The LAPIS Posse are happy to report that last month's UFO Data conference more than lived up to our expectations. We had a fantastic weekend and would like to thank all those involved with organising the event - we know what hard work it is. Thanks also to the bar staff for giving us an impromptu ghost tour around the hotel!
Read a full review of the conference from our friends at BUFOG.
Monday, 10 November 2008
Tuesday, 9 September 2008
UFODATA UFO Conference (UK)
It’s nearly the time of year when we, the Lancashire Posse, descend upon Yorkshire for a reet gradely weekend in uptown Pontefract. Yes, the UFODATA conference is nearly upon us and we are more excited than ever this year!
Tickets can be purchased from UFODATA's website.
Here is the great lineup...
UFO DATA MAGAZINE
ANNUAL CONFERENCE
‘CLOSE ENCOUNTERS’
PARKSIDE HOTEL, PONTEFRACT, WEST YORKSHIRE
25th & 26th OCTOBER, 2008
CONFERENCE LINE-UP
Saturday 25th October.
Doors open 9.00 am
10.00-10.15: Introduction.
10.15-11.15: Rosalind Reynolds
Rosalind Reynolds had her abduction experience in September 1983. Rarely has she spoken about these events in public. Her presentation will not only deal with the events in question, but the aftermath and how to deal with such experiences.
11.15-11.45: Coffee Break
11.45-12.45 Kevin Goodman
Kevin is the author of UFO Warminster-Cradle of Contact. Kevin’s presentation will feature the UFO events around the small Wiltshire town of Warminster along with his own experiences.
12.45-13.45: Lunch
13.45-14.30: Alan Turner MBE
Wing Commander Alan Turner (RAF retired) was a career RAF officer. Here he speaks in public for the very first time detailing his observations of numerous UFOs on several military radar systems while on active service at RAF Sopley in l971.
14.30-15.oo: Coffee Break
15.00-16.00: Russel Callaghan.
Russell is the co-editor of UFO DATA Magazine and his presentation will concentrate on the various UFO reports, video clips etc that have come across his desk over the last 12 months.
16.00-16.30: Coffee Break
16.30-18.00: Dr Roberto Pinotti
Speaking in the UK for the very first time since 1980 is one of Italy’s foremost UFO researchers. An international lecturer, author and broadcaster he is the head of the C.U.N. organisation in Italy. Dr Pinotti will be sharing highlights of his long standing research into the UFO subject.
20.00: Meet the speakers buffet (Ticket holders only)
10.00-10.15: Introduction.
10.15-11.15: Rosalind Reynolds
Rosalind Reynolds had her abduction experience in September 1983. Rarely has she spoken about these events in public. Her presentation will not only deal with the events in question, but the aftermath and how to deal with such experiences.
11.15-11.45: Coffee Break
11.45-12.45 Kevin Goodman
Kevin is the author of UFO Warminster-Cradle of Contact. Kevin’s presentation will feature the UFO events around the small Wiltshire town of Warminster along with his own experiences.
12.45-13.45: Lunch
13.45-14.30: Alan Turner MBE
Wing Commander Alan Turner (RAF retired) was a career RAF officer. Here he speaks in public for the very first time detailing his observations of numerous UFOs on several military radar systems while on active service at RAF Sopley in l971.
14.30-15.oo: Coffee Break
15.00-16.00: Russel Callaghan.
Russell is the co-editor of UFO DATA Magazine and his presentation will concentrate on the various UFO reports, video clips etc that have come across his desk over the last 12 months.
16.00-16.30: Coffee Break
16.30-18.00: Dr Roberto Pinotti
Speaking in the UK for the very first time since 1980 is one of Italy’s foremost UFO researchers. An international lecturer, author and broadcaster he is the head of the C.U.N. organisation in Italy. Dr Pinotti will be sharing highlights of his long standing research into the UFO subject.
20.00: Meet the speakers buffet (Ticket holders only)
Sunday 26th October.
Doors open 9.00 am.
10.00-10.15: Introduction
10.15-11.15: Brian Allan
Brian is one of Scotland’s leading UFO & Paranormal researchers. An established lecture and author. In this fascinating presentation entitled, 'The Hole in The Sky', paranormal investigator, Brian Allan, presents evidence that there a number of 'portals' and 'window areas' both here in the UK and in the USA.
