Background

The following case was submitted by witness John to The Black Vault / TBV Investigations on 07/03/2018 at 1:42 am and was assigned to TBV Investigations’ researcher Jim Kerr for investigation and analysis.

Witness Testimony

The following testimony was submitted by the witness:

“It was a cloudy Monday; I was going to take a break outside, when I spotted a light in the sky that moved, I took the opportunity to film it and take photos on the object. It moved before disappearing, disproving that it’s a meteor or asteroids. It had to be a UFO.

The photo and the video was taken in Ronneby, Blekinge County, Sweden.”

Witness Interview Conducted by Email on 08/15/2018 @ 11:52 pm

Q: What make, and model of camera or cell phone camera did you record the video and still photo?

A: I filmed the sighting with my Huawei Honor 8 lite, which had a built-in star track.

Q: Do you have additional still photos you can forward?

A: I didn’t have time to change the camera mode, because if I changed it, the object would’ve disappeared.
     I took a video so that It wouldn’t look like any star.

Q: What was the approx compass direction you were facing while filming?

A: I was facing southeast at 140°.

Q:  In your video, it appears you are inside a building behind a glass window, possibly inside a restaurant or store with the ambient sounds of conversations. The window is visible in front of the camera lens. Please set the stage as to what you were doing just before filming the UFO?

A: I was in my apartment, watching television, I wanted to take a look at the night sky, which is often. So I went to my window and noticed the object up there (it was shaped like a flying saucer, but for some reason, it was bright for my camera), but the camera didn’t capture the object in good quality, it was too bright for my camera.

Q: What drew your attention to this object?

A: The fact that it was moving, and that it didn’t resemble any known aircraft in Sweden, drew me into it.

Q:  Approx how long did you observe the object before filming?

A: I observed it for a full minute.

Q: Before your sighting did you have an interest in the UFO topic?

A: Yes, I had (and still have) an interest in the topic of UFOs.

Q: Is this the first UFO sighting you ever had?

A: Yes, this is my first UFO sighting.

Q:  Have you seen any UFO’s since this incident?

A: Yes mate, I did encounter another UFO at the same location before this incident.

Q: Were there other people in your presence that also observed this UFO? If so, describe their reactions or any statements they made. I don’t need their names.

A: There weren’t any people outside during that time.

Q: Just before or even days before seeing this UFO were you engaged in conversation with anyone about the topic of UFO’s? Note; (In many sightings witnesses were engaged in conversation about UFO’s before their sighting).

A: Check the above answer.

Q: If you were in a restaurant or business, please provide the name of the establishment or the cross streets of this location. Note; (this is important to eliminate any air traffic of flight patterns from local airports).

A: I wasn’t in a restaurant during that time, I was in my home.

The Evidence

The witness submitted two forms of visual evidence. A seven-second video clip with audio and a still photograph. Both were recorded using a Huawei Honor 8 lite cell phone.

The Analysis

by Jim Kerr, TBV Investigations

My Background as a UFO investigator began in 1973 after witnessing two illuminated disk-like objects that hovered, made right angle turns at high speed then ascended into the atmosphere at unbelievable speeds. In one sighting three USAF F-4 fighter jets arrived on the scene after the UFO shot up into the atmosphere. Since that time I became an amateur photographer, videographer and astronomer. Over the years I have archived many hours of video footage of jet aircraft during daylight and night in different weather and lighting conditions. Based on my experience I am aware of how aircraft in different lighting conditions can appear as a UFO, flying saucer, etc. Even in my photos and video, I captured objects that I initially believed were UFO’s, but after carefully analyzing the images with video editing software I determined them to be aircraft, birds, balloons, bugs, etc. Always keep in mind that even with the human eye can deceive us.

On 12/11/2017 at approx 2:00 pm Witness John related he went outside to take a break and observed a light in the sky that was moving. Using his cell phone, he took photos and video of the illuminated object before it disappeared. The witness believed it was not a meteor or asteroid and must have been a UFO.

On 08/15/2018, I conducted an email interview with the witness; There are minor inconsistencies from his original statement but nothing that affects the visual evidence presented in the photo and video submitted. Due to the passage of time, it is understandable that statement inconsistencies will occur. Refer to the witness’ statements under “Witness Testimony.”

Below is one witness statement that I will elaborate on later in my conclusions.

