From being regarded as a hobby for crackpots, UFOs are now back in fashion. The US military has lifted the secrecy seal on some interesting cases, and several prominent newspapers have taken up the subject in a slightly more serious manner.
These unexplained phenomena have often been linked to the military, from the so-called Foo-fighter of the 1940s to today’s unidentified aerial phenomenon (UAP). These are spherical light phenomena that can hover in the air, accelerate very quickly and then disappear. They mostly elude pilots or military installations. But civilians also sometimes see these “orange orbs” in the sky. Sometimes several are seen together, and sometimes alone. They can form into triangles, break up the formation, and move erratically, both quickly and slowly.
So what is this, are there any sensible explanations?
A common interpretation is that they are secret test flights of future fighter jets. Or the secret crafts of other superpowers, where they have managed to develop a slightly superior technology, and to our chagrin are now eluding the defences of the West.
On the other hand, the remarkable manoeuvres point to an engineering skill that probably no country has mastered. It is therefore natural to think of more advanced civilisations, perhaps aliens? They have travelled through the vastness of space and/or passed through a wormhole in space-time. Now they are exploring our planet and our culture from a safe distance. Perhaps they will make contact with us in the future?
Sharp turns and extreme acceleration may indicate that we are looking at unmanned craft, for few living creatures could withstand such stresses. Unless we are talking about some kind of anti-gravity propulsion, where the pilot might be in a different reference plane and thus unaffected by the enormous g-forces.
Another popular cultural explanation is that the atomic bombings of the 1940s opened a hole in the fabric, allowing our visitors to travel to our world. However, it is puzzling that the lightballs was targeted six months before the first test explosion in New Mexico. If this really was the first test blast, that is? Why were not both prototype atomic bombs tested, but only one? Or was the first test kept secret because something went very wrong?
Further explanations involve breakaway civilisations. In other words, it’s not aliens visiting us, but people living in hidden bases under the ice in Antarctica, for example. One far-fetched theory is that the Germans invented antigravity drive at the end of World War II, and a handful of conspirators managed to escape bombed-out Germany and build a new existence elsewhere. The technology has since been refined, and the breakaway civilisation is now highly advanced, exploring space and having bases on the moon, for example.
Sometimes the glowing orbs in the sky look like dots from a laser pointer, they also move in a similar jerky manner. This prompts speculation that they may not be objects, but beams of light projected either from the ground, or from another larger hidden ship. The fighter pilots who have followed the objects and locked them into their radar may not agree.
Finally, they can also be seen as some kind of creature that has been with us throughout the ages. Elusive fairies, racing across the sky, enjoying the fact that we don’t understand. They laugh at us from on high, perhaps they are twelve in number and live on a holy mountain? Perhaps they were the same creatures who led people across deserts and mountains, appearing as glowing ore by night and a swirling sandstorm by day? These interdimensional rogues have a great interest in our fighter planes, ships and weapons. After all, most of the best sightings have been made in a military context. Perhaps they are not as malicious and elusive as we think? Perhaps they are our cosmic security guards?