Spooky UFO Encounter In Rural Georgia

UFO investigators are checking out what may someday be called the Mystery at Booger Bottom. That's the unlikely name of a town in Georgia where there was a close encounter of the second kind.

In early May, a 50-year-old man, his brother, and his 73-year-old sister-in-law were driving in an SUV through Booger Bottom on their way home to Warm Springs, Georgia. While the car was moving, a red swirling object appeared outside the SUV on the driver's side. Then about 50 round, red objects, all solid lights that were the size of silver dollars, appeared inside the vehicle and scanned the three occupants, reports The Associated Press and The Atlanta Journal Constitution. The lights then vanished. The woman called the police. She called the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. They didn't want to hear her tale.

But Olivia Newton and Jim Clifford, UFO investigators with the Mutual UFO Network of Georgia, agreed to listen. AP is quick to point out that the two have seen enough pranks and publicity seekers in their time to be able to discern the difference between a joke and the real thing. This one got their attention. As AP says, "They listen to the stories no one else will hear and then they try to find an explanation."

Speaking of the trio that saw these mysterious red lights in their SUV, Newton told AP, "They all said it was not of this world. They felt it was intelligent. They felt they had sought them out for the sole purpose of scanning them. Scan. That was the word they used."

While Newton may be the first to admit she believes in UFOs, she is also the first to say that many extraordinary experiences actually have a reasonable cause. Exhibit A: Many people look up in the night sky and mistake the planet Venus for a spaceship. But this Booger Bottom story was unique. And the three witnesses all seemed quite reputable; there was no reason to doubt their account.

Newton told AP that the woman was quite concerned whatever it was would come back. "She said, 'I've got to know what this is. Are they coming back after us? What if they cart us off?"' Newton said. "We watch for body language, any discrepancies. They looked at us right in the eye and were very forthright. They said, 'Surely you have heard of this before.'" Uh, no.

And Newton and Clifford still don't know what it was. There was nothing in the vicinity that might have reflected the light--trains, airplanes, nearby houses. Since the SUV was traveling about 35 mph when the incident occurred, pranksters flashing red pointer lights have also been ruled out.

IS there something going on out there? UFO researcher George Filer told Wireless Flash that while the number of UFO sightings nationwide has been fairly consistent for several months, some most unusual encounters were reported in May:

Winnebago, Wisconsin: Residents reported seeing what looked like three flying Spaghettios hovering over Lake Winnebago on May 15 and May 20.

Northridge, California: A trio of flying green cigars was spotted running amuck on May 7.

Rural Ohio: A group of 30 stick figures, each about 3-feet-tall, broke up a wild party. http://channels.netscape.com/ns/atplay/package.jsp?name=fte/ufoencounter/ufoencounter

ufos are real