“I was in my apartment, watching television, I wanted to take a look at the night sky, which is often. So I went to my window and noticed the object up there (it was shaped like a flying saucer, but for some reason, it was bright for my camera), but the camera didn’t capture the object in good quality, it was too bright for my camera.”

I don’t know the witness’ exact location while filming within the city of Ronneby as he seemed reluctant to provide this information. Due to this, I am unable to determine his exact location while filming and his distance from the Ronneby Airport. Again, with the witness submitting photo and video, his location is not necessary to identify the object he filmed. Here is my analysis of that evidence:

Weather Information

Weather history searched on the weather website wunderground. The weather station is located at the Ronneby Air Base, Sweden.

Weather conditions at the time of the witness’ sighting; 34 deg, humidity 93%, wind 9 mph out of the NE, and mostly cloudy.

High temp 37 deg, low temp 29 deg, precipitation 0.24 inches, dew point 31 deg, average wind speed 12 mph, visibility 19 miles.

Surrounding Airports

Ronneby Airport is located approx 2.5 miles from Ronneby, Sweden. It is the 6th largest airport in Sweden and considered a Minor International Airport that handles approx 226,995 passengers per year. On the average, there are approx 16 incoming and outgoing flights per day.

Surrounding Military Installations

Blekinge Flygflottilj F17 Swedish Air Force Base, simply known as “F 17”, is located approx 0.62 miles from the Ronneby Airport. The base currently houses two squadrons of the multirole aircraft. A wing of the Swedish helicopter forces is also stationed at F17.

Additional information about Blekinge Flygflottilj F17:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F_17_Kallinge

Astronomical Data

Searching the archives of Stellarium, (a planetarium software that shows exactly what you see when you look up at the stars), I found no celestial objects that could remotely account for what the witness observed. Below is historical astronomical data from Weather-Underground.

Summary and Conclusion

Based on the following I determined the illuminated object in the witness’ photo and video to be landing lights of an aircraft on approach to the Roddeby Airport. I used Sony Vegas video editing software to enlarge the object and adjusted the lighting and contrast in both the photo and video footage. The speed of the object along with it’s straight, steady flight path is consistent with aircraft on approach to an airport. The Ronneby Airport is located 2.5 miles from the town of Ronneby.

In my video analysis of the witness’ video, (see video analysis above), the aircraft’s white strobe light can be seen flashing intermittently within the brilliant landing lights. This is evident in the witness’ video footage. As an example, I videoed an aircraft at night with it’s landing light turned on. My footage also shows the intermittent flashing of the aircraft’s white strobe light that can be seen within the brilliant landing light. Both the witness’s video and my video are similar enough to conclude aircraft landing lights were what the witness observed, videoed and photographed.  

The witness made the statement;  “It was shaped like a flying saucer, but for some reason, it was bright for my camera, but the camera didn’t capture the object in good quality, it was too bright for my camera.” Based on my video analysis, adjusting the lighting and contrast, I observed no flying saucer associated with the aircraft landing lights. I have personally observed and videoed aircraft landing lights and as I stated earlier, they can be deceiving and can appear saucer-like in shape. Keep in mind that aircraft in the different light setting are often mistaken for Flying Saucers. Watch the analyzed video below for further details.

I want to thank the witness for sending TBV Investigations his UFO report and visual evidence. I hope this investigation will provide answers to those who witness lights in the sky and help identify UFO’s, Unidentified Flying Objects.

The post UFO over Ronneby, Blekinge County, Sweden – December 11, 2017 first appeared on The Black Vault Case Files.

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Background

On October 26, 2018, this case was submitted to The Black Vault. It was assigned to TBV Investigations’ research Jeremy Enfinger for analysis.

Witness Testimony

The witness/photographer submitted the following information:

I was picking my grandchildren up from elementary school when I noticed everybody looking up in the sky I too looked up there and saw what I saw on the photos. The sighting date listed above (in the initial report) is wrong it was in 2014 I believe it was April. I couldn’t change sighting date on your program.

The sighting was reported to have occurred near the intersection of Thornton Rd. and Estate Dr. in Stockton, California around (or near) April of 2014. Four photos were submitted of an anomaly in the sky witnessed by multiple people (appearing in some of the photos).

The Evidence

The Analysis

Metadata analysis indicates the images are the original files, and EXIF metadata was able to be extracted. The image was taken from a Samsung SGH-T599N (5 MP) at a resolution of 1920 x 2560 pixels, using automatic exposure control with ISO 50, an exposure time of 1/2915 sec and an F-stop of 2.7. With the jpeg quality being 97%, there is no indication that the image file has been compressed. The flash was not utilized.

