The UFO Phenomenon

NASA 'flying saucer' image is not what it seems

By T.K. Randall
November 5, 2018

Image: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Credit: (PD) NASA/JPL-Caltech The posting, which has no doubt prompted more than a few double takes, shows a photograph of a metallic object crashed in the desert with two helicopters sitting in the background.

"A flying saucer from outer space crash-landed in the Utah desert after being tracked by radar and chased by helicopters," NASA wrote in the caption underneath the picture.

Predictably, however, neither the photograph nor the caption are quite what they seem.

The truth, it turns out, is that the image shows the sample return capsule from the Genesis mission which was launched in 2001 to study the Sun.Part of the mission had involved collecting solar wind particles and returning them to Earth for study.

"No space aliens were involved," NASA explained. "The saucer, pictured here, was the Genesis sample return capsule, part of a human-made robot Genesis spaceship launched in 2001."

"The unexpectedly hard landing at over 300 kilometers per hour occurred because the parachutes did not open as planned."

The full image can be viewed - here.

Source: NASA

Tags: NASA, UFO