UFO ROUNDUP Volume 7 Number 18 April 30, 2002 Editor: Joseph Trainor

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SECOND UFO APPEARS IN A TV BROADCAST, THIS TIME IN VENEZUELA

Puerto Rican journalist and UFO researcher Jorge Martin reports, “I’ve read your report about the UFO observed on April 16, 2002 in an ABC Cable News broadcast related to the Israeli attacks in Jenin. I was surprised by the report because the same day, Tuesday, April 16, 2002, at (12) noon, my wife and I were watching a live (TV) broadcast of a Spanish language CNN report from Venezuela related to the situation in that country after the coup d’etat made on the government of President Hugo Chavez, and something similar happened.”

“CNN’s reporter in Venezuela, journalist Harris Whitbeck, was talking to a fellow female news anchor in the U.S. when, all of a sudden, a spherical white UFO flew in the distance over the city, right behind reporter Harris Whitbeck, who was located in a high position overlooking the city of Caracas.”

“The female news anchor seemed to become aware of the presence of the anomalous object and smiled in amazement, but at this moment the broadcast was terminated, and CNN passed on to another item.”

“Strangely enough, CNN’s Hispanic reports are regularly videotaped and are repeated during the day, but this one was not. Was it censored? If so, who did it, and why?”

“For me, this seems too much of a coincidence, for UFOs to appear unexpectedly during both international TV news reports on the same day and more or less the same type of events. Are ‘they’ sending a message to the international authorities?”

Nine days later, on Thursday, April 25, 2002, Caracas experienced a second UFO visitation, which was seen by dozens of people.

According to Venezuelan ufologist Martha Rosenthal, the first sighting took place at about 8 p.m. The eyewitness, Sra. Claret del Rosario Laya, “observed a UFO with an intense light over the Cerro Avila (hill). The UFO moved back and forth in perfect balance before disappearing completely.”

Elsewhere in Caracas, “at 11:20 p.m., Sra. Moralda Monasterios, public relations director for Venezuela’s Meridiano Television, watched a UFO fly over the city, leaving a faint beam of light–a straight line of white light–in its wake. The UFO continued these aerial maneuvers for two hours.”

“Finally, Prof. Mary Rizzo sighted a lenticular UFO” over the campus of the University of Caracas that evening. (See NotiOVNI for April 28, 2002. Muchas gracias a Jorge Martin, Daniel Munoz y Martha Rosenthal para esas historias.)

(Editor’s Comment: Okay, that’s two so far. One from the West Bank and the other from Caracas, Venezuela. Did any other UFO Roundup readers spot one of these “peek-a-boo flybys” on TV on Tuesday, April 16, 2002?)

GIANT FEMALE SKELETON FOUND IN TUNISIA

“The skeleton of a female measuring 2.3 meters (230 centimeters or 7 feet, eight inches) long was discovered in Tunisia, scientists announced Tuesday,” April 23, 2002.

“The stone sarcophagus containing the skeleton of a mother measuring 2.3 meters in height was found this week in the village of Tajeruine in Tunisia.”

“According to the anthropologists, a stone coffin from the Roman era (the period between 150 B.C. and 300 A.D.) also contained the skeletons of two sons of the mother. The grave was discovered while workers were digging a foundation for a new building. Work was stopped when the project owners realized that the site would be important to archaeologists.”

“The Tunisian Institute of Archaeology said the sarcophagus was buried with Latin inscriptions identifying the remains as a ‘giant woman.'” (See the newspaper El Ansa for April 24, 2002. Merci beaucoup a OVNI Maroc pour cette nouvelles. E tambem a Visitantes Cosmicas por eso caso.)

(Editor’s Note: A similar giant skeleton was discovered in Morocco last year. See UFO Roundup, volume 6, number 16 for April 19, 2001, “Unusual human remains unearthed in Morocco,” page 5.)

GRAY SPHERICAL UFO SEEN OVER MEXICO CITY

On Saturday, April 13, 2002, at 2 p.m., Demetrio Feria was in the Oriente section of Mexico City, south of Villa de Guadalupe, when he spotted an unusual object in the sky. Immediately he grabbed his videocamera.

The video footage Feria shot “shows the object flying from north to south over Oriente. Feria reported, ‘The strange object was of an obscure gray color, and it moved slowly at a high altitude above the capital. The UFO continued its flight and lost itself in the haze on the horizon.'” (See NotiOVNI for April 21, 2002. Muchas gracias a Daniel Munoz para eso noticario.)