The time stamp on the metadata indicates it was taken May 9, 2014 at 14:14 hours. Due to initial research, no photo manipulation techniques were employed.

Initial impressions indicated the photo was not manipulated, and no evidence of motion was present when comparing images. There were, however, subtle changes in appearance around the periphery of the anomaly which caused me to consider some sort of meteorological or atmospheric disturbance.

After retrieving the metadata, multiple Google searches for “UFO Stockton, California, 2014” and “Clouds in Stockton, California, 2014” for the months of April and May of that year yielded several results. Image results were found that matched the appearance in these images and multiple news article links varied in headlines from May 9 to include “UFO sightings” to descriptions of cloud formations that can cause this kind of appearance.

Conclusion

After consulting the numerous articles citing this phenomenon, it can be summarized as a “Hole Punch Cloud”, which appears as a large, circular gap that usually appears in cirrocumulus or altocumulus clouds. Also called a “fallstreak hole”, it can happen when moisture in a cloud is at a temperature that’s below freezing, but the moisture itself is isn’t actually frozen. According to the Huffington Post, these formations can also be caused by aircraft passing through certain types of clouds.

References

Here was a FOX 40 submitted photograph from the same timeframe:

The Huffington Post also ran a story about it:

Also CBS Sacramento was another resource that covered it:

YouTube user MrPhath posted a video of it as well:

Original Metadata Information

Each photo was submitted to Fotoforensics, but for the purpose of this report, I will only include the link to one as the JPEG quality and metadata are corroborated in comparison.

Photo #1 Metadata (from FotoForensics): http://fotoforensics.com/analysis.php?id=d6040af2eb054b5764d749de34163b5000b459b0.1704869

JPEG last saved at 97% quality (estimated).

Quality determined from the quantization tables that encoded the JPEG:

JPEG Q0: Luminance

JPEG Q1: Chrominance

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Background

The following case was submitted to The Black Vault / TBV Investigations on May 19, 2018. It was assigned to TBV Investigations’ researcher Michael Glenn for analysis.

Witness Testimony

The witness submitted the following report:

“At approximately 19:30 on May 17, 2018 I saw something extremely bright horizontal to the setting sun. I’ve seen sundogs before and have many photographs of them. This was no sundog. It hung in the air. It was huge. It had a shape. I ran inside and grabbed my phone and snapped a few shots. I also manipulated a couple of them and brought out what looks like a glowing cigar shape object of some kind. I took a few close ups and a couple of wide angles. I have to say I was amazed. I also caught a secondary object that looks geometrical with antennae protruding from the corners when you zoom in on one of the frames. Look at the photographs and you tell me what that is in the sky. Feel free to download and examine them for yourselves.”

The Evidence

The witness also submitted many photographs of the event in question. This took place over Jacksonville, NC. 

The Analysis

The image was examined using several filters, settings, and adjustments in Photoshop. The object appears to be part of the sky, and has its own brightness, equal to the sunlight. To the left of the large shape is a small, geometric object hanging in the sky. The pixelated nature of the image makes it impossible to tell for sure what we are looking at. The witness stated that the object was not noticed until examining the images later. The witness further states that the cloud shape hung there as the ones around it moved, dissipated. Some swirling can be seen in the image, but again, not definitive shapes. The event lasted ten minutes.

Image Analysis

Conclusion

It is impossible to draw a conclusion for the geometric shape hanging in the air to the left of the elliptical shape as the image is not clear enough. The elliptical shape could be described on first look as a Fallstreak hole (hole punch cloud), but the cloud type is not right for this phenomenon since Fallstreak holes occur in cirro and alto cumulus clouds. A search of images on Google turned up this example of a similar sky effect. This cloud feature is the only conclusion that can be drawn at this time as there is no discernible anomaly in the image.

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The post UFO over Jacksonville, North Carolina – May 17, 2018 appeared first on The Black Vault Case Files.

Background

On June 3, 2018, a post appeared on Facebook that went viral. It was posted by Ashley Choney, the earliest post I could find when this case file was written, and it shows a photograph of a “UFO” or saucer-like craft on the back of a semi, followed by “20 police cars” as indicated by the witness.

The case was investigated by the creator of The Black Vault, John Greenewald, Jr.

