a picture taken from the shuttle of the space station yesterday:- It will now be preparing for re-entry tomorrow, I hope all goes OK. A most spectacular sighting, it made our night after a bad evening trying to get a virus out the computer, but thats another story. This is how it was supposed to look!!!! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Beefsteak 305 Posted March 27, 2009 Report Share Posted March 27, 2009 Just found that out myself ,thanks. There is somewhere on that site that says how high the ISS is at the moment. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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