MUFON UFO tracking map

The Mutual UFO Network has a live internet feed of reported UFO sightings, including an interactive Google map. The interface is a little weird on my netbook (I have to click reload to close the event details box) but a fun, little tool nonetheless. All the little UFO icons scattered about the United States causes one to imagine an airspace teeming with extraterrestrial visitors.

The feed is also on RSS here.

Morristown, NJ UFOs explained

Newsweek's Lab Notes blog writes about the hoaxers who caused the mysterious red lights pictured above to fly over New Jersey in January.

They cooked up a spaceship hoax “to show everyone how unreliable eyewitness accounts are, along with investigators of UFOs.” They used five feet of fishing line to tie flares to each of five three-foot helium balloons and launched them from a field on Jan. 5, 2009. “Once all five balloons were ready for takeoff (with our fingers on the verge of frost bite),” they write, “we struck the 15-minute flares and released them into the sky in increments of fifteen seconds,” filming the UFOs as they floated away.

The blog post includes video of a news story from January, as well as a link to segments on Google Video showing exactly how they did it.

Update from New Jersey Star-Ledger: Morris County prosecutor filing disorderly person charges against these two men.

Top UFO hotspots in the U.S.

Popular Mechanics has posted a helpful map showing counties with the greatest number of UFO reports (1947-2005) along with air traffic control boundaries and grey spots that mark "special use airspace". The accompanying article includes tips on how to report a UFO as well as things to consider before you make such a report ("Is it Venus?").

Video of British UFO

The Sun reports on a UFO spotted by holidaymakers on the British coastline. The full article, including video, is available on their website.

Strange glow over Minnesota

Astronomy Picture of the Day calls our attention to this strange, orange glow photographed by a passenger on an airplane landing in Minneapolis, MN. The photographer's hypothesis is sunset-illuminated raindrops. What do you think?

Wichita UFO report with photo

From the Kansas City Star: This image was capture by an amateur photographer who observed a craft flying over Wichita, Kansas, which he described as producing a hum like that of a jet but, "It didn't sound like one of these jets that I hear all the time.... It was much quieter, much quieter."

DaVinci and UFOs

UFO Examiner posts a highly speculative piece about the possible influence of UFOs upon the work of Leonardo daVinci and other Renaissance thinking fellows. It is already known that a mysterious, alien figure commissioned da Vinci to paint not one but seven Mona Lisas.