Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO’s); An Overview With Particular Focus on the Southern Tier 

By Ed Nizalowski, historian —

(This is part one of a series on the same topic.)

At some point in the distant past, mankind and likely womankind as well, stared up at the dark dome that enveloped the night sky and wondered / speculated on what these sparkling orbs represented. The Chaldeans believed the stars were lamps suspended by strings and managed by angels. The  Iberians believed the stars were golden nail heads that held up the ceiling of the universe. 

For the  Ancient Greeks, the stars represented knowledge, inspiration, and divine guidance, with each star  representing a different aspect of the gods’ wisdom and power. With the evolution of science, the  invention of the telescope and the work of men like Copernicus and Galileo, ancient speculation and  imagination gave way to the solar system. 

Now that these “sparkling orbs” were planets, could there be life forms that might exist on these distant pieces of real estate? Could it be an intelligent life? [It’s presumptuous of us “civilized” people to  equate intelligence as something exclusively the domain of homo sapiens. Indigenous peoples have  always given the natural world unique cognitive abilities and now western science has moved in that  direction.] But if there is intelligence, could there be some type of technology? How sophisticated  might it be? Could it be so advanced that beings from other planets could travel through space? Could  these travelers visit this place we call earth? [If you watch the series “Ancient Aliens” from the History Channel, then you know that for many people the answer to this question is obvious].  

Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO’s): aerial phenomenon that may be airborne, submerged or  exhibit trans-medium capabilities. The subject now has another classification for those things that defy rational explanation but don’t necessarily have objects: Unidentified Anomalous Phenomenon (UAP’s). Such experiences have been recorded for many centuries, whether they be UFO’s or UAP’s. There have been serious claims that the experience that Ezekiel had from Biblical times has earmarks of a  spacecraft. But starting with WWII and the post-war years, these types of occurrences have literally  mushroomed the same way that the atom bomb has cast its imprint on the last 80 years. Once there  was a report of a UFO crash in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947 and the questionable efforts to dismiss  extra-terrestrial connections, the door was flung open for a UFO/UAP industry.  

Hundreds of people have made a study of such things and there have been sanctioned,  legitimate governmental agencies/studies to scientifically and rationally examine such claims. The  United States government has two such efforts currently: NASA’s Unidentified Anomalous  Phenomenon Independent Study Team along with All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office run by the  Defense Department. During the Cold War Era there was Project Blue Book run by the Air Force  (1952-1969). It investigated 12,618 such claims and the vast majority were attributed to mistaken  phenomena but there were also 701 reports that fell into the “unexplained” category. Interest and  credibility in this topic was certainly given a boost back in July 2023 when there was Congressional  testimony by the Director of the Americans for Safe Aerospace. He was joined by former veterans of  the Navy and the Air Force. 

There are a number of organizations/entities that pursue and document all the various threads of this increasingly fascinating subject. The Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) was established in 1969. It has 4,000 members in 43 countries, including the United States, of course. The National Investigative  Committee for Aerial Phenomenon (NICAP) still exists but was most active from the 1950’s to the  1980’s. The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI) was established in 1976 and claims to have a  variety of academics on its board including a few Nobel laureates. Enigma Labs is another  organization that solicits and documents various UFO/UAP encounters. The History Channel’s 

“Ancient Aliens”, which began as a two-hour documentary, is up to 250 episodes.  

One way of organizing this subject is by type of “close encounter.” The number and types of  encounters can vary, depending on the source. Personally, I like to place these experiences into five  categories:  

Close Encounter #1: a visual phenomenon that falls into the “unexplained” category, hopefully less  than 500′ away. 

Close Encounter #2: there has been some kind of craft that has landed. If the landing has left some  kind of physical effect on the terrain: burnt grass, some type of depression, damaged vegetation, etc.,  this certainly gives greater credibility to the sighting. 

Close Encounter #3: some type of alien being/entity was seen inside the craft or had exited the craft. Close Encounter #4: there had been some kind of interaction with the alien being/entity. Close Encounter #5: individuals who claim some kind of abduction or travel with alien beings. 

On April 24, 1964, a Newark Valley farmer, Gary Wilcox, claimed to have had a two hour conversation with two beings on the edge of one of his fields. They told him they were from Mars. Among other things discussed was something right up Gary’s alley: agriculture. Gary even left them a  bag of fertilizer to take back to their home planet. When this encounter became public, it created quite  a stir both locally and nationally. I remember conversations my parents had with relatives concerning  the veracity of such an unbelievable event. I was a junior in high school at the time. How do you react to something like this? Why would someone like Gary Wilcox, the typical, red-blooded, salt of the earth, honest-to-a-fault tiller of the soil make up a story like this? For most people, including myself,  you are just left in this state of limbo. Too bad he didn’t have a cell phone. 

To be continued………

(You can contact Ed Nizalowski at ed.nizalowski@gmail.com with any comments or thoughts on this topic.)