1. Alex J
UFO Essay
UFOs, unidentified flying objects, have been a big topic amongst our population over the
years. Many of us associate UFOs with visitors from outer space, but our government seems
determined to prove them wrong. People all over claim to have seen these so-called “flying
saucers,” but when scientists investigate their claims, they almost always end up being a hoax.
Before we can say that someone has truly seen an unidentified flying object, scientists
thoroughly look into what the person has seen. First, UFO investigators check all of the
witnesses accounts. The witnesses should agree on the details, or if there is only one witness,
would they have a reason for making it up? Some of these people have even taken a photo of
their “UFO,” so investigators check to see if the photos have been tampered with, or if the object
is not a UFO. They make sure they it’s not an object that’s being seen from a strange angle or a
long distance that would make it look like a flying saucer. Next, they check for physical
evidence. Things like crushed plants at the landing site, or traces of radiation. Occam’s Razor is
also used, which states that the simplest and most obvious explanation is most likely to be true.
Investigators often use this to find a logical explanation for the UFO sightings.
In the mid-1950’s people were seeing UFOs left and right. Kenneth Arnold was an
experienced pilot and because of the long distances he had to travel, he used a light airplane. On
June 24th 1947, he was flying back to Oregon, and in the beginning of his journey he passed by
Mount Rainer near where a U.S. marine corps plane was thought to have crashed. There was a
$5,000 reward for anyone who spotted the wreckage, so Arnold was keeping a close eye on his
surroundings. That was when he spotted a group of nine UFOs, or flying saucers as he called
them because “they flew like a saucer would if you skipped it on the water.” Later, after a
thorough investigation, we found out that what Kenneth Arnold has saw were really a group of
pelicans. Arnold wasn’t the only one who had thought he spotted a UFO, on June 14th, ranch
foreman Mac Brazel spotted a line of debris. He had assumed that it was the wreckage of a
weather balloon, because two weather balloons had crashed on the ranch previously. Days later,
Brazel heard about Arnold’s UFO sighting, and began to wonder if what he had seen was the
crash site of one as well. He took his wife and daughter to the wreckage and collected pieces of
it, then drove into Roswell to show the sheriff. The police said that it in fact was a weather
balloon, but many did not believe them. The air force had known what really crashed, but were
not allowed to say because it was a top-secret project at the time.
Citizens are not the only ones who have claimed to have seen UFOs or things that are out
of this universe. There are many stories about astronauts and what they thought to have seen in
space. One of the most popular is about Neil Armstrong. People say that he said that while on the
moon, he saw two other spacecraft on the surface. Armstrong has never confirmed saying this.
Another story is that the astronauts on the moon saw alien bases and mining operations, which
was never confirmed as well. Some astronauts have seen tiny, snowflake-like objects taking over
their space capsules. Two other astronauts have claimed to have seen 4 UFOs linked together ,
and another claimed to seeing a flying saucer. Most of these “UFOs” turn out to be satellites,
pieces of the spacecraft that have been thrown off, or ice crystals that have fallen off the ship.
Throughout time, people have believed in extra-terrestrial beings. Around the time
Kenneth Arnold’s UFO sighting, many worried that the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics had
developed nuclear technology and were going to use it to power horrible new aircraft. Others
thought that aliens were planning to invade earth. Although a large amount of people truly
believe that they have seen UFOs, I don’t feel that they have. I think that there is life on other
planets and in other galaxies, just not intelligent life.