TUFOIC Newsletter - No 021 - May 1977

Magazine Overview

Title: TASMANIAN UFO INVESTIGATION CENTRE
Issue: No. 21
Date: May 1977

This issue of the Tasmanian UFO Investigation Centre's bulletin focuses on the Centre's ongoing work in investigating and cataloging UFO sightings across Tasmania. It details their methods, recent cases, and the challenges in understanding the phenomena.

What Are We Doing

The bulletin begins by explaining how the Tasmanian UFO Investigation Centre (TUIC) gathers information. They state that their telephone numbers are available through media, police, telephone information, and organizations like CSIRO, universities, and the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA). The Centre has representatives in the North, North West, and West Coasts of Tasmania, including an energetic member, Geoff Marshall, in Maydena. Sales of their Annual Report have also increased public awareness and led to more reported sightings.

The article highlights that many high-strangeness sightings are spread through word-of-mouth ('grapevine'). It's noted that witnesses who initially reported an Identified Flying Object (IFO) often know of others who have seen something strange or heard rumors. The Centre emphasizes that follow-up investigations are crucial, and recent months have yielded significant results from such efforts, including uncovering stories of sightings involving occupants and landings from earlier years.

UFO Definitions and Classification

TUIC is adopting Professor Hynek's method for classifying UFO sightings, in cooperation with other Australian and overseas UFO groups. This system is being used to define reports, with explained and unexplained sightings being passed on to the ACOS computer program in Sydney. A UFO is defined as an anomalous aerial phenomenon whose appearance and behavior cannot be ascribed to conventional objects and effects, as determined by both the original witness and the Centre's investigators after a commonsense investigation.

• Specific definitions are provided:
• Nocturnal light: Distant anomalous lights seen in the night sky.
• DD (Daylight Disc): Distant disc-like objects or lights seen during the day.
• RV (Radar/Visual): UFOs seen by radar and vision simultaneously.
• CE 1 (Close Encounter of the First Kind): UFO seen within 500 feet.
• CE 2 (Close Encounter of the Second Kind): CE 1 cases that leave traces, ground marks, cause auto stops, or animal reactions.
• CE 3 (Close Encounter of the Third Kind): CE 1 cases involving the observation of a humanoid or occupant.

All cases are assigned a unique identifier based on the year of investigation and the order in which they were received. For example, the first sighting in 1977 is designated TA 77001, with 'TA' standing for the source, Tas UFO Investigation Centre.

What We Do With It All

In its early years, sightings were recorded and filed, often remaining forgotten. The Centre's initial aim was to record and publish UFO information. Their Annual Report, first published in 1969, has become publicly available in recent years. The Centre plans to eventually input all unexplained cases dating back to 1948 into the computer. Tasmanian sightings have already been included in Australian catalogues like the Entity Catalogue and CE 2 Sightings. A Car Pace Catalogue is also being prepared by Paul Jackson, with the Centre's files containing over 50 car pace sightings in Tasmania from the past three years. The bulletin questions whether this type of sighting occurred before the early 1970s or if it represents a new phase locally.

Investigation Process

The majority of sightings are reported via phone to President Jeanette Bigwood or Secretary Keith Roberts. Many reports have straightforward explanations, often resolved by quick checks with the DCA for aircraft or by using Paul Jackson's astronomical tables to rule out planetary phenomena. Following this, leg work, writing, and further phone calls are necessary to obtain full details and verify points before determining if a case involves something unexplained or was merely an IFO that temporarily puzzled the witness.

Several members have been involved in investigating sightings over the past two years. The process involves preparing reports, summaries, and completing computer input forms before details are forwarded to Paul Jackson for distribution to ACOS and other groups. Members are kept informed through newsletters and the Annual Report.

"What Are They?"

Witnesses frequently ask about the nature of UFOs. The Centre admits that at this stage, there is no easy answer, and the phenomena present a bewildering array of shapes and colours. They pose a question back: perhaps the phenomena are also struggling to understand what humans represent.

Investigations (Page 2)

Summary of Sightings:

During the first four months of 1977, TUIC received 34 new sightings to investigate, plus 7 reports from earlier years. This compares to 77 investigations handled in all of 1976. The number of unexplained sightings for the first four months of 1977 was 3, significantly lower than the 19 recorded in the same period in 1976. The bulletin notes that the 'great flap' of sightings in Tasmania, which began in 1974, may have subsided, with no unexplained reports between November 1976 and early February 1977 – the longest period without an unidentified report since early 1973.

This respite allowed the Centre to focus on compiling details for Australian Catalogues and old sighting information for the computer.

Specific Sightings Detailed:

• November 1972 (Campania): A mother and daughter in a parked car observed a row of bright yellow lights moving north over nearby hills. They saw figures sitting side-on within the lights, described as grey shapes against the illuminated windows. No movement was seen from the figures, and the lights eventually receded into distant dots.
• Summer 1974 (Richmond via Grasstree Hill): A father reported that his two children spotted a roadside UFO. The object was described as elliptical with a spinning base and windows in the upper half. It was grey, with flashing lights, and a shape was seen in one window that seemed to turn before the object moved away. It wobbled while stationary over a gully before increasing speed and disappearing.
• Late February 1976 (South of Hobart): A lone witness saw a light descending from the east. Upon investigation, a dome-shaped object with windows was observed just above a grassy slope. The witness heard a whining noise and saw shapes resembling seats and a cylinder through the windows. The object increased its noise and took off. Traces were allegedly left, but samples taken a year later proved negative.
• February 3, 1977 (Seven Mile Beach): Michelle Russel-Green, at a Youth Camp, heard a buzzing sound and saw a dome-shaped object in the eastern sky around 9:30 PM. It was described as white with a red blinking light on top and yellow lights on a spinning disc below the dome. There were windows in the dome, and a shape was seen in the center window. The object appeared thin with a rounded bump on top and moved back and forth before becoming stationary and possibly moving north into cloud. Further interviews with other children present revealed some confusion about the exact sighting date.
• February 19, 1977 (Brighton): Miss M observed a bright circle of steady orange lights southeast of her farm, estimated at 300 meters elevation. The lights moved slowly across the southern sky, stopping multiple times before diminishing to a dot. They then returned, increasing in size and moving away over the hills. The sighting lasted three minutes.
• March 28, 1977 (Mt Stuart-New Town): Mrs M. Carr reported a crackling noise and her hall being flooded by orange light. She saw a light dart about for six seconds, described as moon-sized and apricot/orange. It moved away north, then returned, bathing her with bright colored light before shooting off northeast. Simultaneously, a Mt Stuart student saw a similar light, described as moon-sized and dashing back and forth, making a whistling noise. Another witness at Mt Stuart saw a yellow/white light moving in a zig-zag manner.
• May 9, 1977 (New Town): A lone motorist reported seeing a white light over New Town that split into two lights and moved north, lasting for ten minutes. This report prompted calls about other lights seen breaking up, including a sighting in Geilston Bay in February and another in Montrose in April involving a light splitting and zig-zagging.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The recurring themes in this issue revolve around the systematic investigation of UFO phenomena, the classification of sightings using established scientific methods (Hynek's system), and the challenges of identifying the true nature of these objects. The editorial stance is one of diligent inquiry and data collection, aiming to provide a comprehensive record of UFO activity in Tasmania. There is a clear emphasis on the need for detailed follow-up and the use of technology (computer input) to manage the growing volume of information. The Centre acknowledges the public's curiosity about "What Are They?" but maintains a cautious, evidence-based approach, admitting that definitive answers remain elusive.