Research In Russia
Many of Zigel's sighting cases come
from along the northern arctic rim of the Soviet Union, from isolated weather
stations. There appears to be a relatively high proportion of cases involving
crescent-shaped, glowing objects, which Zigel theorizes may be attributed to
the way the plasma around the object itself may appear from below. One such
crescent-shaped sighting measured an estimated 600 meters between the horns.
Among the sample of sightings made available
to APRO, one appears different enough from the usual run of sightings
elsewhere to merit describing in some detail. This concerns an object which
came in low, at great speed, over Lake Onega, 200 miles northeast of
Leningrad on April 27, 1961.
It hit the bank just above the ice and ploughed a furrow 27 meters long, 15
meters wide, and 3 meters deep through the frozen ground before continuing
its low trajectory and disappearing. The impact blasted the ice from near the shoreline,
throwing out huge chunks to the bank with a strange intensive green color on
their underside. Local residents, including a forest ranger, reported
no sound except that of impact when the object crashed into the bank.
Samples of the ice, on melting, left a
stringy fiber which later was analyzed by the Leningrad Technical Institute
where it was found to contain tiny quantities of magnesium, aluminum, barium,
silicone, and titanium. Tiny metal grains and fragments found on the lake bed
near the shore were analyzed and found to contain lithium, titanium, and
aluminum. Some turned out to be acid and highly temperature-resistant, but
none was radioactive.
Scientists who interviewed residents
of the nearby village reported agreement that the object was oval in shape,
about the size of a large passenger plane, and bluish-green in color. Other
scientists concluded that the object exhibited none of the characteristics of
a meteorite and left none of the after-effects associated with meteorites.
They concluded that the grains of metal were artificial in origin and ruled
out the possibility of any earth-made machine which could have crashed into a
frozen lake bank at such high speed and not be wrecked or at least shed some
fragment or part which could be identified. Zigel himself said that he was
tempted to assume that a space probe had scraped the ground but managed to
continue after presumably superficial damage. But he goes no further, and his
tentative answer appears to typify his conservatism and insistence upon
obtaining all possible scientific evidence before reaching for a conclusion.
reference: The APRO Bulletin, June
1976, p. 5, “UFO Research in Russia” by James D. White
With thanks to The J. Allen
Hynek Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS): http://www.cufos.org
for locating the document.
PRN – 89627
UFOCAT URN – NONE Felix Zigel, Unidentified Flying Objects
in the USSR, privately printed,
URN – 089627 The APRO Bulletin, June 1976, p. 5, “UFO Research In Russia” by
James D. White
UFOCAT URN – 091539 Xenolog
by SATCU of New Zealand, August 1976, p. 11
UFOCAT URN – 114092 UFO
Chronicles of the Soviet Union by Jacques Vallee, p. 137, © 1992
UFOCAT URN – 177003 *U* UFO
Computer Database by Larry Hatch, # 06051, © 2002
– Russia. Karelia
Lake Onega Latitude 61-30 N, Longitude 35.-45 E (D-M)
[Onezhskoye Ozero – Russian]
This reference: U.S.S.R.
Gazetteer, Vol. 5 O-R, Geographic Names Division, U.S. Army Topographic
Command, Washington, D.C., June 1970
Leningrad Latitude 59-53-40 N, Longitude 30-15-51
E (D-M-S) [St. Petersburg]
UFO Location (UFOCAT)
Latitude 62.03 N, Longitude 34.58 E (D.%)