MINNESOTA MUFON Newsletter

Magazine Overview

This issue of the MINNESOTA MUFON Newsletter, dated January/February 1993 (Issue #39), is a 4-page publication from the Minnesota chapter of MUFON, a civilian organization dedicated to UFO research. The newsletter covers various topics related to UFOs, extraterrestrial life, and paranormal phenomena, featuring updates from the State Director, reports on intriguing signals, and discussions on advanced aerospace technology.

From the State Director

Richard Moss, the newly appointed State Director, expresses his gratitude for the confidence shown in him and introduces Bill McNeff as the Assistant State Director. Moss shares his personal history with UFO research, dating back to 1949, and his involvement with organizations like APRO and NICAP before joining MUFON in 1983. He notes that Minnesota MUFON began in March 1987 with five members and has since grown to about fifty members, with approximately 120 newsletters sent out bimonthly. Moss suggests organizing information meetings in various locations during the summer, emphasizing the value of newspaper cooperation and the potential for significant membership growth with a long-term commitment.

He addresses the newsletter's financial situation, mentioning that Lynn Bell has done a great job as editor but the organization is bordering on insolvency. He urges members to renew their subscriptions and discusses the subscription rate of $10 for six issues, with a potential increase to $12 in the future. To contain costs, the newsletter will be limited to six or eight pages. Moss also mentions the possibility of reimbursing travel expenses and phone calls, which would require increased funding, suggesting that subscriptions are the most obvious way to achieve this.

Moss announces that speakers for the January meeting were not yet scheduled and requests suggestions for potential speakers or videos. He recounts presentations by Arlene Ziesmer and Marion Senn about an encounter involving objects and an odor, who were scheduled to speak at the January meeting. He also mentions obtaining a copy of astronaut Deke Slayton's comments on UFO sightings from other astronauts and an upcoming interview tape with Bob Dean and his wife. He advises members to call before 7:00 am on meeting days if inclement weather might prevent his attendance.

"Boom Towns", here and abroad!

This section, attributed to Richard Lessner, Deputy Editor of The Arizona Republic, discusses sonic booms registered in Southern California and the remote Kintyre peninsula of western England. These booms were detected by U.S. Geological Survey seismic sensors and were estimated to be from aircraft traveling at speeds between Mach 3 and Mach 4. The article references a report from Jane's Defence Weekly about the Royal Air Force tracking a target leaving a NATO-RAF base in Scotland at Mach 3, accompanied by unusually loud jet noises. Witnesses in California have also reported peculiar pulsing jet noise.

The section connects these phenomena to rumors since 1988 of a U.S. Air Force supersecret high-speed aircraft, possibly named "Aurora," associated with a "deep black" program. It suggests that the existence of such an aircraft could explain Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney's 1989 decision to retire the SR-71s. Improvements at RAF Machrihanish, the base's rumored association with the F-117 Stealth fighter, and eyewitness evidence are cited as supporting the deployment of this aircraft. The Kintyre peninsula is described as a perfect, remote location for such activities. The article also notes that earlier issues of Minnesota MUFON reported similar pulsating booms in Georgia and Florida. It is suggested that the "Aurora" might be operating out of top-secret test facilities at Groom Lake, Nevada. The article concludes by stating that while the "Aurora" might explain the Mach 3-4 booms, it does not explain the low-pitched sounds heard in Elk River, Minnesota.

Newly formed Paranormal group to meet

This announcement introduces a new Paranormal Study Group, formed in response to a suggestion by Wally Moe. The group aims to discuss the correlation between paranormal experiences (ghosts, out-of-body experiences) and UFO sightings or alien encounters. The first meeting was scheduled for Saturday, January 23, 1993, with subsequent meetings on February 27, 1993, both at The Irish Well in St. Paul. Wally Moe is chairing the discussion.

As reported in The UFO Enigma...

