Today in history - June 24th, 1947
Washingtonian Kenneth Arnold was the first to make a widely reported claim of a UFO sighting near Mt. Rainier, Washington, describing the sight that he saw as a flat saucer or disc shape with erratic flashing lights, which gave rise to the idea of alien spaceships being referred to as flying saucers.
Another publicized UFO sightings from the same time period was the Hopeh incident a few years earlier in Hopeh, China. An unidentified flying object was seen flying over the town and a photograph from the incident shows the typical flying saucer shape. Witnesses argued that the sighting could have been a hat or an oddly shaped bird in the sky.
The existence of extra-terrestrial life is a highly disputed matter. Perhaps it stems from a love of science-fiction, but I sincerely hope (and truly believe) that there is life on other planets. After all, isn't it a bit selfish to think that Earth is the only planet with intelligent life?
