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Unidentified

I've been interested in Astronomy since as far back as I can remember. My hometown (in México) was so small that city lights were never a problem for stargazing. The sky at night looked unbelievably amazing and full of stars; so many that they seemed to be on different layers. Then the view of the Milky Way at midnight completed my day in a very special way.

I had a small Newtonian telescope at home and every time I could, I joined the guys of the Amateur Astronomers Club from the Alfa Planetarium (Monterrey, NL) that were in charge of the observatory that was located just a few kilometers from my hometown. I learned a lot from those guys. Needless to say, I always wanted to become an astronomer. But I did my research, interviewed a lot of people in the field and, for a long list of different reasons, I decided to leave that dream behind.

During my stargazing days, I had 2 very different views of the sky at night. The first view was from my telescope, which was limited to adjusting, positioning, experimenting with filters and looking at specific objects in the sky. Then there was the second one, which was the simple view of just sitting outside my house, listening to my favorite music without taking my eyes off the celestial objects above for about 3 hours.

But this second view of the sky allowed me to see objects that a lot of times I just couldn't identify. Some of them were fast flying objects moving in zigzag patterns going from one point to the other in just a few seconds. By the time I told anyone about it, the object was long gone.

One time, I saw 2 objects flying in front of the reflective light of the full moon, one behind the other, in what seemed to be a simple straight line path. The one flying in front suddenly disappeared and then the one flying behind just continued its course.

But I think the most impressive sighting that I had was in the company of my family. Although the objects seemed to be located at a very high altitude, one object in particular seemed a lot bigger compared to the others. The big object was leading the way and the small objects (about 8) to follow behind.

That said, and despite the fact that I don't have a Ph.D. (yet), I would like to mention a few things about myself:

- I learned a few things about satellites in my college years (took a lot of subjects in electronics and communications).

- I've seen a lot of meteors before.

- I have a fixation for military aircraft, so I have a pretty clear idea on how they look in the sky (day and night).

- And "Yes" I know when I am just looking at Venus.

I am not saying, in any way, that what I saw was a spaceship from another planet. An "Unidentified Flying Object" just means "Unidentified" in the literal sense of the word. However, a lot of people will quickly jump to judge you for saying even that.

I've read a lot of articles published by scientists criticizing people for saying that they saw a UFO. They love to insult my intelligence time and time again by generalizing. It seems easier for them to publicly say that everybody was just looking at Venus than to conduct any type of investigation at all. They seem to think that having a Ph.D. equals credibility, no matter how much nonsense they say.

On the other hand, the general public (never exposed to this field) sometimes have the preconceived notion that people interested in UFOs are just a group of crazy fanatics making outrageous claims. We owe this stereotype to the contribution of cults and the many so-called UFO investigators spreading unfounded stories and sensationalism for the sake of getting attention or a few bucks.

The mainstream media doesn't seem to help at all. Most of the time, I've seen cases being presented (related to this topic) that make my stomach turn. Aren't those people supposed to have some sort of degree in journalism? Haven't they done some "minimum" amount of research (that I thought was required) before presenting a case on national television? There are so many great cases out there that really deserve that air time. For some reason, sensationalist crap (in the endless drive for ratings) seems to rule the media world.

My sightings (among other things) were the main reason that I started a personal quest at an early age, with no other purpose than looking for some answers to something that seems to be far beyond complex and of which (in my opinion) we know "nothing" about. Shouldn't "the find for the truth" be a common goal? Most of the time that seems not the case among people involved in the UFO field.

You have no idea how much disappointment many people (so-called investigators) have brought into my life. Many times I've said: "That's it! I don't want to hear about this topic ever again." But I find it unfair to stop something that personally means so much to me just because of the existence of some egotistical idiots involved in this field.

But in spite of all that, I see a dim light at the end of the tunnel. There are still a few people out there from different generations struggling to survive in a field that has been contaminated with disinformation throughout the years. These people are honestly committed to objective research and spreading the word. They keep fighting against all odds and I've found their strength inspirational.


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