. 11.15-11.45: Coffee Break
11.45-12.45: Peter McCue
Peter McCue is a retired clinical psychologist who lives in Scotland. He has a Ph.D. based on research into the nature of hypnosis. In his talk, Peter will offer a critical appraisal of the way in which sceptics and debunkers deal with UFO cases and related anomalies.
12.45-13.45: Lunch
13.45-14.45: Gary Heseltine
Gary is co-editor of UFO DATA Magazine. He is a Detective Constable with the British Transport Police. Gary’s presentation will feature close encounter cases by UK police officers.
14.45-15.15: Coffee Break
15.15-16.15: Andrew Russell
Andy has been researching UFOs for the past 18 years and has had numerous sightings himself. His current research is using the Freedom of Information Act to elicit information from the MoD and is researching the abundance of sightings around South Wales and the Bristol Channel. He is a clinical hypnotherapist/psychotherapist and has helped abductees regain hidden memories of their experiences.
His presentation follows the use of the FOIA to gain information on UFOs, the way the MoD bends the rules to not reveal information, the "two-track" system of information regarding UFOs within the MoD and finishes with the UFO activity within the South Wales and Bristol Channel area.
16.15-16.45: Coffee Break
16.45-18.15: Haktan Akdogan.
Speaking in the UK for the very first time is Haktan Akdogan. Haktan is Turkey’s leading UFO researcher. He is an international lecturer, writer and broadcaster on the UFO subject. Haktan will be sharing many new UFO cases and video film all of which are discussed in the UK here for the very first time.
NB: All speakers will take questions from the audience at the end of each presentation. There is an opportunity to meet a chat socially with many of our speakers on Saturday evening at our buffet (tickets holders only). Please be aware that there is no recording or filming permitted during any of the presentations.
Refreshments will be available throughout the day and you are advised to order your lunch well in advance if you intend on dining at the Parkside Hotel. If you require any further details on any aspects on the conference please do not hesitate to contact us at: conf@ufodata.co.uk or via the other contacts details on the UFO DATA web site: www.ufodata.co.uk
The conference organisers reserve the right to change the time of presentations and speakers without prior notification.
UFO DATA MAGAZINE,
PO BOX 280,
LEEDS,
WEST YORKSHIRE,
LS26 1AN
WE UNDERSTAND THAT SPACE IS LIMITED AND TICKETS ARE SELLING FAST SO WE URGE YOU TO BOOK WITHOUT DELAY TO GUARANTEE YOUR SEATS!
Wednesday, 18 June 2008
Wiltshire Crop Circle
The Times today reports that a cop circle which appeared in a barley field earlier this month has been identified as depicting a fundamental mathematical symbol. It was identified by retired astrophysicist Mike Reed, (didn't he used to be a DJ?!) who contacted crop circle researcher Lucy Pringle. Pringle said of the phenomenon: “This is an astounding development — it is a seminal event.”
Full story at http://http//www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article4160477.ece
Full story at http://http//www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article4160477.ece
Wednesday, 23 April 2008
UFO Spotted in St Annes
On the 14th of April a strange craft was spotted in St Annes. It's timing was interesting to say the least as it chose to appear straight after a meeting of the New Horizons group, where David Boyle had been chanelling energy in an attempt to contact beings from another world.
The sighting was reported by Steven Morris among others. Now we at LAPIS know Steve and it's always nice to hear of a report by someone you know. For a start it proves they really exist and can even be contacted to comment on their report - not like the reports by a friend of a friend's uncle's milkman and such like. Also it's a lot easier to evaluate a report if you know the people involved. Joseph Dormer, who is a good friend of ours, always stresses the importance of primary source evidence - and he's right.
But what about the timing? That depends on your point of view. It could be that David's chanelling was a great sucess and the craft was summoned by him and was indeed from another world. On the other hand it could be that after spending time at such an event the observers were half expecting to see something strange in the sky and so misidentified a plane or other object. (The area is on the flight path to Blackpool airport and it has been established that a plane from Palma was due in.)
