I'd be asking why we are doing this at night..
Because that's when the mysterious flying craft which don't want to announce their existence are most visible, in part due to their lights
as per FAA regulations resulting from processes beyond our current understanding.
More seriously, and I won't pretend to have figures to support this, but I'd guess the majority of UFO reports, ghost sightings and assorted strange experiences happen at night, the time when our vision is impaired (cone cells predominate in the area of retina responsible for our central field of vision, and are less light-sensitive than the rod cells at the periphery).
Aside from vision, our circadian rhythms appear to support better cognitive performance in the day than at night (e.g. better attention, problem-solving).
Major employers whose businesses require nightshifts are aware that productivity is lower at night, even in well-lit environments, and errors and accidents more common:
External Quote:
Although necessary, night shifts are inherently less productive by at least five per cent... The risk of injury is also elevated by as much as 30 per cent.
"Night shifts: Are they safe?",
Canadian Occupational Safety, Dave Rebbitt, 13 March 2014.
[Added later: At least one study finds an association between UFO reports and night-time, in addition a correlation between "intense" (unusually detailed or strange) UFO reports and times when subjects would usually be asleep, or are sleep-deprived, has been found:
External Quote:
The UFO experiences of Ss in the intense group were more frequently sleep-related than the experiences of Ss in the nonintense group.
Close Encounters: An Examination of UFO Experiences, Spanos, N.P., Cross, P.A., Dickson, K., DuBreuil, S.C., 1993,
Journal of Abnormal Psychology 102 (4),
PDF attached below.]
Cameras and low-light optics don't have circadian rhythms, but there have been a number of examples discussed on this forum of their imaging being misinterpreted.
I'd bring several Gen 3 NVG with tripod
Yes, stable mounts would be essential, preferably with a reliable mechanism for checking direction and elevation of view
(and the instrument properly "zeroed" to the mount).
I'm sure the Skywatchers won't want a result like the one discussed here,
Twitter "Crazy UAP" Atlantic City - [Long Exposure and Camera Motion on Tracking Head]
Without pre-judging any future Skywatch results too much, I am a bit sceptical of their operating philosophy if it involves "summoning" or "psionics", the latter clearly a pseudoscientific (or just plain science fiction) term that Jake Barber uses:
External Quote:
Ross Coulthart: "And so how did the object come to land?"
Jake Barber: "I think it was invited to land by the Psyonix team."
Ross Coulthart: "Jake says his mission that night came from no accidental crash. The UAP was summoned by a separate team. A special team with special abilities. They're called psionics. What is a psionic?"
Jake Barber: "A psionic, person is someone with the predisposition for, astral. Temporal. You could say abilities and sensitivities. Extra temporal abilities. Also known as psychic powers."
News Nation, "Full Interview: Whistleblower Jake Barber", approx. 19:49 into video, posted by
@Nemon here, text courtesy of
@NorCal Dave here.
External Quote:
In American science fiction of the 1950s and '60s, psionics was a proposed discipline that applied principles of engineering (especially electronics) to the study (and employment) of paranormal or psychic phenomena, such as extrasensory perception, telepathy and psychokinesis. The term is a blend word of psi (in the sense of "psychic phenomena") and the -onics from electronics. The word "psionics" began as, and always remained, a term of art within the science fiction community and —despite the promotional efforts of editor John W. Campbell, Jr.— it never achieved general currency, even among academic parapsychologists. In the years after the term was coined in 1951, it became increasingly evident that no scientific evidence supports the existence of "psionic" abilities.
"Psionics", Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psionics
It is unclear how "summoning" or "psionic action" are different from "wishing" or "wanting" (although Barber's explanation might mean "wishing by certain special people").
It is not clear why the genes for such an astonishingly powerful ability haven't proliferated throughout the population, in the same way that mutations for lactose persistence have spread in some communities/ regions in just a few thousand years.
There is no reliable, testable and repeatable evidence for "psy" phenomena of any sort.
There is much, sometimes incontrovertible evidence that some of those claiming to have psychic powers are hoaxers.
We have no convincing evidence, of
any sort, that any form of extraterrestrial life exists (although many scientists think it might).
There is no testable evidence whatsoever that Earth is, or ever has been, visited by vehicles/ intelligences from elsewhere.
