UFO 'traffic' hits one million mark - thank you

Pennsylvania MUFON July 4th weekend sightings map.

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Well, I can now say I've made my first million.

With 312 UFO stories written between January 8 and July 9 - six months - all you loyal readers clicked in an amazing 1 million times. Thank you.

If you were there from the beginning, you watched random pieces of work morph into a three-times weekly UFO Traffic Report, and a steady supply of news and features.

I report from the front lines of ufology - the witness. I report before the stories have been investigated. A little dangerous. My reasoning is that I think it's important that witnesses get to dialogue - get the story out in the open and get people talking about it.

We make mistakes. We get spoofed. But sometimes we get it right. And we're having fun.

Behind the scenes is the amazing network of people who drive the Mutual UFO Network - an international management, state directors, and many other state positions and field investigators. This is a dedicated group trying to put a dent in solving the mystery of UFOs. Financer Robert Bigelow has chimed in this year with some funding dedicated to close encounters where evidence may have been left behind.

There is also the J. Allen Hynek Center for UFO Studies in Chicago that invests in research. And the National UFO Reporting Center that Peter Davenport invented. Beyond that, there are many excellent industry resources and characters that make up a fairly wide body of folks most interested in setting the record straight and solving the UFO mystery.

UFOs exist - and our government studies them. Period. Let's move on. Get over it.

We also know that many of us mistakenly see natural or manmade objects that appear to be something extraterrestrial - but it's a down home object. Then there are the unmistakable sightings that tell us we are not alone. And somewhere in between, we struggle with those reports that can go either way. The July 4th sightings increase is a case in point. The critics scream "Chinese lanterns" as hundreds of reports nationwide come in describing these Orange Lights moving about the sky in what appears to be a controlled manner.

Pennsylvania MUFON Director John Ventre now says there were 18 sightings reported in the Keystone State that weekend, and he believes it is the start of the second UFO wave in just two years.

UFO Hunters host Bill Birnes devoted pieces of two series episodes to the Chinese Lantern theory. Birnes was reached by email Thursday night and was asked about the Chinese lantern theory.

"You can say that to the naked and experienced eye," Birnes said, "Chinese lanterns look very much like lights attached to a rigid structure if there is no wind. However, if it is windy, they will start to blow apart. It's only when you can analyze the video of Chinese lanterns frame by frame that you can see the anomalies that differentiate candles or flares from the self-illuminating lights that defy explanation. If, however, you know what the wind direction is aloft and what the wind speed is and the lights you see are not moving with the wind or are hovering in the face of the wind, then you may have an unidentified object in the sky."

The Examiner Dot Com

The main tool I used to create this UFO environment was done with the kind of help of Examiner.com - a baby in the Internet portal business with less than two years under its belt. But the baby is booming - they've modeled a superior behind-the-scenes content management system that's user friendly and backed by a strong support team. The underbelly of Examiner.com is a very friendly and helpful channel management team that seems to respond quickly and efficiently in good times and during the occasional bumps in the road. The team as a whole is a positive working environment for writers.

The Examiner Dot Com is like this giant news and feature portal mall. You step inside, get a free storefront, get to share in all the cool amenities its tech group offers - and they pay you on a smart and regular plan in an efficient manner. What else could you ask for? If you want to be independent and communicate your message to the world - take a look at Examiner.com. Failure can only be your own fault. These guys are for real and they're kicking butt in the online community.

Special Thanks

Special thanks to the many hundreds of people who have written to me all over the world with your stories and feelings and research in ufology. Those of you who I have spoken to on the telephone - thanks for your time. I've made many friends. I appreciate the regular contact of those who send me field updates. In Chicago, thanks to Charles Mudd for legal services and your kind friendship. James Carrion at MUFON. Dr. Mark Rodeghier, CUFOS. Stan Gordon, Stan Gordon Productions. John Ventre. Sam Maranto. Steve Firmani. Margie Kay. Eddie Middleton. Alejandro Rojas. Chester Harris. Augustine Fawkes. Bill Konkolesky. Lorna Hunter. George Filer. Kristen Ann Winslet. Donald R. Burleson. Jim Bouck. William Jones. Norm Gagnon. And the many more names that would take a mile to list. I appreciate the witnesses stopping by to interact - but I always ask that all witnesses file their reports with mufon.com so that the wider body of evidence can be studied. I also appreciate the MUFON state directors who keep in touch and allow my readers to see how specific cases have been resolved or classified as an unknown.

UFO Hunters

With the recent surge in Orange Lights in our skies, take a peak back at what Bill Birnes and team did in this episode of UFO Hunters - it reminds me of what just happened over the July 4th holiday.

UFO Hunters - the Tinley Park episode, part 1

 
UFO Hunters - the Tinley Park episode, part 2