Witness Testimony

The original Facebook posting, as published on June 3, 2018:

The Evidence

The only evidence was the photo updated. Here is the highest resolution available:

The Analysis

by John Greenewald, Jr., Founder of The Black Vault / Creator of TBV Investigations

There was something eerily familiar when I saw this photograph making it’s rounds. When I am writing this report, the post has had just about 20,000 shares, more than 7,000 likes and more than 3,000 comments. I recalled seeing a post nearly identical to this a few years back, and dug up a December 2011 video from YouTuber Alex Dieguez in the the same exact location as this new posting — specifically, Ponca City, Oklahoma.

In 2011, when this story and video first circulated, it too went viral. With thousands of shares and likes, it was unknown what was seen that day, but it sparked various news stories and newspaper articles.  That is, until Brooks McKinney, senior manager of public relations at Northrop Grumman, closed the mystery. He told Life’s Little Mysteries, a project by the popular LiveScience.com website, that the craft was a transport of the X-47B. According to Northrop Grumman:

“The X-47B is a tailless, strike fighter-sized unmanned aircraft developed by Northrop Grumman as part of the U.S. Navy’s Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) Carrier Demonstration program. Under a contract awarded in 2007, the company designed, produced and is currently flight testing two X-47B aircraft. In 2013, these aircraft were used to demonstrate the first ever carrier-based launches and recoveries by an autonomous, low-observable relevant unmanned aircraft. In April of 2015, the X-47B once again made aviation history by successfully conducting the first ever Autonomous Aerial Refueling (AAR) of an unmanned aircraft. AAR unlocks the full potential of what an unmanned surveillance, strike and reconnaissance system can do in support of the Navy. These historical demonstrations solidify the concept of future unmanned aircraft and proved that the X-47B can perform standard missions like aerial refueling and operate seamlessly with manned aircraft as part of the Carrier Air Wing.”

The source of this, was published on December 20, 2011, on the LiveScience.com website.

With the 2011 mystery solved, now we have the post again, or a similar one, in 2018.

What is interesting to note, is the fact that the truck transporting the craft, is nearly identical (or IS identical) in both make, model and color as the 2011 video.

I put a side by side comparison:

It is likely, that this is the X-47  being transported again by the same transport company using a nearly identical vehicle. Oddly, it is seen and photographed in the same exact city of Ponca City, Oklahoma.  Northrop does have facilities in Oklahoma City and an address in Ponca City, so the locale in relation to the “sighting” makes sense.

It should also be noted, that on June 3, 2018, the same day as the original post of this “saucer” craft, the following was posted by Trevor Macy, a reporter with KWCH Channel 12 in Witchita, Kansas:

Just spotted this South of Ark City. Any ideas what it is? pic.twitter.com/pH99h6q7tv

— Trevor Macy (@KWCHTrevor) June 3, 2018

Hard to tell if it is the same craft/truck, but again, you have a near identical make, model and color of the transport vehicle.

Others have also referenced an “orb” in the photograph. I believe this can also be explained fairly easily. Here is a screen shot of the orb, along with what should also be noted — power lines.

To the left of the photograph, you will see the “orb” referenced by many others posting and re-posting this photograph. This is touted as further proof this is some kind of alien spacecraft, as it has its own buddy following along.

However, I also pointed out power poles in the photograph. I believe by these, we can safely assume there are power lines running from pole to pole, and going off camera frame.  This ‘sphere’ is not a craft, but rather, is a visibility marker ball. These are often put on power lines to indicate to passing aircraft and helicopters, where the danger is if you fly too low. They mark the power lines not easily visible when flying an aircraft.

Here is a clear photograph of these markers:

Conclusion

Based on the evidence, this is likely simply a transport of the X-47B (or similar shaped craft) as talked about in 2011 by Northrop Grumman’s Public Relations Senior Manager.

This is aside from the fact that if it was anything involving a massive amount of secrecy, like an alien craft or back engineered technology, it would not be transported in the open on public highways in it’s actual form — but rather, it would be disguised, transported under the cover of darkness, or even transported in an open vehicle at all.

The “orb” that is often also cited as being in the photograph, is likely a visibility marking ball.

The post UFO Type Craft Seen Hauled on Large Semi Truck in Ponca City, Oklahoma first appeared on The Black Vault Case Files.

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Background

On October 22, 2016, this case was submitted to The Black Vault.  The photographer, submitted the following information:

“This picture was taken by my wife with a digital camera and tells me there was nobody around or behind when the photo was taken. She was also sat with 3 other people facing me that says the same.

