Astronaut recalls encounter with a UFO

[JimOberg]

This in-depth account of the debate over the X-15 reports is terrific, and it catches me in an off-the-cuff claim that turned out to be erroneous.

http://magonia.haaan.com/2009/fireflies/

[psyche101]

I think "Curtis Peebles" Might well be one of the coolest sounding names I have ever heard.

[JimOberg]

I think "Curtis Peebles" Might well be one of the coolest sounding names I have ever heard.

Curtis is a well-respected amateur aerospace historian in California.

[Forever Cursed]

Drama? Hardly. The case I have been making from the beginning is that these are just indeed stories. Since we have no way to verify what is being told, it is impossible for it to be proven. I have said it over & over that what it really boils down to is whether you believe these witnesses or not. How can one PROVE opinion? By all means, if you can explain that one you'll deserve a Nobel prize for debate and definitely be able to give us answers where none previously existed. I never took a personal shot at anyone. Just made observations based on replies. The ironic part is that if you are referring to Oberg, then you call me out for "taking personal shots" when he has been ridiculing Gordon Cooper, Armstrong, or any other witness who told their stories. Simply because he doesn't agree with their accounts and has an opposing viewpoint and mindset on the issue. Which is why the field of ufology is rarely taken seriously, because you have people who are telling their stories and not forcing anyone to believe it & then you have skeptics who will stop at nothing to ridicule those who are simply getting their accounts on record. Whether one chooses to believe the story or not is entirely their decision. I am simply stating my views on the matter no more and no less.

Watching NASA's Unexplained files last night, and noted that the biggest complaint among a number of the Scientists and Astronauts is that when NASA see something they can't explain, they immediately do a check of the shuttle to look for missing parts, and if they find none, then they fall back on the term "Space Junk". This practice does not seem to sit well with a number of individuals associated with their organization.

[JimOberg]

Watching NASA's Unexplained files last night, and noted that the biggest complaint among a number of the Scientists and Astronauts is that when NASA see something they can't explain, they immediately do a check of the shuttle to look for missing parts, and if they find none, then they fall back on the term "Space Junk". This practice does not seem to sit well with a number of individuals associated with their organization.

The subject isn't a simple one and it's literally unearthly, and alien to our experience base. I try to summarize the new realities as I learned them in two decades in Mission Control in my '99 FAQs;.

A lot of things come off a spacecraft that you DON'T have to worry about, and ice chips are one of them, along with restraining hardware jettisoned during satellite deployments -- like Story Musgrave's 'space eels'. But since it COULD be a clue to damage, one always checks, especially after the lethal wound to Columbia was overlooked when the broken piece drifted off and nobody noticed. The stuff seen outside is very rarely connected with 'space junk' from other satellites. their orbits criss-cross so fast that they would only zip out of view in milliseconds. It's spacecraft-generated dandruff [or vehicles maneuvering to dock] that are sources of this stuff.

[Forever Cursed]

I agree, it would be impossible to look at a reflective object out in the distance and "Know" what it is. As for that space eel ? I was thinking lint on the portal or lense . And not every thing can be listed UFO although I suppose since they don't what they truly are, it could fit. But what about those Moon Pigeons ? That's actually the first I have ever heard of them.

[TheGreatBeliever]

Asteroid. Hows the ufo gonna zig zag thru rocks at that speed?!

[Sweetpumper]

Asteroid. Hows the ufo gonna zig zag thru rocks at that speed?!

Did you not see this documentary?

[Forever Cursed]

I am going to have to find more on it. I believe in UFO's but do not believe that everything unexplained is. But they only showed a brief clip of one but said there were 16 reported accounts. But like you, if they were capable of moving through and avoiding other objects, that for me says more than just mere space junk.

[TheGreatBeliever]

Did you not see this documentary?

At that speed even a pebble will go thru it like a bullet

[SolarPlexus]

So yes, regarding in-space sightings of UFOs, your list scored a perfect 000, and the fabrications were obviously well-targeted at you.

I don't buy it and I don't believe you James Oberg. You worked for NASA and they paid you to misinform the public. Along with some other people (!) you were a part of their official "debunking" team. Why would it be different now? Now youre older and doing the same thing, using your influence to fool the public, only on internet forums ... YOu may have your miniature personality cult but you could never fool ALL of US...

[SolarPlexus]

To everyone . do your own research . Research not only the sightings but also the people. Don't forget that NASA lied in our face.

And Oberg is another pseudo skeptic, a DEBUNKER, probably a hard core Christian who doesn't want aliens to exist at any cost .. or just believes strongly in covering up what shouldn't be known to the public..... .and has a bit of an unhealthy fixation with debunking UFOs... there is an undercurrent of zealotry in his pursuit of anything to do with debunking.... I remember once I went to Obergs profile on facebook and his first interest was United Methodist Church of Brazoria ... it does point to a motive of someone who doesn't want UFOs to exist for what it might do to certain religious principles.

Edited March 11, 2014 by SolarPlexus

[Forever Cursed]

To everyone . do your own research . Research not only the sightings but also the people. Don't forget that NASA lied in our face.

I saw that one of the scientists was complaining because NASA told him to down play his experiment when it showed life on Mars, because 2 prior experiments showed none. But then a decade later it came out that the 2 dead areas tested were high in some type of salt content which they now figure may have killed off any life in the soil samples.