Summoners and psionics (noun) are presumably free to demonstrate their claimed abilities at any time.
Can they attract a rare bird to their bird table? Are they more successful at hailing taxis? Is an attractive stranger more likely to come over and talk to them? (My late Dad clearly believed that shouting at the TV encouraged "his" horse to speed up...)
If something unpleasant happens and phone services aren't available, are these people more likely to get the attention of the emergency services (or the power or telephone company, or a breakdown service truck) than the rest of us?
If they can summon an alien spacecraft, can they summon a Search And Rescue helicopter?
Despite a rather obvious lack of evidence for any of these abilities, which would seem useful in the world we live in, advocates of summoning/ psionics believe that some people can attract vehicles (of a type for which no robust evidence exists) piloted by extraterrestrials (of whom no evidence exists beyond highly questionable anecdotes).
Although interstellar flight of a functioning artefact would appear to be a difficult undertaking, to put it mildly, and the investment required probably very large, the hypothetical mission director(s)/ crew of the hypothetical craft are willing, or compelled, to interrupt whatever they're doing to abide by the wishes of a small group of people (who nevertheless have failed, thus far, to provide any testable evidence of ever accomplishing any such thing).
As well as being an unlikely scenario -and I hope this is allowed re. our politeness policy- it does seem to be a bit conceited.
There must be lots of people, including many relevant scientists, who would love to see an alien spacecraft if one exists.
There are millions of people in real need who might benefit from selling their story, and the clear evidence they've captured...
And who knows what impact an unambiguous, demonstrable sighting of an ETI craft might have on some of our statesmen.
Instead, this privilege, at bit like the enlightenment promised by some groups in the 60's and 70's, is granted to a minority of believers, witnessing the results of their guru's connection to The Other.
Maybe I'm taking this a bit too seriously.
Will the next Skywatch result in strange things being in the sky? I predict yes.
Will there be clear, incontestable footage of exotic flying craft? I suspect not, whatever preparations the watchers have made.
Will the experience alter the beliefs of the Skywatchers? Probably not; they (or at least the organizers) believe Earth is being visited by ETI, and pretty much anything in the sky that they can't immediately identify will be used to reinforce that belief; conversely lack of anomalous sightings will not diminish that belief. And they'll all probably have a nice time.
Will the Skywatchers collect objective, convincing evidence demonstrating that Earth is being visited by extraterrestrial craft?
...maybe not
next time they try. Or in the next 5 years. or 10. But that's just my supposition, and I'm a grumpy old sceptic.
Incidentally, Barber seems to claim to have suffered physical harm from his proximity to an alien craft, enough to gain the interest of immunologist and UFO enthusiast Garry Nolan; although not directly connected to Barber's account, Luis Elizondo is in no doubt about the dangers UAP present:
Two colleagues in particular were under medical care for both cutaneous and visceral injuries that were sustained from interactions with UAP while working with AAWSAP/AATIP, and we had numerous reports of negative biological effects associated with UAP encounters, especially orbs. The injuries sustained seemed to stem from some sort of directed-energy exposure, almost like radiation. Unfortunately, multiple members of our team (excluding myself) experienced severe biological effects resulting in life-threatening medical issues. These biological effects also extended to their family members, including their children. While I am not able to go into details here, I learned of military servicemen and intelligence officers who succumbed to their injuries and lost their lives due to the biological effects of UAP encounters.
-Luis Elizondo,
Imminent, originally quoted by Mick West
here in the Elizondo's Orbs thread; my emphases.
Luis claims that members of his team were critically injured from encounters with UAP using directed energy weapons; servicemen have been killed by UAP "encounters". Children of members of his team have been similarly injured.
Are the Skywatch organizers suitably insured? Have they drawn the attention of potential future participants to the risks?
What precautions will they take? Good qualified paramedic crews aren't cheap.
The Skywatcher post on X/ Twitter shared by
@Dave Beaty in post #83 carries no warning for prospective hosts of a future Skywatch event about the dangers that they, their guests, employees etc. might face.
It's almost as if Skywatch don't take these things seriously...
Edited: "...his egg" changed to "...an alien craft" re.
@Dave Beaty's post below.
Much to the horror of everyone alive.