This section details a personal incident experienced by Forest Crawford, Assistant State Director for MUFON in Illinois, as reported in the November/December issue of the newsletter produced by the UFO Study Group of Greater St. Louis. The incident involves a family dinner where Crawford noticed a child with a congenital birth defect, characterized by only three fingers and an opposing thumb on the left hand, similar to the mother's defect. The child also exhibited unusual blue eyes with an upward tilt and a wider head proportion at the temples. Another boy in the group had similar three-fingered hands and wispy white hair, with blue eyes. The article explains that these children were about 30 percent shorter than normal, had white skin and hair, larger craniums, and had an IQ measuring 30 to 40 percent higher than normal, contrary to the typical decrease in IQ associated with such defects.

Come in, Pleiaides -- or Somebody!

This article is a condensed offering from a NEWSWEEK article titled "ET, Phone Us," by Sharon Begley, published on October 12th. It describes the activation of NASA's Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico and the Goldstone Tracking Station in the Mojave Desert on Columbus Day. These telescopes were synchronized to search for signs of advanced civilizations by listening for extraterrestrial signals. Frank Drake of the University of California, Santa Cruz, anticipates witnessing such a detection before the year 2000. The article explains that NASA will bypass FM and short-wave, focusing on microwave frequencies to pick up signals that aliens might use to avoid cosmic noise. The computers will perform billions of operations per second to sort through the frequencies, identifying those with excess energy from natural sources. A secondary search focuses on the nearest 1000 sunlike stars within 80 lightyears, using fewer channels but with greater sensitivity. The article describes how an extraterrestrial signal might sound (like a pure tone of a tuning fork against a background hiss) and suggests that pulsing signals might be more detectable. It quotes NASA's Ken Cullers on the detectability of pulses and mentions a "fan-beam" sweeping across the galaxy. The section concludes by referencing Harvard astronomer Paul Horowitz's belief that the galaxy may be teeming with life and technology, and poses the question of whether humanity is alone if no signals are received.

MESSAGES FROM ET?

This section lists several unexplained signals detected by scientists from various constellations, none of which have repeated:

• Sagittarius (The Archer), August 15, 1977: Ohio State's radio telescope recorded a signal that a researcher described as "Wow!" It was never heard again.
• Sagittarius (The Archer), October 10, 1986: One of about 40 intriguing signals recorded by META (Megachannel ExtraTerrestrial Assay) at Harvard, Mass.
• Virgo (The Virgin), August 14, 1989: Another signal caught by META, tuned to "magic frequencies" that ET might be expected to broadcast on.
• Pisces (The Fish), August 16, 1989: A META signal on a magic frequency that had vanished by the time the astronomer arrived to check it.
• Cassiopeia (Cassiopeia), November 15, 1989: A META signal that appears man- or alien-made and has not yet been traced to an earthly source.
• Ophiuchus (Serpent Bearer), May 09, 1990: Recorded by the Parkes radio telescope in Australia, this signal is considered by Frank Drake to be the most like what an ET might send.

The sources for this section are cited as Frank Drake, Paul Horowitz, Carl Sagan, and D.G. Blair, reprinted from NEWSWEEK, October 12, 1992.

MINNESOTA MUFON OFFICERS

This section lists the officers of Minnesota MUFON for the current term:

• Richard Moss - State Director
• William McNeff - Assistant State Director
• Walter Moe - Director, Paranormal Study Group
• Barbara Boyle - Director, Support Group
• Terri Lester - Treasurer
• Lynn Bell - Editor, Newsletter

It also provides information for correspondence and articles to be directed to Lynn Bell, and notes that Minnesota MUFON meets the second Saturday of each month.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue revolve around the ongoing investigation and belief in UFO phenomena, the potential for extraterrestrial contact, and the exploration of related unexplained events and technologies. The editorial stance, as conveyed through the State Director's message and the content selection, is one of active research, community building, and a persistent curiosity about the unknown. There is a clear emphasis on the importance of membership, subscriptions, and information sharing within the MUFON organization. The newsletter also demonstrates an interest in cutting-edge, albeit often speculative, scientific and technological developments, such as the "Aurora" aircraft and the SETI project, alongside personal accounts of unusual experiences.