MUFON Arizona Chapter

Magazine Overview

Title: MUFON Arizona Chapter Newsletter
Issue Date: May 1996
Volume: 5
Issue: 5
Publisher: MUFON Mutual UFO Network
Country: USA
Language: English
Cover Headline: Grisly 'Goat Sucker' legend captures imagination of nation

Meeting Announcement and Director's Message

The newsletter announces the upcoming MUFON Arizona Chapter meeting on Wednesday, May 22, 1996, at 7:30 p.m. at the National Guard Armory in Phoenix. The program includes videos on Chupacabra and Edgar Mitchell, followed by a general discussion. State Director Tom Taylor apologizes for the short notice, explaining that the meeting is sooner than initially thought. He highlights upcoming events, including UFO Awareness Week from August 16-18, with a display at Christown Mall in Phoenix. Taylor also mentions that debris from the 1947 Roswell crash is being checked, with reports indicating it is 99% aluminum. He concludes his message with the sentiment, "The truth is out there... and it's getting closer!!"

Key Personnel

The newsletter lists key MUFON Arizona Chapter personnel, including Tom Taylor (State Director), June Scherrer (Pima County Sect. Dir.), "Whitey" Reese (Cochise County Sect. Dir.), Paul Ankney (Asst. State Director), Doris Barley (Acting Yuma Co. Sect. Dir.), Mary Hart (Newsletter Producer), Jim Ossipov (Maricopa Co. Sect. Dir.), Richard Motzer (Field Investigator), and Chance Vallon (Mojave County Sect. Dir.).

An Heroic Feat

A humorous account describes an incident at Painted Rock State Park on March 30, 1996, where a discoidal flying object landed. The Asst. State Director retrieved the object, which was later determined to be a "frisbee" type.

Media Watch

Tom Taylor provides a list of recent and upcoming UFO-related television and radio programs. He notes that notification of programs is often too late for inclusion in the newsletter. Viewers are encouraged to check current TV listings and inquire at MUFON meetings about taped programs.

Chupacabra Phenomenon

The newsletter extensively covers the spread of reports about the "Chupacabra," a creature reportedly attacking livestock. Reports originated in Puerto Rico and have since appeared in Miami, El Paso, Sinaloa (Mexico), and the Los Angeles area. The article from The Arizona Republic details the "Chupacabramania" sweeping Mexico, with various theories about its origin, including scientific experiments or extraterrestrial beings. Some dismiss it as a hoax or a distraction from economic problems. The creature is described as a 10-inch being with a batlike head and wings, or an E.T.-like creature with porcupine quills.

Program Listings

• A comprehensive list of weekly UFO-related programs is provided, including:
• DREAMLAND: KFYI Radio, Sunday evenings, 8:00 p.m. (hosted by Art Bell).
• UFO AZ/UFO TALKS: Channel 22, Dimension Cable, Monday and Tuesday at 9:00 a.m.; Channel 13, Prescott, Friday nights at 9 p.m.
• The Extraordinary: Channel 15, Monday mornings, 12:30 - 1:30 a.m.
• 10-Files: Occasional feature on Channel 10 news.
• Unsolved Mysteries: Fridays at 7:00 p.m., Channel 12.
• X-Files: Fridays at 8:00 p.m., Channel 10.
• Sightings: Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30 p.m., Channel 15.
• Paranormal Borderline: Tuesdays, 8:00 p.m., Channel 45.
• Mysteries Around Us: KTAR Radio (620 AM), 12 midnight Saturday and Sunday.
• Late Night Cosmic Contact: Thursdays, 9:30 - 10:30 p.m., Channel 63 TCI Tucson Public Access.

Newsletter Submission and Web Presence

Submissions for the newsletter can be sent on diskette (WordPerfect 5.1 or ASCII text) or typed. Contact information for sending articles is provided. The MUFON-AZ Newsletter is also available on the World Wide Web at http://www.xroads.com/~noack/mufon.html.

Calendar of Events

• June 15, 1996: Tucson chapter meeting at Wilmot Library.
• June 9, 1996: Yuma chapter meeting.
• May 19, 1996: "Humanity's Extraterrestrial Origins" seminar at the National Guard Armory in Phoenix, featuring Dr. Arthur and Lynette Horn.
• June 27 - July 8, 1995: "Preparing for Contact in England" crop circle tour.
• June 27-29, 1996: 17th Rocky Mountain UFO Conference in Laramie, Wyoming.
• July 5-7, 1996: MUFON's 27th International Symposium in Greensboro, North Carolina.
• July 18-21, 1996: International Tesla Symposium in Colorado Springs, CO.

Current Events

• NASA Voyager Probe: On January 30, an interview featured NASA scientist Dr. Bergrun discussing photographs from the Voyager probe showing a large, elliptical, cigar-shaped craft orbiting Saturn's rings. The craft reportedly had visible portholes and is referred to as an Electro-magnetic Vehicle (EMV). Science News also reported a similar Hubble Space Telescope observation.
• Japanese UFO Museum: On July 4, 1996, Japan's Hakui City will open a multi-million dollar UFO Museum, featuring artifacts from UFO crash retrievals and proof of extraterrestrial corpses. Command Sergeant-Major Robert Dean is scheduled to speak at the opening.
• CIA UFO Involvement: Richard Hall reported that the CIA would issue a history of its UFO involvement, but it appears the agency will acknowledge its studies indirectly and in stages.

1947 Sighting

A personal account from Sheree Evans describes a sighting by her mother in South Pasadena, California, in 1947. Her mother, working for the Air Force on rocket re-entry projects, saw a flying saucer on a flatbed truck. She also saw four small, dead beings, about three feet tall, wearing tight-fitting jumpsuits, who had died in a crash in New Mexico. The saucer was reportedly being taken to Edwards Air Force Base.

Bigfoot Report

On March 27, 1996, a witness in Canaan, VT, reported seeing a hairy, ape-like being, 8-9 feet tall, near a street light. The entity turned and ran northeast slowly. The witness was frightened, and the sighting is noted as occurring during a month with several UFO sightings in the area.

Sightings at Carlsbad Caverns Nat'l Park

On February 17, 1996, a structure with rotating red, green, and white lights was observed for five minutes from Guadalupe Ridge in New Mexico. The observer returned on February 24 with a telescope and camera but did not see the object again. However, a bright red beacon was observed, which was identified as a possible natural gas operation, though its intensity and colors differed from the previous week's sighting. The observer concluded that the object seen the first week was not the drilling rig seen the second week and remains unidentified.

Book Report: Alien Magic

Dimitri (Jim) Ossipov reviews "Alien Magic" by William F. Hamilton III. He describes the book as a thin but valuable resource, primarily reporting on sightings and abduction cases with precise descriptions and substantiation. The author admits his connections with contactees and acknowledges when explanations are lacking. The book includes chapters on classifying aliens and discusses underground bases and collaborations between humans and aliens. Ossipov recommends the book for serious research.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The newsletter consistently focuses on UFO sightings, extraterrestrial phenomena, and related research. It promotes MUFON's activities, including meetings, events, and publications. The editorial stance appears to be open-minded and investigative, encouraging members to share information and explore various aspects of the UFO phenomenon, while also acknowledging skepticism and the need for factual reporting. The "Chupacabra" phenomenon is presented as a significant current event, reflecting the magazine's interest in contemporary unexplained phenomena and their cultural impact.