SPHERICAL UFO FILMED AT GLAUCOART, ARGENTINA

On Thursday, April 18, 2002, at 8:30 ap.m., Argentinian ufologist Ricardo E. d’Angelo “filmed an ‘intense sphere of bright light as it slowly floated by’ in the town of Glaucoart in Argentina.

“D’Angelo and one other man witnessed the phenomenon. ‘The intense sphere floated for some 10 minutes on April 18 at 8:30 p.m.,'” d’Angelo reported, “‘Two people observed the whole phenomenon, and we took video of the sphere, which remained motionless.'”

D’Angelo added that the UFO “generated great flashes of light of all colors, then began to slowly fly across the city, heading south. Heavy air traffic was also present over the city at that time.” (Many thanks to Louise A. Lowry for forwarding this report.)

FOUR YELLOW UFOs SIGHTED BY THOUSANDS IN BEIJING

Four yellow-colored spiral UFOs made a surprise appearance over Beijing, the capital of China, on Monday, April 22, 2002.

The sightings were reported in two newspapers, the Beijing Times and the Shanghai Star. According to the newspaper reports, the four UFOs were seen for just over an hour. The objects emitted beams of bright yellow light. Chinese observers on the streets estimated that the UFOs were “very high up,” an estimated 10 kilometers (6 miles) above the earth. They hovered for a while in pairs and then departed to the south.

“Lan Songzhu, a scientist at the Xinglong observation station operated by the Astronomical Observatory of Beijing, said the observatory had received more than 10,000 reports of UFO phenomena in the past hundred years, but only five percent of these ‘had no natural explanation.'” (See the newspaper China Daily for April 25, 2002. Many thanks to Chen Jilin for this news story.)

FIVE ORANGE UFOs SIGHTED IN ALBURY, N.S.W.

On Tuesday, April 23, 2002, at 9:15 p.m., Fred W. was at his home in Albury, New South Wales, Australia when he spotted a strange glow in the northwestern sky.

“I saw five bright orange lights, spaced well apart and moving towards the southeast,” Fred reported, “They could have been balloons as they were slow and bright orange. After about 15 minutes, three disappeared from view, leaving two that disappeared shortly thereafter. I’d estimate their height (altitude) at two to three thousand feet (600 to 900 meters) I thought it might be ballons in a formation, but at night and so many? Also, I could find no indication of balloons on my (radio) scanner.”

Albury, N.S.W. is on the Victoria state line about 250 kilometers (150 miles) southwest of Canberra, the capital of Australia. (Email Form Report)

TRIANGULAR UFO SEEN AT MONTEGO BAY, JAMAICA

On Friday, April 12, 2002, at 8:05 p.m., K.B. noticed a strange object approaching the city of Montego Bay, Jamaica from the northwest. She reports, “It was a rust-coloured, triangle-shaped object several miles away travelling at a speed several times faster than any military or commercial aircraft we had ever seen. It then took off in a southwesterly direction at a high rate of speed. A few minutes later, a jet passed over in the same general direction but at a much lower rate of speed.” (Email Form Report)

ASTRONOMERS SPOT LARGE UNKNOWN OBJECT IN JAPAN

On Monday, April 4, 2002, Syuzo Isobe, president of Japan’s Space Vigilance Association, released an announcement stating that ‘a large unknown object had been detected in the upper regions of the sky’ over the Pacific Ocean south of Japan. ‘The object, which was 50 meters (165 feet) in length, was found to be in a stationary position at an estimated altitude of 36,000 kilometers (21,600 miles), and would appear to be an artifact constructed by an intelligent species.'”

“Toshi Nakagawa of the UFO Investigation Organization of Japan announced that his group would further investigate this incident.” (See the Tokyo newspaper Asahi Shinbun for April 5, 2002. “Arigato” a Daniel Munoz para esa noticia.)

THREE ORANGE UFOs SEEN IN JANESVILLE, WISCONSIN

On Tuesday, April 16, 2002, at 8:50 p.m., in Janesville, Wisconsin (population 59,498), Jonathan M. reports, “It was cloudy but I could still see either the moon or a bright star. I was trying to make out what it was (the moon or a star–J.M.) As I was looking at it, three orange lights came from the northeast. They were in formation side by side. As they went overhead, they zigzagged between each other and shot off to the southwest in formation again (side by side–J.M.).”

“If you held a dime in your fingers, and held it at arm’s length, this would have been about the size” of the objects. “They made no noise, and they were very fast. They were not military jets.”

“I want to know if anyone else saw that. Someone had to because of the brightness and the size. I turned on the (radio) scanner to see if there were any reports, but no one here reported anything.”

Janesville, Wis. is on Routes 11 and 14, located about 40 miles (64 kilometers) southeast of Madison, the state capital. (Many thanks to John Hoppe of UFO-Wisconsin for this report.)

