New York Skies (Cheryl Costa)

Are all the UFO sightings the real thing?

Columnist Cheryl Costa shares perspective on just how many UFO sightings are genuine and how many are not.

Are all the UFO sightings the real thing? I get asked this question all the time. So, let’s talk about the numbers.

The first thing you have to consider is that only about 1 out of 10 UFO sightings are actually reported in the first place.

There are two national databases that capture a majority of the UFO sightings reports. The National UFO Reporting Center (NUFORC) and the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON).

While the majority of the sightings are captured by the major databases, some of the reports are made to local newspapers. Sometimes it’s a good thing and the report gets published in the newspaper. Yet sometimes it can lead to editors ignoring the reports and viewing the witnesses’ claim as absurd.

Some folks call their local law enforcement. I suppose law enforcement logs the reports, but I doubt if the sightings go much further than the police blotter.

Let’s talk about the nearly 5,000 UFO sightings New York state for the past 15 years. Are all of them really extraterrestrial or interdimensional crafts? I think not.

There is a standard formula for sorting out what are misidentifications of pieces of known information, and the formula sorts out the psychopaths and hoaxers. The latter is actually is a tiny portion of the overall volume of reports.

UFO-Formula-4647

Using the formula, the suggested proportion for “beyond conventional explanation sightings” is about 20 percent. Now 20 percent may not sound like much, but when you consider the volume of UFO sightings we have here in North America and here in New York state, 20 percent shakes out to a significant number of sightings.

Let’s look at some recent UFO sighting in New York state

Nov. 1, 2015: At 4:45 p.m., a resident of Afton, NY, reported seeing a bright blue-green sphere that divided into two small spheres.

Nov. 5, 2015: At 10:25 p.m., a resident of Grand Gorge, NY, witnessed two set of lights, with three lights in each set. The lights were evenly spaced and hovering in place.

Nov. 8, 2015: At 6:05 p.m., a resident of Central Islip, NY, observed what they thought at first were three bright stars in a stationary position. The object turned out to be a black triangle UFO.

Nov. 9, 2015: At 7 p.m., a resident of Hamburg, NY, reported seeing an egg-shaped UFO over the city.

Nov. 17, 2015: At 5:25 p.m., a motorist in Malone, NY, witnessed a basketball-sized yellow-orange object emerge from a wooded area in front of his vehicle and move away at great speed.

Nov. 19, 2015: At 8:30 p.m., a resident of Buffalo, reported seeing a V-shaped formation of bright green and red lights moving at great speed.

If you are interested in joining a monthly UFO discussion group in the Onondaga County area, drop Cheryl an email [email protected]. If you have a UFO sighting to report, you can use either one of the two national database services: nuforc.org or mufon.com. Both services respect confidentiality.

Cheryl Costa would love to hear the when, where and what of your New York sighting. Email it to [email protected]. The names of witnesses will be omitted to protect their privacy.

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