[SolarPlexus]

Oberg you read Paul Davies ? Philosophical implications? I bet you have a copy at home

[scowl]

I don't buy it and I don't believe you James Oberg. You worked for NASA and they paid you to misinform the public. Along with some other people (!) you were a part of their official "debunking" team. Why would it be different now? Now youre older and doing the same thing, using your influence to fool the public, only on internet forums ... YOu may have your miniature personality cult but you could never fool ALL of US...

You can't challenge any of Oberg's sources nor can you cite any of your own so why would anyone believe you instead of him?

To everyone . do your own research . Research not only the sightings but also the people. Don't forget that NASA lied in our face.

I've done lots of research and have uncovered no lies from NASA. You should follow your own advice.

And Oberg is another pseudo skeptic, a DEBUNKER, probably a hard core Christian who doesn't want aliens to exist at any cost .

And this is just childish name-calling. Again, why would anyone believe someone who talks like this?

[scowl]

I saw that one of the scientists was complaining because NASA told him to down play his experiment when it showed life on Mars, because 2 prior experiments showed none. But then a decade later it came out that the 2 dead areas tested were high in some type of salt content which they now figure may have killed off any life in the soil samples.

Where did you see this? Of course any names, dates, details of the "experiment", or anything that would pass for useful information would be helpful.

[SolarPlexus]

And this is just childish name-calling. Again, why would anyone believe someone who talks like this?

Why would you think believing me is important ? I don't want you to believe me . ....

Edited March 11, 2014 by SolarPlexus

[bendigger0]

Ben, a lot of ordinary folks in the space community felt exactly that way about Cooper. In the mid-1980s, trusting and investing in people Cooper introduced as reliable friends, they lost a cumulative total in excess of two million dollars. Too bad you didn't have the chance to put your money where your mouth is.

Now that's a chapter in a hero's life most people would rather never have to be written.

Investors LOST money? That's NEWS?

[scowl]

Why would you think believing me is important ?

Because you are making claims that, if true, would change the course of humanity and rewrite history.

I don't want you to believe me . ....

I totally want to believe you. Just give me a reason to believe you.

[SolarPlexus]

That is your problem if you TOTALLY want to believe me ..... I said do your own research, answers aint gonna fall from the sky (or come as a result of believing any one)

[Merc14]

That is your problem if you TOTALLY want to believe me ..... I said do your own research, answers aint gonna fall from the sky (or come as a result of believing any one)

We have done the research and haven't found a single provable case of extraterrestial life visting earth. What one finds when conducting this research is a massive amount of false information, misinterpreted sightings, outright lies, scams and virulently angry "believers" like you.

Most of these sightings you read about are explainable as normal events.. The small percentage that aren't easily explained do not come close to proving that extraterrestials are visiting earth.

You have an irrational hatred of NASA yet seem to forget that there are space bureaus in Russia, China, Europe and a dozen other countries and they don't have any proof of your claims either. Are they all covering something up? Don't you think the Russians would love to show up America by proving that ET is visiting earth?

Lastly, you attack a person for their religion with zero proof that it has anything to do with their thoughts on UFOs. Is that the best you can do? A personal attack because your baseless beliefs are so easily proved wrong? Sad.

Edited March 11, 2014 by Merc14

[JimOberg]

....But what about those Moon Pigeons ? That's actually the first I have ever heard of them.

Yep, the only reason anybody has heard about them is that I published the original report on my website, there apparently are no surviving copies locatable in NASA archives. That makes it fair to ask what else may have been written down that has vanished into oblivion, deliberately or not -- and it makes doing ALL the research we can do NOW while witnesses are still alive, before their insights are lost forever.

The Gordon Cooper stories are an excellent example. When I began digging into the context of the events in the early 1980s, challenged by UFO proponents who did not want to spend their OWN time checking out the all-too-useful stories, I was able to locate dozens of Cooper's colleagues, contemporaries, and family members. Most of them, like Cooper, are now dead, but I was able to extract and preserve vital data releated to what actually may have happened -- or not happened.

This is vital data, I must stress, that from the beginning mainstream ufology by its inaction did not WANT to be found or preserved.

There is still a lot of serious investigation that begs for willing researchers to track down sources, especially those that pro-UFO investigators would [it looks like] rather see die in silence before telling their versions of famous cases.

Edited March 11, 2014 by JimOberg

[JimOberg]

...But what about those Moon Pigeons ? That's actually the first I have ever heard of them.

I put my copy of the report on my website, I can't find it anywhere else. It's where Birnes learned of it, and began fantasizing freely.... [grin]

[Forever Cursed]

Where did you see this? Of course any names, dates, details of the "experiment", or anything that would pass for useful information would be helpful.

NASA's Unexplained files # 3 I believe.

[dr no]

I don't buy it and I don't believe you James Oberg. You worked for NASA and they paid you to misinform the public. Along with some other people (!) you were a part of their official "debunking" team. Why would it be different now? Now youre older and doing the same thing, using your influence to fool the public, only on internet forums ... YOu may have your miniature personality cult but you could never fool ALL of US...

The official "debunking" team? You must be really sad, to be so wrapped up in your beliefs without any proof, to actually post such nonsense as this.