(Editor’s Note: Janesville is well-known to Forteans for its periodic unusual phenomena. In February 1892, a frozen crocodile five-and-one-half feet (1.5 meters) long was found on the banks of the Rock River near Janesville. See The Complete Books of Charles Fort, Dover Publications, New York, N.Y., 1974, page 62.)

SOLITARY UFO SIGHTED IN BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA

On Saturday, April 20, 2002, at approximately 9 p.m., Spyro Mitchenikos was in Birmingham, the largest city in Alabama, when he “saw an object, extremely bright. At first I thought it was the North Star, except that the object was in the eastern sky, traveling southward. Object was bright, approximately 15,000 to 30,000 feet (4,500 to 9,000 meters) above, moving at a moderate speed, however, faster than an airplane at that altitude.”

“Object traveled in a straight line, horizontal, then the light appeared to turn off. Object did not make sounds like an aircraft used for human travel or a military aircraft. However, dogs from around the neighborhood (about 2 to 3 mile range–S.M.) began howling. Not sure what object was. Light of object appeared solitary and did not show any signs of motion. Extremely bright light. Bright as the North Star. Size: would appear to be an extremely large object. Object traveled northeast to south in a horizontal manner. Object traveled faster than any man-made object travels, then slowed to almost a motionless position, then began to travel once more.” (Email Form Report)

BULGARIA’S MYSTERIOUS WHITE BROTHERHOOD

The Rodope mountain range, which forms the border between Greece and Bulgaria, became famous two months ago when a mysterious skull was discovered near Plovdiv, Bulgaria. But UFO Roundup correspondent Iassen Kobarelov has revealed that the area is also home to that country’s mystic White Brotherhood.

(Editor’s Note: For more on recent doings in the Rodopes, see UFO Roundup, volume 7, number 4, for January 22, 2002, “Alien skull discovered in Bulgaria?”, page 1.)

Foremost among Bulgaria’s mystics was Evangelia Dimitrova. Born in 1911, Mme. Dimitrova developed her psychic abilities early and became famous for her many predictions. She was so accurate in her predictions that she remained unmolested after the Communist Party came to power in 1945. In her final years, she was actually subsidized by the Communist government in Sofia, the national capital. Prior to her death in 1996, Baba Vanga (Bulgarian for Grandmother Vangie–J.T.) predicted the sinking of the Russian nuclear submarine Kursk.

“Another clairvoyant of the White Brotherhood is Peter Daunov,” Iassen reported, “Then there is Giorgi Lozanov, who founded Suggestology. Baba Vanga held court at a natural spring called Roupite, where she was visited by peasants, intellectuals, ministers and presidents.”

Mme. Dimitrova’s home was in Petric, Bulgaria, a border town about 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of Thessaloniki in Greece. In 1983, assisted by her niece Mme. Vanga Krassimira Stoyanova, she wrote a book about her life as a seeress, entitled Inexplique–Le Monde de l’Etrange.

“I met Baba Vanga on November 16, 1989, just before I emigrated to the Americas,” Iassen said, “I was with her for an hour and a half, which was truly extraordinary. Vanga and I discussed (Earth) changes by means of the Apocalypse.”

Mme. Stoyanova told Iassen Kobarelov that her aunt had also met extraterrestrials on “a mountain in the Rodopes.”

“According to Mme. Stoyanova, her aunt was in contact with ETs from the planet Vamfim. The entities appeared as elderly bearded sages with mystic and severe expressions and brilliant costumes, saying that the time of contact is not yet ended. There will be even more surprising evidence (of alien contact) in the future. They showed her a vision of a planet surrounded by bright stars in her house” at Petric. “She also said the two UFO pilots agreed to be photographed with her during the encounter.”

“On May 5” of that year, “Baba Vanga and her niece saw luminous UFOs darting around the moon. A rock 5 meters (16.5 feet) high levitated off the ground by itself. And there was a sudden illumination of 3-D images–two men standing beside a throne, and sitting on the throne was another man dressed like a Pharoah.”

Another hot spring in the Rodopes also has a strange reputation. This is Solenoto Izvorce (Little Salt Spring) on Mount Prespa near Narecen. The waters of Solenoto Izvorce have the tenth highest level of radioactivity in the world. A cup of water from the spring emits 1,130 REM, a fact which Bulgarian scientists have found puzzling.

Six kilometers (4 miles) from Srednogorci is another mystery site–Madan (Arabic for Mine–J.T.). The hillsides around Madan have many old mines dating back to the time of the Parians in 700 B.C. According to mystic traditions, some of the tunnels lead down to a very ancient tunnel, similar to las socabones of South America. The Madan tunnel runs south to the Aegean Sea.

