Unexplained phenomenon: Google buzz has a UFO flip side

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http://www.examiner.com/x-504-Space-News-Examiner~y2009m9d5-Unexplained-phenomenon-Google-buzz-has-a-UFO-flip-side

Now its own hot click, the mystery Google UFO doodle and the search term 'unexplained phenomenon' are  bouncing around the internet like  pinballs in warp drive. The sudden popularity of the term and the new logo have sparked discussions about driving news via trends and a possible covert action to advertise the new sci-fi movie District 9.
Whether by coincidence or not, LiveScience is running a special feature: Top Ten Unexplained Phenomena. Coming in at #7 on their list: UFOs.
Which leads us to Buzz Aldrin, the Apollo moon landings, and fraudulent claims by UFOlogists that Aldrin reported a UFO during the the mission. Not only did he not see a UFO, he's pointed out that a video that appears to show him saying just that is a badly-edited fraud.
But the urban legend keeps cropping up, as UFO buffs cite the story repeatedly as established fact. In February, I reported how the UFO claim had been totally debunked. NASA Senior Scientist David Morrison debunks the claim, along with the face on Mars as a constructed artifact, in an article for the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI).
Here's the video that claims Aldrin reported a UFO.








But Morrison has the real story:

In an interview on the Science Channel..., Aldrin stated that he, Neil Armstrong, and Mike Collins saw unidentified objects that appeared to follow their Apollo spacecraft. To get the story straight, I called Buzz Aldrin, who was happy to explain what happened. He said that his remarks were taken out of context to reverse his meaning. It is true that the Apollo 11 crew spotted an unidentified object moving with the spacecraft as they approached the Moon.
After they verified that this mystery object was not Apollo 11’s large rocket upper stage, which was about 6,000 miles away by then, they concluded that they were seeing one of the small panels that had linked the spacecraft to the upper stage (any part of the spacecraft’s rocket upper stage will continue to move alongside the spacecraft, as both are floating in free-fall). These panels were too small to track from Earth and were relatively close to the Apollo spacecraft.
Aldrin told me that they chose not to discuss this on the open communications channel since they were concerned that their comments might be misinterpreted. His entire explanation about identifying the panels was cut from the broadcast interview, giving the impression that the Apollo 11 crew had seen a UFO.
Aldrin told me that he was angry about the deceptive editing and asked the Science Channel to correct the intentional twisting of his remarks, but they refused. Later, Aldrin explained what happened on CNN’s Larry King Live (left, bottom) but was nearly cut off by the host before he could finish.

So there you have it: no UFO reported by Aldrin on the Apollo 11 flight.
Exploring unexplained phenomena is intriquing, but it's about time that this UFO canard be placed in the "explained" category.
Image/Aldrin PR release


Now with all of the space flights and other launches into space ...don't you think someone would have

seen something.
hmmmmmmmm

Angry man slaps child at Walmart and is arrested

This just simply enrages me. How anyone can do that is just wrong. I feel sorry

I feel sorry that he felt like that was the only solution.





Story from the examiner here:



At a Walmart store near Atlanta, Georgia, Roger Stephens, 61 heard a crying 2 year old girl and walked up to the mother and allegedly said, “If you don’t shut the baby up, I will shut her up for you.”

A few moments later as the child continued to cry, Stephens grabbed the child and slapped her four times, then said to the mother, “See I told you I would shut her up.”

Roger Stephens was arrested Monday and charged with first-degree cruelty to children. According to the incident report, before he was arrested, Stephens apologized to the mother for striking the girl, CNN reported.

CNN video of the story

Oak Glen fire grows to 350-plus acres; no structures damaged so far

Andrew Edwards, Staff Writer
Posted: 08/30/2009 07:10:35 PM PDT

OAK GLEN - The brush fire that ignited Sunday afternoon has grown to more than 350 acres, threatening an unknown number of homes but so far no homes have been damaged.

Fire officials said there is no containment yet on the fire.

Calfire information officer Jason Meyer said Oak Glen's southern and southeastern neighborhoods are under a mandatory evacuation order.

An evacuation center has been set up at Yucaipa Community Center, 34900 Oak Glen Road. American Red Cross volunteer Teresa Sherwood said the center has enough food and sleeping space to accommodate 200 people.

The Oak Glen Fire started shortly before 1:40 p.m. Sunday in the brushy hillsides south of Oak Glen and Potato Canyon roads. Dried vegetation is fueling a blaze
A helicopter makes a water drop on flames in Oak Glen on Sunday. About 350 acres had burned in the Oak Glen Fire near Yucaipa. No injuries were reported and no structures burned as of 6 p.m. Sunday.

(Will Lester/Staff Photographer)

that has sent flames about 100 feet into the air.

Fire commanders have sent 41 engine companies to battle the Oak Glen Fire. Those firefighters are joined by the members of 18 hand crews. Five water tenders and three bulldozers have also been dispatched to the fire.

Firefighters have been supported from the sky by seven helitankers and eight air tankers. The airtankers include a Martin Mars water bomber and a DC-10 jet that carries a large volume of fire retardant.

This story courtesy of THE SUN

Just another great hot topic of the day. Hope you all had a great weekend.
Look for more exciting news events coming in the future.

Yours truly,
Brian "mediamerlin" Woodbridge