Of course there should be no shame in making a mistake and reporting as unidentified something that turns out to be mundane. We have had our moments at LAPIS. For instance a couple of years ago during an overnight skywatch at Ribblehead we briefly thought we had spotted a stange new sight in the heavens, only to have our hopes dashed as we realised it was the Pleiades, minus the light pollution we are used to.
The report in the local paper touched on quite a few cases in the area and even included a quote from Nick Pope! However they claimed that other than the St Annes sighting there have been no other reports recently. Now this simply isn't true and we had in fact sent the paper details of some very recent reports which they chose not to include. A letter has been despatched correcting this but will they publish it ... ? The plot thickens!
The sighting was reported by Steven Morris among others. Now we at LAPIS know Steve and it's always nice to hear of a report by someone you know. For a start it proves they really exist and can even be contacted to comment on their report - not like the reports by a friend of a friend's uncle's milkman and such like. Also it's a lot easier to evaluate a report if you know the people involved. Joseph Dormer, who is a good friend of ours, always stresses the importance of primary source evidence - and he's right.
But what about the timing? That depends on your point of view. It could be that David's chanelling was a great sucess and the craft was summoned by him and was indeed from another world. On the other hand it could be that after spending time at such an event the observers were half expecting to see something strange in the sky and so misidentified a plane or other object. (The area is on the flight path to Blackpool airport and it has been established that a plane from Palma was due in.)
Of course there should be no shame in making a mistake and reporting as unidentified something that turns out to be mundane. We have had our moments at LAPIS. For instance a couple of years ago during an overnight skywatch at Ribblehead we briefly thought we had spotted a stange new sight in the heavens, only to have our hopes dashed as we realised it was the Pleiades, minus the light pollution we are used to.
The report in the local paper touched on quite a few cases in the area and even included a quote from Nick Pope! However they claimed that other than the St Annes sighting there have been no other reports recently. Now this simply isn't true and we had in fact sent the paper details of some very recent reports which they chose not to include. A letter has been despatched correcting this but will they publish it ... ? The plot thickens!
Sunday, 6 April 2008
Probe Conference Review
Last Saturday, the 29th of March was the first day of the Probe conference in St Annes. This is an event that we in LAPIS always look forward to as not only is it always a very interesting weekend, it is also the first conference of the year that we attend.
As usual the conference room was a hive of activity well before the start of proceedings. For us the day started with an unusual event, in that John arrived well ahead of schedule. Very strange.
As usual the conference room was a hive of activity well before the start of proceedings. For us the day started with an unusual event, in that John arrived well ahead of schedule. Very strange.
The first speaker of the day was Dr Jeff Merrifield, who delievered a fascinating lecture about Damanhur, in Italy. This is an extraordinary spiritual and artistic community which began around 30 years ago when a group of people started to dig into the mountainside. Over the years they have created an awe inspiring underground complex, known as The Temples of Humankind. The community is based upon spitiual and ethical values and is a United Nations award winning sustainable community.
Dr Merrifield said that while tourists as such are not allowed into Damanhur, access is given to those who are seeking a deeper experience.
After a short break it was time for the second speaker. David Cayton, a LAPIS favorite, assisted by Robert Hulse, was dealing with the somewhat gruesome subject of animal mutilations. This is an area which, probably due to it's unpleasant nature, is often neglected at conferences and Sam and Jean are to be commended for not shying away from the subject.
David is a meticulous researcher who gave an informative and well illustrated talk. He discussed the fact that a frequent feature of multilations is a very rapid decomposition of the carcass, or in some case, no decomposition. There is also a lack of the usual subsequent predation. Farmers have been aware of muitlations since the 1950s and it is a worldwide phenomena.
As for who or what is responsible for the mutilations, David belives that the theory of them being carried out by satanic cults does not stand up to scrutiny and that they are the work of something from outside this planet.
One of the most enjoyable things about attending a conference is the chance to meet up with old freinds, make new ones, and enjoy face to face discussions with like minded people. With this in mind, and with five speakers on each day resulting in shorter breaks, something had to give. We decided to give Matthew Delooze's talk a miss and spent an enjoyable hour chatting to friends old and new.
In his talk the following day, David Boyle spoke highly of Matthew's presentation.