The tunnel is said to run from Madan southwest to the ruins of Amphipolis, near Kavala, Greece, a city approximately 163 kilometers (102 miles) east of Thessaloniki.

(Editor’s Note: The ruins were discovered in 1938. The museum in Kavala, known in ancient times as Neopolis (New City), has a pair of Ionian columns from the now-vanished Temple of Parthenos. Amphipolis is best known to Americans, though, as the hometown of Xena the warrior princess.)

A branch tunnel supposedly heads southeast and goes under the Aegean to the island of Thasos.

Inhabited since the Stone Age, Thasos was the site of a very ancient civilization. According to Greek myth, the island was settled by Thasos, the son of Agenor and the grandson of Poseidon, god of the sea.

(Editor’s Comment: A possible Atlantis connection?)

The indigenous civilization was conquered by the Parians around 700 B.C. The original Thasians worshipped a mother goddess, Axieros; her husband, Kadmilos; and Dardanos and Aeton, two mortals who became gods after a number of sword-and-sorcery exploits which are, unfortunately, lost to history. The Parians introduced the worship of Athena. Later generations built a temple to Athena on the southern outskirts of Limenas, the port and capital of Thasos.

Rising behind Limenas is Mount Ipsarion, site of the original temple of Axieros. In the rock behind the ruins is a curious square doorway, which was later revered as a shrine of the Greek god Pan. The ancient tunnel from Madan, Bulgaria is supposed to have a hidden entrace somewhere on Mount Ipsarion.

(Editor’s Note: Similar “doorways to nowhere” are found in the USA, as well. Most notably near Brushy Creek in Berryville, Arkansas, 40 miles (64 kilometers) northeast of Fayetteville, and at Death Valley National Monument in southern California. See Mysterious America by Jim Brandon, E.P. Dutton Co., New York, N.Y., 1978, pages 15 and 24.)

Such are the Rodope mountains, home of the White Brotherhood and truly Bulgaria’s land of mystery. (Many thanks to Iassen Kobarelov for the information on Baba Vanga. See also Greece: The Rough Guide, Penguin Books, 1998, pages 683 to 691, and Greece by David Willett, Bridgitte Barti, Rosemary Hall, Paul Hellander and James Oliver, Lonely Planet Publications, Australia, 2000, pages 688 to 694.)

MYSTERIOUS VIRUS FELLS 46 PEOPLE IN GREECE

“Seven new cases of a mystery virus suspected of causing a potentially fatal heart inflammation were reported Wednesday,” April 24, 2002. “So far three people, all adults, have died from the infection.”

“Doctors urged Greeks to remain calm as the total of reported cases of the ailment reached 39 since officials began counting April 18. Most have been in Athens, the capital and home to nearly half of Greece’s 11 million people.”

“All child care centers, schools and universities remained closed around the country to prevent possible spread of the virus. The (Greek) government, which decided Tuesday,” April 23, 2002, “to close the schools for the remainder of the week, added conservatories, drama and dance schools to the list on Wednesday.”

“Officials said all those known to have contracted the virus suffered from myocarditis, inflammation of the heart, while other symptoms have included high feveer, muscle pain and respiratory problems.”

“Giorgos Saroglou, head of the health ministry’s Special Infections Control Center, said an additional case was under investigation in the northern city of Thessaloniki.”

“‘The intense monitoring of cases around the country continues,’ Saroglou said, ‘If the number of newly-reported cases remains at the same levels over the next few days, we can discuss a decline.'”

“Reports of new infections by an unidentified, potentially fatal virus declined Friday,” April 26, 2002, “prompting the Greek government to lift restructions meant to stop the vuris’ spread.”

“Three adults have died from the infection.”

“Health Minister Alekos Papadopoulos said only two new cases involving symptoms of myocarditis, or heart inflammation, were reported Friday, compared with five on Thursday and seven on Wednesday.”

“So far, 46 people are believed to have been infected since officials began keeping count last week.” (See the Duluth, Minn. News-Tribune for April 25, 2002, “Mystery virus that attacks heart kills three in Greece,” page 6A, and for April 27, 2002, “Mystery virus cases decline,” page 2A.)

NEWS BRIEFS:

FIRST CROP CIRCLE OF 2002 APPEARS IN HAMPSHIRE, UK

“The first formation of the year has been reported at Soberton, Hampshire, England; found (Tuesday) April 12 (2002). A simple 60-foot (18-meter) circle/ring in canola, with two small standing circles in the ring. A humble but welcome start to another season for the centre of cropcircledom.” (Many thanks to Paul Anderson of the Canadian Crop Circle Research Network for this report.)

