117 lines
5.4 KiB
Plaintext
117 lines
5.4 KiB
Plaintext
SUBJECT: TENNESSEE SIGHTING REPORT, 7/89 FILE: UFO1248
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Date of Sighting: July 18, 1989
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Location of Sighting: Memphis, Tennessee
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Time of Sighting: 2100 - 2127 local.
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Witnesses: John W. Komar, MUFON State Director for Tennessee.
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Madeline Rauer, fiance.
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At approximately 2100 hours, tuesday night both witnesses were returning home
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from dinner out and shopping. About four miles from home in Southwest Tenn-
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essee, a bright light was noticed in the night sky.
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Weather conditions were partially cloudy with patches of clouds, clear sky
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otherwise, stars in clear areas easily visible. Temperature 76 degrees,
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humidity 91%, dew point 73%, barometric pressure 29.87.
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Light was sighted in a westerly direction, over the state of Arkansas, across
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the Mississippi River. Light was five times brighter than any stars in view.
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Witnesses arrived home and continued to view object from back yard, although
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trees in area partially blocked view.
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Initial sighting placed the object at 70 degrees above the horizon. At 2115
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object was about 50 degrees above the horizon, which placed it behind trees
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in area. Witnesses drove two miles farther west to a earthen dike about one
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mile from Mississippi River, in a clearing. Object was still visible, same
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brightness, but slowly descending. At 2127 object disappeared from view in
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less than one second.
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Witnesses drove 200 feet up dike, which placed them at about 60 feet
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elevation, above the surrounding countryside. Object was not sighted at new
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location.
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SUMMARY
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Bright object was initially sighted with eyes only. At home, binoculars were
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used, Fujinon Meibo, 7 x 50. Prismatic, individual focusing, B & L type, air
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tight, marine grade. Diameter of exit pupil 7.1 mm. Relative brightness
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50.4.
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Witnesses tried to use telescope but could not locate in spotting scope
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mounted atop telescope.
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Same binoculars were used later at second location. Witness had lowered
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binoculars and looked at object with eyes only for approximately two seconds
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before it disappeared. By disappearing is meant it vanished from sight, un-
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able to determine whether object accelerated away very quickly, but light
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disappeared in less than one second.
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Both witnesses are credible, Madeline having worked for a major airline for
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ten years in various locations, John having worked for a major airline for
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twenty two years in various locations.
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Witnesses home is located about twelve miles from Memphis International
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Airport, away from the landing and takeoff patterns. When object was in
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sight, normal aircraft were also in view, some in the landing pattern, some
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having just taken off, most with their landing lights on. Because of the air
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traffic, a comparison could be made with the object and it's relative
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brightness and the aircraft in various attitudes and altitudes, both
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approaching the witnesses and moving away from the witnesses, with landing
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lights on and with the lights off. The brightness of the UFO could be
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compared with an aircraft descending towards the witnesses with landing
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lights on at a distance of about two miles, which would have enabled the
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witnesses to discern that the object was indeed an aircraft, as strobe lights
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would also have been visible. For each aircraft viewed, strobe lights were
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clearly visible, although some were quite a distance away, reaching ten miles
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distance from the viewers.
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The bright object witnessed slowly descended, with no rhythmic pulsation of
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the intensity of the light apparent, although when viewed thru the binoculars
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a red hue could be seen.
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Having viewed the object for approximately 27 minutes, it is unlikely that
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the object was an aircraft in a landing pattern of the nearby airport.
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When an aircraft turns off its landing lights, there is a dimming of the
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apparent light, from full brightness to off, which takes approximately four
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seconds. This was not the case in this sighting.
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At 2310 hours local a call was made to the West Memphis, Arkansas Police
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Department, and the officer reported that no calls were received concerning a
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sighting. When asked if they had an helicopter in the air, they replied
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that they do not have a helicopter.
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At 2320 the South branch of the Memphis, Tennessee Police Department were
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called and asked the same questions. Although the Police Department does
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have a helicopter, it was not up at any time prior to the call, as the pilots
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were asked and replied in the negative.
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The airport control tower was also called, and they reported no sightings.
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An interesting side note to the incident is worth mentioning. While driving
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between the home of the witnesses and the earthen dike, three cows were on
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the road as they drove around a curve, swerving the car to avoid them. They
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were not there 20 minutes later. Also, when the call was placed to the
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Memphis, Tennessee Police, the telephone call connected with the phone call
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of two other people already in progress, plus the police department officer.
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Each telephone call had no bearing with the other, yet each person could hear
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all participants as clear as if the call were deliberately made.
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SIGHTING REPORT CLASSIFICATION
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HYNEK: DE - 1
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BERLINER: 1 - 4
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SPEISER: S4/P4
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**********************************************
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* THE U.F.O. BBS - http://www.ufobbs.com/ufo *
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********************************************** |