Next up was Jeff Moran whose exciting talk kept everyone awake and for part of the presentation, literally, on their feet. Jeff works in the education system and his talk which was entitled "Getting into the Zone" touched on the subject of right and left brain functions.
Neil Hague was the final speaker of the day and coincidentaly he was also discussing brain function. Neil suggested that some experiences that may be thought of as paranoramal may be from the inner world rather than the outer one and that visions and imagination can shape reality and vice versa.
After Neil's talk it was time to head off for a curry at Gemma just up the road and then go for a few pints in the pub. It was possibly due to the latter that Maureen was the only one of our group to arrive early on the Sunday, with the rest of us getting there just as the first speaker, Neil Mortimer, was begining his talk.
Neil has investigated many well known ufo cases in the past. He then developed a chanelling ability and increased psychic awareness. In his talk he discussed the Ilkley Moor plateau, which is a window area for UFO and paranormal events. This is an area which has been of interest in the past to the Feemasons and to occult groups. The area can be equated to a mythical "Land of the Dragon" referred to in an old manuscript which was re-discovered in the mid 90's. It is also the location for several stone circles and Neil believes that there is a solid artefact between these circles that will be located in the next few years.
The next talk was given by Nathan Sarea, who gave a lively presentation and encouraged plently of audience participation. He shared his belief in the power of human beings and that the language we use forms our reality.
A quick trip downstairs to get a coffee to aid recovery from the previous night gained added significance when I tiptoed in to the start of Frank Willis's lecture. He was in the process of telling the audience that the vast majoirty of us are drug users as we consume alcohol, caffeine and tobacco. (At least I don't smoke!).
Frank pointed out that there are vastly more deaths from alcohol then from illegal drugs and stated that in his view the illegality of drugs such as cannabis and ecstasy has more to do with political sensibilites that with health concerns.
He stressed that he was not advocating the use of drugs, but the education of society as to what is really going on.
The next speaker was Richard Lawrence who gave an informative talk about the Aetherius Society. He first came across the Aetherius Society in 1971 while a student at Hull University, and later met the Society's Founder/President, Dr George King. Richard made it clear that the society is not a cult and that he was not asking the audience to take his word, but to investigate his claims.
The final speaker of the day and of the conference was David Boyle. For those who have not met him David is a man with vast amounts of information and an infectious desire to share it. Luckily he also has boundless energy and a talent for business which is enabling him to reach new audiences through his conspiracies exhibition on the seafront in Blackpool.
His whirlwind talk touched on governments, religion and the media, creation stories, crop circles, pyramids, Avebury and more. When he was given the "five minutes left" signal by Sam, a disapointed David told the audience he had only got through a small perecntage of the information he had to share.
I can't possibly do his talk justice here but do visit his website, buy his books and DVDs and if you can get to sunny Blackpool, visit the exhibition and maybe you will meet the man himself!
So that was the Spring 2008 Probe Conference. Many thanks to Sam and Jean for all their hard work organising what was a fascinating weekend. The next Probe event is in October, but the next UFO and Paranormal event at the YMCA in St Annes is none other than the LAPIS Conference on the 14th of June. Come along and have a day at the seaside, and we'll give you a FREE DVD as well.
Friday, 28 March 2008
Probe Conference - Spring 2008
It's that time of year again and in the morning the usual suspects will be off to the biannual Probe Conference at the YMCA, St Annes. The conference will no doubt prove to be very interesting and we'll post a review next week.
The YMCA in St Annes is of course the same venue as the LAPIS 2008 UFO & Paranormal Conference which will take place on 14th June 2008. Well worth a trip!
The YMCA in St Annes is of course the same venue as the LAPIS 2008 UFO & Paranormal Conference which will take place on 14th June 2008. Well worth a trip!
4th Speaker Announced For LAPIS 2008 UFO Conference
LAPIS is pleased to announce that Mike Hallowell has completed the line up of speakers for the 2008 LAPIS UFO Conference. Mike spoke at our 2006 conference and was so well received that we asked him back!
Mike is a full-time writer and paranormal researcher. He takes care of scary business by investigating ghosts, poltergeists, UFO sightings and anything that scares the bejabbers out of most people. He says that earning a living by visiting haunted pubs and castles is as good as it gets!