FIVE PLANETS FORM A STRANGE NEW ALIGNMENT

Look for a real sky show during May 2002 when five planets of our solar system line up in a formation that hasn’t been seen in sixty years.

“The western sky is the site of a rare planetary display through May when Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are all visible at once. The last gathering of a visible five-planet array was in February 1940,” six months after the beginning of World War II.

UFO Roundup readers wanting to view the alignment should go outdoors just after sunset. Face the western horizon with a compass. West should be on your left-hand side; west-northwest should be at your right-hand side. Looking due west-northwest, you’ll see a glow at 10 degrees above the horizon. Relax–it’s not a UFO. It’s the Pleiades star cluster. Next to the Pleiades on your left will be a bright object–that’s Mercury. To the left, and a little above Mercury at 15 degrees above the horizon is Venus. To the left of Venus, at 20 degrees above the horizon, is the planet Mars. To the left of Mars at 30 degrees above the horizon is Saturn. Now, facing due west, look to the left of Saturn at about 70 degrees above the horizon and you will see the bright light that is Jupiter.

“Though the planets will not be in (direct) alignment, five of them will be clustered within 33 degrees of sky (on) May 14.” (See USA Today for April 29, 2002, “Five planets in close proximity,” page 6D.)

READER FEEDBACK:

MYSTERY SOLVED–THE UFO IN LAKEWOOD COLORADO

Concerning the two UFOs that were seen over Lakewood, Colorado two weeks ago (See UFO Roundup, volume 7, number 17 for April 23, 2002, “Star-like UFOs sighted in Lakewood, Colorado,” page 5), David C. Metzler writes, “Mr. Robinson is a very lucky man. I live in Fort Worth, Texas and was also out that night, but on purpose. I had checked one of the on-line satellite prediction pages and was expecting to see the International Space Station (ISS) and the U.S. Space Shuttle, which had separated from the station for the trip back to Earth.”

“It was a clear night, and it was predicted to have a max elevation of 90 degrees in my area, flying from north-northwest to south-southeast. My time was about 9:20 p.m. CDT (Central Daylight Time) or so, which corresponds to his 8:20 p.m. MDT (Mountain Daylight Time). The shuttle and ISS were about four inches apart at arm’s length.”

David Metzler adds that readers can check out the ISS by logging in at this website: http://www.bester.com/satpasses.html

From the UFO Files…

1952: AMERICAN G.I.s SPOT UFOs IN KOREA

Fifty years ago today, American G.I.s fighting the North Koreans and the Chinese in the rugged mountains around Panmunjom saw two startling objects fly over their foxholes. For the men of the 3rd Platoon, Heavy Mortar Company, 180th Infantry Regiment, Eighth Army, it was a sight they would never forget.

“‘Two white, silvery objects, one behind the other, rumbled high in the sky over a valley in a front-line sector at 6 p.m., April 30th (1952), heading southeast into South Korea,’ stated a Stars and Stripes article by Sgt. Bill McCorkle (April 1952 issue). He went on to point out that six members of the third platoon, Heavy Mortar Company, 180th Regiment saw the objects. PFC (Private First Class) H.B. Webb, a jeep driver, said that their speed was thought to be 900 to 1,000 miles per hour (1,440 to 1,600 kilometers per hour). ‘A trail different than jet streams (contrails) appeared behind them,’ he said.”

“Pvt. Roland Jones, another eyewitness, said, ‘Jets passed over right before the objects, only they were (F-86) Sabres going going north. They were much slower than the southbound objects we saw.'”

“Mortar Platoon leader 2nd Lt. Bill Smith said, ‘They didn’t have wings but they sounded similar to jets with their rumbling sound. But they weren’t–I know. They were going way too fast, and they started down, tumbling to earth, as they got out of view. Their trajectory before falling was flat and that proves they weren’t mortars. (mortar shells or rounds–J.T.) They weren’t jet gas tanks jettisoned off, either, as some theorized, as their trajectory knocks this idea, too.” (See the book Advanced Aerial Devices Reported During the Korean War by Richard F. Haines, LTDA Press, Los Altos, California, 1990, page 63.)

Well, that’s it for this week. Join us in seven days for more UFO, Fortean and paranormal news from around the planet Earth, brought to you by “the paper that goes home–UFO Roundup.” See you then.

UFO ROUNDUP: Copyright 2002 by Masinaigan Productions, all rights reserved. Readers may post news items from UFO Roundup on their websites or in news groups provided that they credit the newsletter and its editor by name and list the date of issue in which the item first appeared.

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