NUFORC Sighting 55308

Occurred: 1992-10-13 17:20 Local
Reported: 2007-02-16 19:33 Pacific
Duration: 20. Min
No of observers: 2

Location: Death Valley, CA, USA

Shape: Triangle
Characteristics: Lights on object, Emitted other objects

Large Black Triangle emits flares, watched for over 20 min. Very ironic circumstances

1992 Post-SETI UFO Event, Death Valley October 13th 1992
Time: 5:20-6:pm Viewer Location: Lat 36° 37' N Lon 117° 6' W
Viewer Elevation: 0ft (possibly below Sea Level)
Estimated Object Location: Lat 36° 33’56.74 N Lon 117° 6'33.25 W
View Direction: South toward mountain
Elevation 3100-4000ft
Death Valley National Monument Tucki Mountain. (5200 Ft)
Visible Mountain Altitude (from view position): 4530ft (aprox.)
Estimated Distance from Object: 3.25 Miles
Features: Dark or Black triangular object. Lights on leading edge (possibly colored).
Estimated Speed: 10-20 MPH
Other: 2 flairs came out of the trailing side 3-5 seconds apart. No flair smoke dicernable. Phosphor-type bright, slightly variable, seems electrical, not pyro tech.

Viewed for approximatly 20-30 min.

2 Viewers, only 1 other person within area, but seemed unaware (sleeping on park picnic table) We did not attempt to query the person.

Story: This is one of the most ironic and amazing stories I have even heard of. It demonstrates the very reasons I have not reported events to UFO center sites, besides the fact that I would want to do illustrations and 3D simulations to show .

In 1992 NASA’s HRMS, High Resolution Microwave Survey, is launched at Goldstone Observatory outside Barstow, California and at the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico. As I had a colleague doing art for them and was soon to be working with SETI and was also involved with NASA and the other astronomical organizations I was able to get my wife ((name deleted)) and myself invited to the Barstow event and the Goldstone ceremony. I knew a few people there and a few astronomers I had worked with as well as a couple artist friends. I felt an outsider most of the time not being able to afford the dinners and hotel events. I borrowed a friends 8mm video camera and had my own SLR and lots of film, so spent most my time shooting the event. I was able to meet Carl Sagan and was able to shake his hand and thank him personally for his work in educating myself and the public so beautifully with the PBS Cosmos series. Just a few minuets with him though.

We where bused into Goldstone on the military base for the ceremony where I shot film and video of all I could. We had a great time participating in the historic event and got photos of Carl, friends and other dignitaries. It was a good event and history in the making. When it was over we just wanted to go relax somewhere.

As was our tradition at the time, when we are down that far south we always try go through or stay a night in Death Valley, a favorite place to this day, having spent much time there hiking and camping as well as exploring through college and after. My wife and I spent two weeks just below the monument for our honeymoon in 1980 and I had done several road trips and backpacking high in the mountains in the seventies. So we where very comfortable in this desolate beauty and powerful nature spot.

We arrived in the monument from our Barstow hotel in the late afternoon. Not wanting to miss a shot at a sunset session there, we went to the sand dunes directly, grabbed our day-packs and photographic bags and a borrowed Hi8 video cam and ran (walked fast) out to the deep dunes.

As we walked, my wife and I where having an argument probably due to our depleted neurochemistry from erratic sleep, road-food and stress. As we stood 10 feet apart and speaking loudly at each other, about nothing I remember, all of a sudden a bright light in the sky over ((deleted--wife)) drew my attention. I was facing mountain Tucki Mountain looking south across the Panamint Mt. range The range was had mountains as high as up to 11000ft. This Tucki Mt. was over 5000 ft. I know because by that time in my life I had climbed Telescope Peak there (11049 ft.) in 1976 and had hiked the valley many times, so was familiar with the distances and geography first hand.

As I looked at the light I noticed it was like a super bright flare slowly arching down from what looked like a massive black triangle 70% oblique to me. I estimated it was close to the mountains and probably we where at or below sea level, observed the object at about 4000ft I estimated. I yelled at my wife to look!, thinking she missed the "spark," but as she turned, another bright spark came out of the craft and flew slowly down and out. What we where left with was a view of this seemingly football-field sized or larger black triangular shape with what I remember was maybe many colored lights on what looked like the leading edge. It was moving slowly, silently and deliberately northward along the range.

By that time it was dusk heading for twilight and the light was going. I had film with ASA rated for daylight but attempted to get a shot after a few minuets of checking ourselves and confirming we where seeing the same thing. I could not get any exposure, shot some blanks on the off chance they would show, but no luck. The Hi8mm cam I had could not even show an image it was so dark. In retrospect I could have narrated a detailed description on video. I did not think over the ontological terror of seeing such a thing at the time.

So we stood in the sand dunes for about 20-30 minuets watching as the object slowly moving north along the mountain range until we lost sight of it in the extinction, haze and darkness. Our legs where like rubber and we where very excited and a bit concerned for our safety as we thought we where totally alone in the vast valley. So we made our way deliberately to our car parked a mile back through the dunes. As we reached the parking area we noticed a motorcycle had come while we where gone and parked with its owner sleeping on top of one of the few picnic tables. I was too spooked and in too much of a hurry to wake the person and ask him if he saw anything or warn him of the possible danger we felt. We headed rapidly for the Stove Pipe Wells campgrounds with our heads rotating 360 for any other sights.

Later at home, I referenced topographic and standard maps of the area and noticed that just the other side of the range but several air miles south from Tucki Mountain was the military test range China Lake Navel Weapons Testing Range. So the military is all over the place down there.

So although I had no visual record of the event we experienced, we had solid memory as you might imagine. This is the first time I have written about this. I have told some friends, but that is all. I am producing a documentary segment for the event in 3D high resolution animations. I also have a Google Earth KMZ file showing the site. Much more research also on file.

So who would believe such a story? An artist, a Sci-Fi fan and lifetime UFO interested person coming from a SETI event? Not a chance. I could have physical evidence and people would just laugh. I would probably not blame them either.

Posted 2007-02-24