Wokingham UFOs

[myf13]

The local paper has been getting excited by "suspicious objects":

UFOs sighted above Wokingham

August 18, 2009

Suspicious objects seen floating above the skies of Wokingham during recent weeks have prompted curiosity among townspeople.

Several have contacted The Wokingham Times to explain how they have seen a number of “orange balls” and “large orange lights” making their way across the borough.

Sightings of the mysterious objects have taken place in Lower Earley, Twyford, Hurst – and as far afield as South Hill Park in Bracknell – during July and August, while other accounts suggest similar objects were seen above the skies of Woodley last year.

One Wokingham resident, Cath, and her mother, saw four orange lights over Lower Earley on Friday, August 7.

She said: “They moved quite quickly and appeared to move together, three close to each other and the fourth a little way behind.

“There was no wind, but within a few minutes they had completely disappeared. I am sure they were not conventional aircraft as they were too low in the sky.”

Another baffled householder, who asked not to be named, told of sightings in the borough’s northern parishes.

“I too have spotted these orange balls in the sky over Twyford and Hurst,” she said.

“The first time I saw one flying above my house was at 10.30pm on Saturday, June 20. It was quite low in the sky but moving at a reasonable speed.

“It was the size of the moon and appeared to be a ball of fire. It then faded out but I continued to watch where it had been and noticed an orange light flashing on and off as it continued flying through the sky, getting higher until it eventually turned and went out of view.”

The resident went on to talk about how she spotted three more of these orange balls over the village of Hurst on Saturday, August 1.

This time one of the unidentified objects appeared to cast a white outline of a shape above what looked like a ball of fire.

It has been suggested by some that the so-called orange balls could merely be Chinese lanterns, novelties used at celebrations. The lanterns can fly for up to 20 minutes at a time and can travel over a mile in the sky.

However, some remain far from convinced.

One wrote: “I’m very curious to know what these objects are and if anyone can explain and solve the mystery it would be interesting to hear.

“Some people have said they could be Chinese paper balls that are lit at parties – but it doesn’t seem a likely explanation due to all the sightings and the way in which the balls travel.

“I hope, through your paper, the mystery will be solved.”

Have you seen the orange lights? Leave your comments below, call the newsdesk on (0118) 936 6180 or email [email protected].

http://www.getwokingham.co.uk/news/s/20 ... _wokingham

The person at the end of the article seems to want a solution, but apparently only if it fits with what they already think is the answer!

 

[myf13]

And today there's a follow-up article:

UFO sightings 'might not be lanterns'
By Laura Herbert
August 19, 2009

Mysterious sightings across parts of Woodley have been captured in these sketches of strange objects seen hovering in the sky – which may not be Chinese lanterns after all, an expert has said.

Catherine Swadling was cycling along Mill Lane when she noticed them drift past above her just weeks ago.

She said: “I stopped and noticed them in the sky coming from the north to the south of Woodley.

“From the Woodley aerodrome area three dark grey circular objects all the same size moved around each other tightly as they moved forward.”

The 46-year-old added: “It didn’t scare me, I just thought they were a weather thing. They looked metallic and didn’t make any noise.

“I didn’t think they were from another planet.”

Miss Swadling, of Finch Road in Earley, saw the moving objects as she cycled along the river around 5.30pm that day.

“I caught them out of the corner of my eye,” she said. “They all stopped then moved up and down while still moving around each other.

“From Woodley they then turned east and moved along over Winnersh Triangle, still keeping tightly together while moving around each other.”

Although Miss Swadling didn’t think they were anything extra- terrestrial she remembered them moving “as fast as a passenger aircraft” and appearing at the same height as a plane before disappearing into clouds during the mysterious sighting on Thursday, July 23.

This is not the first time Miss Swadling has seen unusual objects in the sky. She describes seeing “a telegraph pole moving around itself” a few years ago.

“I was coming out of the Co-op in Wokingham Road when I and about 10 other people saw what looked like a flying telegraph pole in the sky,” she said.

“It moved along over the road, stopped and then hovered for a few seconds, then moved up.”

UFO expert Ananda Sirisena, a member of the Aetherius Society, said of Miss Swadling’s recent sighting: “Moving around and forward wouldn’t normally account for a Chinese lantern.”

On Monday the Ministry of Defence and The National Archives released further reports of spooky sightings as part of a three-year project aiming to open up records to a larger audience.

Among the newly released reports were details of a sighting between Odiham and Reading from November 1994.

The document describes a sighting of three circles moving in an anti-clockwise direction, 30ft in the air at a 45-degree angle on a Saturday evening at 6pm.

It adds: “The evening was clear and the sighting occurred over fields.”

The report states the woman who witnessed the sightings “was concerned that UFOs might emit radiation and whether she and her boyfriend were at risk”.

Visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ufo to see if you are not alone

[email protected].

http://www.getwokingham.co.uk/news/s/20 ... e_lanterns

There are a few sketches accompanying the article as well.

 

[azuredoor]

UFO expert Ananda Sirisena, a member of the Aetherius Society

A sentence of many oxymorons

The society has been in the news recently plugging its skywatch. I dread to think how many fantastic reports will come from the meeting. Maybe they are drumming up some interest about it.

The movement in a close group is easy to explain, they were tied together.
The lack of orange colour described in the '2nd' report can be explained either by lying and changing of story, or by saying this particular group of balloons were merely dark coloured helium balloons. Notice that the witness thinks that theres nothing exciting about the balloons but the Aetherians are trying to sex things up.

 

[Moooksta]

Orange balls of light seem to be everywhere at the moment: North London, South London,Edinburgh, Glasgow,even videod in Bognor!

And when I say at the moment I mean in the middle of the summer party season during a period of meteorite activity. Yet at the same time those reporting them seem quite adamant that lanterns aren't to blame. Are they all lanterns or is the paranoid in me right in thinking the first rule of infiltration is to disguise yourself! :shock:

mooks out

 

[Tyger_Lily]

I live in Wokingham but unfortunately I've not seen anything.

It does fail to mention that Sandhurst and Heathrow aren't very far away and we often have Chinooks and more than our fair share of planes over head too.

Laterns are the most probable cause or the local hooligans near the Lower Earley Asda setting fire to things!!!

 

[myf13]

Probably unrelated, but there have been (or at least, have seemingly been) more helicopters about than usual over the last few weeks. With this area being on the Heathrow flightpath, I would have thought most residents would be reasonably familiar with aircraft lights, so I don't think these are the most likely expalnation.

I suspect that most, if not all, of these floaty orange balls of light are these sky lanterns things. I'll keep an eye out on the local press to see if any more info crops up, but I expect the whole thing will disappear in a week or two when they find something more interesting to talk about.