What Is Hovering Over the Twin Cities?

[Ivan Seeking]

St. Paul (AP) There's an unknown object hovering in the sky over the Twin Cities, and it doesn't appear to be a bird or a plane. [continued]

http://wcco.com/localnews/local_story_232202348.html

 

[selfAdjoint]

Noctilucent cloud?

 

[Ivan Seeking]

We should be hearing more. Apparently a local meteorologist went out and saw the thing, but he was stumped for the moment. I heard one observer report that the object was seen at about 70 degrees at a distance of about 20 miles - this would imply that the object was about 55 miles high. Of course this all hinges on some seat of the pants observations by presumably untrained observers.

Edit: That is to say that the observation was made about 20 miles from St. Paul where the object was reported as directly overhead.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

You know, Bush was there yesterday. That made me wonder if this could be related to security.

Edit: Holy cow that's it! ET is providing security for Bush.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

At about 1000 feet and during the period of time, apparently several hours over which the object was seen to be [nearly] motionless, the wind averaged about 10 mph, with gusts of 25 mph.

http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KMNNORTH1&day=19&year=2004&month=8

 

[selfAdjoint]

Was that the surface wind? You can't ever assume the wind at 1000 feet is the same as at the surface. It could be calm up there. I'm thinking now about the kind of sinking air mass that produces seiches over lakes. As it sank it wiould heat, and the moisture in it would evaporate, so to have a continuous image of a cloud it would have to keep drawing from above, in a kind of equilibrium. I don't know if all of this is physically possible, but I don't see anything wrong with it up front.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

That is data taken at 1000 [982]feet at a weather observatory on a mountain near North St. Paul. It is listed as one option for St. Paul weather data.

I'm hoping some good videos were taken. No doubt, there are some amazing cloud formations or other related phenomenon from time to time. I have seen some pictures of lenticular lcouds around and over Shasta that were absolutely amazing.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Well, it is called the mountain observatory, but it only appears to be 100 feet above the downtown station.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Informed opinions seem to be converging on the idea that it was a balloon. A video is provided by the local news service.

See this page at Coast to Coast AM:
http://www.coasttocoastam.com/shows/2004/08/20.html#ufo

http://www.coasttocoastam.com/

 

[Ivan Seeking]

The balloon explanation does not seem to jive with some of the intial reports. For one, from what I have heard and read so far, the object was visible for several hours but significant winds were present. Also,

Some witnesses suggested the object was a research balloon; however, the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Weather Service could not determine what the object was.

So, just in case, I am trying to get the data for wind speeds at various altitudes during the late afternoon of the 19th. Hopefully I will receive a response from the St. Paul airport or the National Weather service, but if anyone knows a place to get this on the net please speak up.

 

[aychamo]

These UFO reports are so weird.. There seems to be so many, but they are all written off as junk adn yet nothing is ever proved. Like this "was a balloon." Or the Mexican airforce was some other BS. But it's all speculation. It's amazing that in this day and age we can't even tell what the thing was. Why couldn't someone fly a helicopter to the thing and look?

 

[Hurkyl]

Is it still there, or did it go away? Did anyone watch it go away?

 

[Ivan Seeking]

One witness reported watching it until it was lost in the dark after sunset. The next morning it was gone. Later that day it was seen again.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

CASE #1: TWIN CITIES, MN, August 19, 2004

The first incident involved one, or possibly two, unidentified white objects, which were seen by many witnesses over the Twin Cities, MN, area on the afternoon of Thursday, August 19. At first, we assumed that the object(s) might be high-altitude, helium-filled balloons, carrying scientific instruments, since measurement by witnesses suggested they were at, or above, an altitude of 50,000 feet. [continued]

For the complete report, please see the first page at
http://www.nwlink.com/~ufocntr/

 

[Ivan Seeking]

The database has some first hand reports for viewing. See the date - 8/19 - then city/state.

http://www.nuforc.org/webreports/ndxe200408.html


Oh yes, wind data for various altitudes was not yet available for free through the national weather service. I should be able to get it online after the posting delay. The airport doesn't keep this information; at least not for the public.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

You know, Bush was there yesterday. That made me wonder if this could be related to security.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Here's a head-turner for a security-nervous city: A large white object was spotted in the skies above the nation's capital in the pre-dawn hours Wednesday. [continued]

http://edition.cnn.com/2004/US/09/29/security.blimp.ap/

 

[Moonbear]

I hadn't read this thread before, but as soon as I started reading it today, I thought of the all-white blimp that was seen flying yesterday over DC.

You know what one thing all UFO stories have in common? Crappy pictures. Why can't anyone ever take a clear picture of these things? Maybe then we'd know what they really are rather than these horrible, grainy, pixelated images that usually get posted of UFOs.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I have seen some great videos and pictures. The trouble is that the authenticity is always suspect by the very nature of the claim. Prove it wasn't faked.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Here is another report from the UFO News thread that sounds strangely reminiscent of this story.

https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?p=330913#post330913