I showed this pic to the hotel a few weeks after and they tell me of ghost activity in the hotel. I had the pic examined by a photographer that also says a ghost. I’m the one in the middle.

It was taken at the Holiday Inn, Leicester, built over a Roman garrison

Have any ideas on this?”

The case was turned over to TBV Investigations team member Jeremy Enfinger for analysis, who specializes in claims of ghost activity.

The Analysis

Metadata analysis indicates the image is the original file, however, EXIF metadata was not able to be extracted. The image was taken from a Samsung Model DV300, DV300F, or DV305F at the model’s maximum resolution of 4608 x 3456 pixels, using automatic exposure control with ISO 400, an exposure time of 1/8 sec and an F-stop of 2.5. With the jpeg quality being 94%, there is no indication that the image file has been compressed. The flash was fired during this exposure as well.

The time stamp on the metadata differs from the approximate date reported. According to the individual submitting the photo, it was taken around Christmas, 2015. The metadata indicates it was taken February 15, 2012 at 2:36 p.m. It should be noted, however, that if the camera owner did not set the time/date in the camera settings prior to this exposure, the metadata would not necessarily display accurate “modify date” information. It should also be noted that presence of Christmas decorations in the photo corroborates the individual’s report.

The Interview

After writing the initial report, on January 20, 2018, TBV Investigations team member Jeremy Enfinger conducted an interview with Shaun, the man who submitted the photograph.  He will be sending the actual camera to TBV Investigations for further testing, with hopes to try and reproduce the image using a multitude of settings and lighting situations, attempting to emulate the original setting.

Testing will be posted once it is completed.

General Observations

Aside from the Christmas decorations previously mentioned, ELA (error level analysis) shows similarities in texture of the anomaly with the background and close resemblance to some of the articles of clothing in the foreground. This similarity in texture implies there was no digital alteration of the photo in the area of interest around and including the anomaly. There is also stark contrast between the anomaly and light sources from within the field of view, and it blocks the light from the lamp (frame left), indicating the anomaly has mass and opacity through the clearly-visualized portions.

No notable indications of time/date found within the photograph. There’s a bottle of Whispering Hills Californian Chardonnay which began bottling in 2010, but no year is visible in the photo.

While the two men in the foreground (middle and left) have minimal red-eye effect from the flash, the man on right has moderate red-eye in the photo indicating his pupils were pointed directly toward the flash compared to the other two men in the foreground. The amount of red-eye for the anomaly is severe and more easily notable at a glance. This is inconsistent with the red-eye pattern of the men, and would typically indicate the subject would either be closer to the flash or looking more directly at the flash, neither of which seems to be the case give the direction it seems to be facing and physical location in the room, leaving some question about how this was accomplished. However, when examining the reflection of the flash in each of the subjects’ eyes, the angle of reflection is consistent with the men in the foreground and the anomaly, suggesting physical presence during the flash consistent with the angle/location of the photographer.

The anomaly does not possess the same RGB color values, and this section of the image appears to be desaturated compared to the rest of the photo, though some color is present. There is motion blur in a horizontal pattern surrounding the anomaly, but clear facial features are seen within the anomaly without motion. Initial observation was to suspect digital manipulation, but metadata contradicts this suspicion. It is possible to manipulate the metadata, but it would need to be intentionally done and knowledge of how to do this is not common.

Light reflection patterns are consistent in the anomaly compared to that of subjects in the foreground, however, there are shadows present at the edges of the anomaly that are not present with subjects in the foreground, indicating a discrepancy in how the room light interacts with the anomaly. Parts of the anatomy cannot be seen posterior to the facial anatomy, and appear transparent where the background is clearly visualized where anatomical features should be seen.

Conclusion

At first glance, my opinion was that this photo visibly appears to be digitally edited, however, there is evidence to suggest that the anomalous figure was in the room during the exposure. If it was hoaxed, someone would have had to go through great lengths to modify the metadata on the original image following photomanipulation, which generally would show on the ELA analysis and/or reduce the quality post-compression. Or someone found a way to take a photograph of a doctored photo/sample, which would possess accurate metadata, though I found no evidence of this.

Additionally, it’s possible that someone may have walked into the frame during exposure. With a 1/8 second exposure, a blur effect might be possible depending on how fast that person would be walking, but the blur should be consistent throughout the image of that person, not only in certain areas. It would also not explain the desaturation in color of the anomaly.