He will talk about the incredible South Shields Poltergeist case. This is the true story of one of the world’s most terrifying cases of poltergeist infestation where one invisible entity went on a mission to cause terror.
In December 2005, a South Tyneside family were attacked by a violent poltergeist. Now, for the first time, one of the researchers who confronted it will tell the full shocking story. This may well be the most terrifying account of a supernatural encounter that you will ever hear and definitely one that you will never forget.
Below is a You Tube video detailing some other amazing poltergeist cases.
Mike is a full-time writer and paranormal researcher. He takes care of scary business by investigating ghosts, poltergeists, UFO sightings and anything that scares the bejabbers out of most people. He says that earning a living by visiting haunted pubs and castles is as good as it gets!
He will talk about the incredible South Shields Poltergeist case. This is the true story of one of the world’s most terrifying cases of poltergeist infestation where one invisible entity went on a mission to cause terror.
In December 2005, a South Tyneside family were attacked by a violent poltergeist. Now, for the first time, one of the researchers who confronted it will tell the full shocking story. This may well be the most terrifying account of a supernatural encounter that you will ever hear and definitely one that you will never forget.
Below is a You Tube video detailing some other amazing poltergeist cases.
Wednesday, 12 March 2008
Turkish UFOs
Interesting report in the Turkish media by Fazile Zahir...
"The sighting of a UFO this week has excited the Turkish media with pictures appearing in both tabloid style and more serious broadsheet papers this week. The flying object was spotted in the Karaköprü area of Şanlıurfa province towards 4am on Wednesday morning. Filmed by an amateur videographer the strangely glowing hexagonal ball of light hovered in the sky emitting red, green and white lights and moved both fast and erratically. After fifteen minutes it disappeared without a trace. As of yet no official explanation has been offered as to what it might be although internet comments vary between lauding a genuine sighting of a ‘Green Fireball’ phenomenon, non believers claiming the object is just a star filmed under magnification and the more cynical believing that these are American spy planes monitoring Turkey’s border with Syria.
This is not the first instance of a UFO sighting in Turkey. They occur regularly with recent ones in Konya in March 2007 in the early evening which lasted on and off for a week and İstanbul on January 4th when people in the Yenibosna area of İstanbul saw a spinning circle with glowing white lights in the sky. The head of the Turkish Sirius UFO Space Sciences Research Centre Haktan Akdoğan claimed in August that in the last few months the number of sightings in Turkey, as in many other countries, has been increasing.
The largest concentration of sightings in Turkey and perhaps the best documented occurred between 2001 and 2002. This spate of sightings seem to have been triggered by the extraordinary events of June 7th 2001. Ten rural guardsmen from the village of Dondurmaz in Adıyaman province were watchmen for the night. All of them claimed to have seen a bright light in the shape of a large circular ‘tray’ the size of a house glowing in the sky. They watched as it flew off in the direction of Ulubaş mountain and then winked out of existence.
When the men reported to their commander their statements were taken seriously and the governor of Adıyaman province, Halil Işık, had them seperated and individually questioned. Not only did their accounts tally up but when asked to draw pictures of what they had seen all the sketches were uncannily similar. Mr. Işık felt the event was serious enough to send a report with the details to the Ministry of İnternal Affairs and also informed Haktan Akdoğan at the Sirius organisation. By the 13th of June in the same year Sabah newspaper was leading with the headline ‘Everyone searching for UFO’s’ in a story that detailed how in Uşak locals had stoned an alien, in Gaziantep the police had videoed a UFO and that people all over the country were phoning in reports of strange occurrences to their local jandarma.
The reports continued in a slightly hysterical atmosphere well into 2002 and included an event in Gebze on the 31st of May 2002 where a UFO was visible and circling with projecting lights for over an hour. This was followed by Akşam newspaper printing the story on 1st June 2002 of Saffet Şap, an electronic technician from Beykoz, who managed to video a flying object like a black bug with seven or eight legs. Later in the year on the 9th of November Hürriyet newspaper ran the account of four commercial pilots from different planes who had all seen UFO’s in the same patch of sky on the same day at the same time.
