While the modern history for UFOs began in the late 1940s, mysterious objects have been observed in our skies since the earliest days of recorded history.
Many references to mysterious beings and flying objects are found in some of mankind�s most ancient texts. The Bible makes reference to an object observed by the prophet Ezekiel when he described a "wheel within a wheel" (Ezekiel 1:1-25). Many such examples exist within the Bible. The 'Ancient Sanskrit texts of India' had many accounts of flying "chariots" including a story of one such "chariot" sending a shining lance to destroy a city (in a fire brighter than the sun). The account reads much like what would be expected in our own modern times when a battle is raging, there are even included in the Sanskrit texts passages that refer to what only can be construed as war fought not with slings and bows, but describe in great detail a nuclear weapon.
Other references are found in Assyrian, Babylonian, Aztec, and the literature of many of the ancient peoples. The Hopi Indian speak of their ancestors who came from the stars, and they have many prophecy's concerning the return of these "Star People"
Several authors, most noteably Zecharia Sitchin, have postulated that we have not only been visited by aliens, but our history and even our evolution may have been influenced by them. We will cover this in more detail in the section on "Human Origins"
The modern history begins with mysterious "airships" that were observed in all parts of the world, going back in the early 1800's. These strange "airships" were reported in New Zealand, and also in the United States, they began with sightings of luminous shapes and cigar-shaped craft flying about the skies of California. The Mayors of both Oakland and San Francisco both went on record stating they had seen them. By 1897, these craft were being seen in all parts of the country (Operations Trojan Horse, John Keel, Illuminet Press 1996). Disk shaped objects were seen by ships at sea rising out of the water and flying away. Reports of these objects were soon coming from Asia and Europe.
Periodic reports of mysterious flying craft were reported up through the beginning of the Second World War, these were knicknamed "Foo Fighters" by the pilots, as they appeared like luminous glowing balls that performed incredible aerial maneuvers far beyond the capabilities of those observing them buzz around their aircraft. The American's thought they must be some secret new technology of the Germans, while the Germans thought it was the American's who had some secret new technology. Photos were taken of these strange objects and they indeed showed up on radar.
The modern era of UFO's began one sunny day on June 24th, 1947, when Kenneth Arnold, a private pilot flying his small airplane near Mt Rainer in Washington State observed several objects in the sky that he later described as looking like "saucers skipping across water". The press dubbed these objects "Flying Saucers", and before long they were being reported from every part of the country. In actual fact Arnold described the actual objects to be crescent shaped in appearance than saucer shaped. In the early part of July 1947, in a remote part of the New Mexico desert, something crashed. Believed by many to be an alien spacecraft, the U.S. government has gone out of their way to explain this away as nothing more than a crashed weather balloon. However there were too many witnesses that saw the crash debris, and who handled the strange lightweight material, and many involved in the "clean up" observed the small bodies of the occupants.
Over the years UFO researchers have documented overwhelming amount of evidence, in fact is it almost "an embarrassment of riches" that supports the alien spacecraft theory. And yet still there is denial from Official Sources who seem to prefer to engage in projects like SETI, when the evidence is right under their noses.
Many, many books have been written on the subject of what happened at Roswell. Stanton Friedman (a Nuclear Physicist) has written several books on the subject, including Kevin Randle (former Captain, US Air Force Reserve) & Donald Schmitt, Director of Special Investigations, Center for UFO Studies.
During the 1950�s, many "Flaps" of UFO sightings were reported around the world. So many of these reports were coming in from reliable witnesses that the Air Force was publically forced (at least to save face) to sit up and take notice. They surely couldn't let the American public think that they weren't interested in what surely posed a threat to National Security. Thus began a series of "Official" UFO investigations by the Air Force, first it was "Project Sign", then it was "Project Grudge", finally concluding with "Project Blue Book" in 1969. Many believe that "Project Blue Book" was merely a public relations exercise, and most of the "unexplainable" sightings were cyphoned off to an already set up project dealing with UFO's that had been in operations since the early 1940's.
"Project Blue Book" was officially closed down in 1969, due to lack of evidence linking UFO's with any kind of threat to the United States National Security, so the Air Force pronounced that there was nothing to UFOs. They could be explained as swamp gas, weather balloons, the planet Venus and the like (but as you'll see "Venus" has a reocurring habit of landing, a very peculiar planet indeed!). Case closed!! Meanwhile, these objects that "didn't exist" still continued to be sighted from all corners of the globe, obviously the UFO's didn't read the Official Air Force report stating that they "didn't exist". The UFOs have taken a particular interest in military installations and sightings on or around military bases worldwide have been ongoing. In fact, they�ve nearly started a war. On October 5th 1960, a formation of UFOs was seen by early warning radar in Thule, Greenland with a heading that seemed to be coming from the Soviet Union toward the United States. Within minutes, SAC (Supreme Allied Commandment) crews around America were scrambling to their nuclear weapons laden B-52s and taking to the skies. When SAC Headquarters signaled Thule for further confirmation, their calls were answered with silence. Had Thule already been taken out? Anxious moments as the Generals prepared to send the B-52 crews to their targets inside Russia, when suddenly the radar blips changed course and disappeared.
Bob Dean (a UFO Researcher) talks about this particular incident in depth, he is a former U.S. Army Intelligence Officer who witnessed this event, and had special clearance which allowed him access to a project researched in Paris by S.H.A.P.E., which examined UFO's in great detail. Since the late 1950's, this powerful figure in Ufology has investigated the subject, and his conclusions are all too apparent..... "WE ARE NOT ALONE".
Other military involvement included fighter aircraft scrambling to pursue these objects, and most ominous, the interference with the targeting systems of nuclear warheads, which in one incident actually melted the tops of the missile's and their surrounding containment.
The UFO phenomenon has continued up to modern day. Many things are linked to this mystery, Abductions, Cattle Mutilations and Crop Circles to name just a few, this subject screams out for a proper investigation, as Budd Hopkins (an Abduction UFO Researcher) puts it "an extraordinary phenomenon deserves and extraordinary investigation".
Researchers have used the power of law in the form of the Freedom of Information Act to find out just how much the US Government really knows about UFOs. The evidence is overwhelming that the government despite its claims to the contrary, is still very interested in the subject of UFOs. Thousands upon thousands of pages of documents have been uncovered by researchers showing that each branch of the military, the FBI, CIA, NSA, etc have kept a "very" close watch on what is flying about our skies. Some researchers contend that not only does the US Government know about UFOs, but has actually interacted with the intelligences that fly them.
Opinions vary as to what UFOs and their occupants are and where they come from.
As time unfolds, the truth gets nearer every single moment.