I would recommend further testing of the camera to include the features “split shot”, “motion photo” and “artistic brush”. It is possible the effects appreciated may have been added by mistake. I was not able to test this model of camera myself.

Given the red-eye appearance, the desaturation of the anomaly, the blurred edges (and clear facial features), the resemblance to Photoshop’s clone tool effect, and shadow discrepancies, there are enough indications to suspect some level of alteration. The problem is I can’t seem to find any evidence of manipulation given the data available. It is my opinion that this photo is authentic, however, I am unable to explain the anomaly or its features.

Currently, the photograph is with other photo analysts for evaluation, and results will be posted.

The Photograph

The Full Photo

Cropped and Zoomed:

Additional Analysis

Research image analyst Kenn Raymond, owner of VDI Spectral Art, decided to do his own independent analysis on the photograph above.  We were very intrigued by Kenn’s findings, because after extensive analysis, Kenn concluded the image to be an unknown, but did find a possible clue (as of 5/17/18 is still being researched) that shows the metadata lists the “number of images” as 2, indicating a possible double exposure.

https://www.theblackvault.com/casefiles/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/VDI-Spectral-Art.pdf

Additional details will be added, when available.

Replication?

Some visitors to The Black Vault are now submitting what they believe, are examples of this photo being replicated.

Below, you will find a few. Did they solve this case for you? Or does this prove the exact effect is still not achieved? Post your comments below.

Submission #1

Al Jacinto II on The Black Vault Fan Page on Facebook, posted the following photographs as “proof” that the image in question, is not a ghost (Image captions are quotes from Mr. Jacinto):

It should be pointed out that another comment made by Al Jacinto II stated:

“Thanks…but ghosts are unreal ha ha ha ha”

In other words – the agenda would simply be to debunk, and not offer a truly unbiased test to reproduce the result.

Submission #2

Reddit user extremesalmon submitted the following photograph, after seeing the above case:

Meta Data

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Background

The following UFO report was submitted to The Black Vault / TBV Investigations on December 18, 2017. 

Due to the age of the sighting, and lack of visual evidence, the case is added here without scrutiny, and used for reference and archival purposes.  

Witness Testimony

This happened when I was about nine or ten. My mother took my brother and myself to San Francisco from Mill Valley to do some shopping at the Army base. My brother and I decided we wanted to stay in the car. In those days the cars had large wide back windows so being bored I decided to roll down the back window and stretch out in the back window shelf and lay my head on the window sill and look up at the sky and the clouds.

I was kind of a day dreamer in those days. While looking up I noticed three white dots. They were just sitting there doing nothing. They were way up in the sky. As I watched them they moved in a circle around each other then disappeared. In those days I knew nothing about aliens or weather balloons or space ships.

After they left I forgot all about them until years later when watching a special on TV about the same thing at which time I was in my 20’s.

The second time I witnessed something was about 1978.

I was on highway 395 in Nevada driving North from Topaz Lake It was about 4 pm about eight miles north from the lake. This was a long stretch of two lane road at the time. I could see for about a mile down the road. As I was looking down the road about a half mile ahead a large ball of light, about twenty feet in diameter shot across the highway from west to east.

When I got to where I could stop and look where the light was there was nothing. Ill never forget it.

Conclusion

Due to the amount of time that has elapsed since the event, and the lack of visual evidence, this case holds no “conclusion” and is archived here for reference or for possible future corroborating witness testimony.

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Background

by John Greenewald, Jr. – The Black Vault – TBV Investigations

This photograph appears on the Facebook / Edge of Wonder Page, as posted on February 14, 2018. Although there may be an earlier post “source” — this post alone has nearly 15,000 shares and more than 1,500 likes at the time of this writing, it constitutes as “viral” and deserves a mention here.

Reason being, the photograph is a fairly provable fake. But, don’t let that stop the masses from “sharing” it with the world. Why? Well, it has to be real despite evidence to the contrary.  Why? Well, the post says it’s real. So, if you read it on the internet, it HAS to be true!

Here is the text of the original post:

It happened in Russia. 
They said this is not fake, what do you think？

cr. web

The Evidence

The Analysis

Doing a slight crop on the image, then conducting a reverse image search, multiple matches to an identical “apparition” are discovered.