Haktan Akdoğan of Sirius seems to be a recurring figure in Turkish UFO lore commenting freely on each event and insisting on the importance of Turkey to alien life. His motives however may not just be scientific, he is also the owner of the İstanbul UFO museum that opened in 2002 (riding on the back of these multiple UFO events) and any extra interest in aliens will also encourage punters through the door of his museum. He also runs the museum as a fairly successful franchise, of the six UFO museums in the world three are in Turkey (İstanbul, Denizli and Göreme in Cappadocia) and his website www.siriusufo.org advertises for further partners to open other UFO branch museums. İt is his clearly stated intention to open UFO museums all over Turkey to ‘further the knowledge of the Turkish people and to attract tourists’. His organisation provide all the necessary materials and installations so each museum is a de facto copy of the first. Whether they are lucrative or not is not mentioned but when the Göreme museum opened in 2006 Hürriyet newspaper reported that they had 5000 visitors in one month alone. Apparently it was especially popular with the Japanese.
Whether extra terrestials exist or not is much debated but recent advances in science make the chances seem more likely. Animals known as extremophiles thrive in earth environments previously thought not to have been able to sustain life. From microbes found living without oxygen in volcanic fissures two miles down in deep ocean trenches to water bears (aka tardigrades) that can survive temperatures from nearly absolute zero to 303ºF and even live in a vacuum like that found in space. These minute living things have upended the understanding of what is needed for the survival of life.
Previously scientists has worked on the assumption that both oxygen and liquid water were key factors in sustaining life but now it sems that these are only important to some types of life. The ‘rare earth’ theory is falling out of favour to be replaced with the idea that life is adaptable and that the question that needs to be asked is what kind of environment other than our own might sustain living things. The chances of intelligent life with the technology to communicate is slimmer, it is possible that such worlds have been and gone. İf life of this sort exists now they, like us would have the technology to recognise that earth is an ‘interesting’ planet and worth investigating. So why aren’t they here? Some would say they are and the report of flying objects above Karaköprü on Tuesday was a clear indication of just that."
Tuesday, 11 March 2008
MOD Opened A File On The Archway Lanterns
Original story from www.islingtongazette.co.uk
THE Ministry of Defence opened a file on the Archway UFO spottings [seen above from lapisufo's YouTube channel] - but decided against further inquiries as it did not deem the sighting a threat to national security.
Just over a year ago Archway ground to a halt as dozens of glowing lights were seen in the sky, causing widespread panic among residents.
Now the Islington Gazette can reveal that top level government agencies looked into the phenomenon - which many believe was nothing more than floating Chinese lanterns.
The Islington Gazette sent a Freedom of Information request to the Ministry demanding to see every document relating to the Archway incident, as well as a total cost of the investigation.
The MoD did not disclose the cost of its inquiries, but did release what it said was the only document relating to the phenomena they hold on file.
It is from an organisation called Contact International which reports seeing "12 to 15 orange balls of light that moved quickly, stopped, faded away or moved upwards". Names and contact details have been blanked out by the Ministry.
In response to our inquiries, a government official wrote: "The Ministry of Defence examines any reports of 'unidentified flying objects' to establish whether what was seen might have defence significance - namely whether the United Kingdom's airspace might have been compromised. To date no report has revealed such evidence. We believe that rational explanations such as aircraft lights could be found."
James Zafar, 40, a designer from Crouch End, saw the lights when collecting his daughter from Archway. He said: "It was worth them investigating because it was really weird. I know in my gut whatever we saw was not balloons. It just seems crazy they are not looking into it further. It could have been a potential threat from another country or anywhere."
And Paul Southcott, of the Islington-based UFO and Supernatural Studies Group, said: "I am not surprised they looked into it - it is their job to investigate these things.
"They have probably looked into it more deeply but the likes of us will never know. I think it is a load of rubbish that they only have one document on it, there would definitely be more than that."
He added: "We come up against brick walls like this the whole time when investigating UFOs - it is very frustrating."
But not all were so convinced. Writer and UFO sceptic Ian Ridpath said: "It seems to me fairly obvious they were balloons. Last summer I saw some of these balloons drift across the sky and I recognised them immediately from all the Archway videos.
"It is quite remarkable that even though someone admitted they had set them off from a party people who saw it still believe it was something else. They won't accept it because it would make them feel a bit silly.
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