First discovered, believed to be the source, is a graphite sketch appearing on moziru, and on a large list of artistic work using “Graphite” as the medium.

Second, is information about a music album in Spanish, entitled “Accidents – El Fantasma en mi” which has the following cover art:

Although there are slight variations between the two examples found on Google, the image in question above, of an apparition in Russia, is clearly an exact copy of the first example. Here is an overlay showing the image in question, vs. the first graphite drawing.

Both layers are on top of each other, which different color balances to differentiate between the two.

The hoaxer did skew the original artwork (they changed the aspect ratio) but it took only seconds to do the same thing in Photoshop, and see that the finger placement, body, etc. are a perfect/identical match.

Conclusion

With the evidence given above, this case is comfortably labeled a hoax.

The post Mysterious “Ghostly Apparition” appears in Russia (Viral Photo) first appeared on The Black Vault Case Files.

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Background

The following case was submitted to The Black Vault / TBV Investigations. However, after numerous attempts by team member Rob Mercer to contact the witness by phone and email, they did not return any messages.

We decided to archive the case, in hopes the witness may reach out in the future, or corroborating testimony can be discovered.

Witness Testimony

The following was submitted by the witness (unedited):

I joined the Air Force in February, 1996. After basic training, I was sent to Ft. Huachuca, Arizona (an Army base) for more training. I don’t know the exact day, but it had to be between May 15, 1996-July, 1996 (the length of time I was stationed there).

We had just finished our training for the day, which was around 3:00 pm, and were in formation for our usual daily update. One particular day, we were told that the base was on lockdown.

No one was allowed to leave the base. We naturally asked why, and were given no explanation. Since we were all stuck on the base, we spent most of the evening in the day room, where there were lounge chairs and a TV. Later that night, on the local evening news out of Tucson, there was a story about a UFO seen in the area. A large (at least the size of a football field), black, slow moving, triangular shaped object was spotted in the sky, very close to the base (SHOWING UP IN BROAD DAYLIGHT!)

A policeman took video of it on his dashcam, and followed it for MANY miles (north to northeast), to around the Scottsdale area, where it disappeared. This sighting had to have lasted a few hours due to the distance from where we were (southern Arizona), to the area where it disappeared (and it’s slow speed). I’ve looked online and never seen that video, or even clips of it.

So, even though it made the news, we saw the short video clip, no one ever spoke of it again. I would think that the policeman (or sheriff) that followed it would remember it, or the video would have somehow gotten leaked on YouTube considering how interesting it was! I’ve seen the video of the Phoenix lights, and this was NOT the same thing.

I’m baffled that a story like this would just disappear! Added note: Ft. Huachuca was testing drones at the time, so we were used to seeing test aircraft in the sky. The fact that they locked down the base leads me to believe it wasn’t ours!

The post Black Triangle Near Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, U.S. Army Training Base – Circa May/June 1996 first appeared on The Black Vault Case Files.

The post Black Triangle Near Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, U.S. Army Training Base – Circa May/June 1996 appeared first on The Black Vault Case Files.

Background

The following case was submitted to The Black Vault / TBV Investigations on December 18th, 2017. It was assigned to TBV Investigations team member Rob Mercer for investigation.

Witness Testimony

“The photo attached is not of that day, just used to illustrate event. Also, lighting would be later in the afternoon, late afternoon coming from the right side, West, of photo (4:30-5pm, not noon as depicted in the photo)

I had stepped off my father’s porch to smoke a cigarette and turned towards the porch, (looking South), where my grandson & father were sitting, when I looked up to the sky above the horizon of the house and seen what at first, I thought were three geese flying in a circle and thought to myself that they were extremely high in the sky to be geese.

I called out to my father to come and see, and as he was stepping off the porch towards me the ‘geese’ tightened into a smaller circle until it became an oval shaped shiny ‘craft’ almost in an instant it then flew off towards the West, where the sun was lowering at this time of day.

It went across the sky quicker than anything I have ever seen anything move in the sky. My father hadn’t even made it off the porch when all that had happened, it all happened almost in an instant from the time I first seen the ‘geese like’ objects.”

Witness Sketch

The witness provided the following depiction of where the sighting took place, and what happened:

The Analysis

I spoke with the witness by telephone. She reported that the weather was clear. While looking south, high in the sky she noticed three small “geese like” objects circling slowly in the sky. They tightened into a smaller circle and became one as a shiny oval shaped craft. The object then shot off towards the west, size and distance were unknown. She stated that she has lived in the area near the airports for 40 years and is quite familiar with airplanes. 

The National UFO Reporting Center showed a report in their database from September 9, 2007 of a round blueish object near Antelope, Ca. at 9:30pm.

The object came from the west making two 90 degree turns and hovered at about 2500’.

The witness stated that this could have been the day of her event, and related.

No other reports were found.

Conclusion

Given the age of this report and lack of an exact date, this case is difficult research and conclude. For now, it is being recorded in the database as a historical case for information only.

The post UFO Sighting over West Sacramento, California – September 10, 2007 first appeared on The Black Vault Case Files.

The post UFO Sighting over West Sacramento, California – September 10, 2007 appeared first on The Black Vault Case Files.

Background

On social media, this particular photograph has been passed around in various Facebook groups and websites.

It depicts NASA engineers at Dryden, posing with an unidentified craft in the shape of a flying saucer.

The Photograph

The Analysis

The investigation on this, is very simple, and was easy to conduct.

The hoaxer who created the image, did not even bother to change the photograph identification number. On the photograph in question, you will note it says: E49-059 as a Photo Identification number.

A quick search of the NASA Dryden Photo archives, reveals to real photograph with this ID number, and the buildings, engineers, etc. are identical. 

The hoaxer simply did some fancy Photoshop work – and inserted in a flying saucer to the original photograph, after deleting the actual aircraft.

The Original Photograph

SOURCE at NASA Dryden

Conclusion

With the above evidence, this is clearly, a hoax. 

The post NASA Dryden Photo Depicts Personnel Standing with Flying Saucer / UFO first appeared on The Black Vault Case Files.

The post NASA Dryden Photo Depicts Personnel Standing with Flying Saucer / UFO appeared first on The Black Vault Case Files.

Background

by Michael Kelly, TBV Investigations

On December 19, 2017, Ronald Male submitted the following UFO sighting to The Black Vault / TBV Investigations, which he witnessed from his driveway in Cazenovia, New York. The event occurred on July 19, 2006 at 10:30am:

I brought my breakfast (bowl of cereal) outdoors to eat while sitting in my spring chair to be in the sun in the driveway on a very nice morning. As usual, the chair took a moment to stabilize, and when it stopped the back and forth rocking motion I was able to eat without a problem. As I leaned back slightly my eyes were able to notice an object in the sky that did not look normal. There was no sound, no evidence of flight control surfaces, and after a few seconds it seemed to linger in place. But it was actually slowely moving due east in the direction of Cazenovia Lake, which was half mile from my driveway. Its movement was regular…..no stops or starts……and appeared to be shaped round like a saucer with a shiny metalic surface. As the object transitioned from about 45° arc from the horizon to almost directly overhead, it was appearant that it did not rotate on its own axis, but the sun reflected off its surface in such a way that I could see the “skin” of the craft which looked to be paneled as individual panels reflected light in sequence as it slowely moved. Its size was hard to interupt since the blue sky offered no reference points, but from where I sat my best estimate was it was the size as a tennis ball held at arms length.

I was considering getting my digital camera, but then I might loose sight of it should it make a move.

As it reached a point over my head it suddenly went straight up so fast that there was little or no shrinking perspective that is evident when an aircraft, for instance, flies away and its appearant size gets smaller with distance traveled. That final sudden and unexpected disappearance was not associated with any noise, flash of light, or any other indication …..it simply disappeared. There were no other witnesses and the entire observation lasted for 4 or 5 minutes.

The Analysis

Aspects of this sighting fit classic UFO reports: disc shaped object, no sound, metallic surface with no flight control surfaces, almost instantaneous departure, etc. There have been sightings from the Cazenovia, NY area reported on other UFO sites, but none that match this description. The size of the object is difficult to determine without knowing the altitude.

It is possible that this aircraft is connected to Deer Run Airfield about 5 miles from site of the observation.

Conclusion

Without further information it is difficult to determine what was seen in the sky on this day. A pedestrian explanation is that this was merely an unusual aircraft operating out of the Deer Run Airfield at 4051 Argos Rd, Cazenovia, NY, 13035, which is a little over 5 miles from the driveway of the witness. This case should remain open without further evidence.

The post UFO over Cazenovia, New York – July 19, 2006 first appeared on The Black Vault Case Files.

The post UFO over Cazenovia, New York – July 19, 2006 appeared first on The Black Vault Case Files.