Whether or not aliens exist, Delaware and Maryland residents report UFOs all the time

Whether the government says so or not, Peter Davenport thinks he knows the truth: aliens do exist. He’s seen them and even has a website that documents UFO sightings, with data broken down by each state, he said.

Delaware has 294 reports of UFO sightings, compared to 1,300 for neighboring Maryland, according to the National UFO Reporting Center, a nonprofit based in Washington state.

Talk of UFOs and aliens has ramped up recently, and not just among Davenport and his followers.

The U.S. military is publicly investigating UFOs, and is due to issue a highly anticipated report to Congress June 25 on what it terms “unidentified aerial phenomenon.”

The New York Times was first to publish some details of the report on June 3.

Fighter pilots and stealth ships have reported strange objects off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts in recent years. According to the Times, the report will say the government has not found evidence that the objects were alien spacecraft. But the report also does not definitively say they weren’t, The New York Times and other media outlets have reported.

Meanwhile, thousands of other phenomena reported overhead remain a mystery, including in the skies above Delaware and Maryland. But many of those claims, some dating back to the 1950s, have been debunked. 

For example, the Pentagon received a report about a sighting by a family of three on May 24, 1957 near the military installation Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. The family had “seen something,” according to Fold3.com, a site that provides access to military records.

“Based on all the information obtained from this investigation, it appears certain that this sighting was caused by an experiment or test of certain types of flares by the U.S. Army and that they originated from Aberdeen Proving Ground, which is located near the subject sighting,” according to the website.

Two years later, there was a sighting on Oct. 15, 1959 at Dover Air Force Base.

The incident lasted 14 seconds and the report stated there was a “white fireball w/tail changing white to blue to blue-green. Tail was one to one and one-fourth inches long as measured by holding a pea at arm’s length.”

It was concluded that the sighting was “probably a meteor,” per the report from Fold3.com.

Project Blue Book is a federal program that assess the credibility and potential threat of unidentified flying objects. Hundreds of incidents from around the country are detailed and investigated on the site, many of them determined to be shooting stars, meteors, a planet or an airplane reflecting the light of the sun, a drone or even a paper lantern.

But even the nation’s top experts can’t explain away everything reported by those gazing at the night skies.

Thirteen alien stories from Delaware

There have been three UFO sightings in Delaware this year in Millville, Dover and Lewes, according to NUFORC. The latest was on May 5 in Dover, where a witness claimed to see a massive string of lights in the sky.  

Some of the more colorful reports on the website include this Wilmington sighting from 1949: “I was ascending a external staircase from our basement. Suddenly above me in the evening dark sky a very large, wide cylinder appeared.”

The NUFORC has a disclaimer on its site that it makes no claims to the validity of the information in any of its reports.

Most reports have been posted exactly as received in the author’s own words, the site says.

Davenport, who’s been director of the nonprofit for 27 years, told Delaware Online/The News Journal that debunked sightings are left posted on his website and they’re labeled as a “HOAX” in all caps.

Having an online database that documents these debunked sightings can help make more sense of these occurrences when people see them, he said.

When a UFO makes local news headlines, area residents turn a curious eye to the sky and begin to report more strange objects. Novel skywatchers can see the mysterious in all sorts of things — blimps, drones, weather balloons, satellites.

Felton resident Amanda Sturgeon recently recalled a strange experience she had when she lived at the beach.

“I was living in Lewes, [near] the Par 3 Golf Course in Fairway Village, and there’s a golf course clubhouse there that sits right in front of my porch on the right. I was sitting outside smoking a cigarette really late/early into the morning and I saw lights floating,” she said.

Sturgeon said she was scared and didn’t know what to think about what she saw.

“I felt like it was really close to me and I was in danger. That’s the one time my brain couldn’t come up with an answer to explain what I was seeing,” she said.

If you think that’s trippy, here are eight other interesting UFO reports from Delaware, per the NUFORC.  

Jan. 22, 2020 in Bear: “I noticed an elongated blackish triangle shaped object. It seemed to be moving pretty fast. It’s angle was very steep.”

March 31, 2016 in Rehoboth Beach: “We spotted an oval-shaped aircraft while driving on route one; did not fly like a helicopter and was too round to be a plane.”

Nov. 3, 2015 in North Star: “Loud, low noise near Newark, DE …then 4 oOo shaped lights in sky above in formation … then the helios show up.”

Sept. 15, 2015 in Deerfield: “25 crafts flying low heading southwest. Very bright but with no sound … then disappeared in clouds 3 mins tops.”

Nov. 11, 2014 in Townsend: “people witnessed this amazing event, 3 sep. objects. HUGE, MAJESTIC, LIGHTS, BRILLIANT, QUIET, LOW.”

Oct. 25, 2014 in Wilmington: “8 fireballs following same path traveled northeast.”

July 27, 2014 in Dewey Beach: “3 blue in color triangle shaped objects ‘dancing’ over the Indian River Inlet Bridge, just S of Dewey Beach.”

Aug. 26, 2013 in Bear: “a dark mushroom shaped object was seen moving without sound in the sky over Bear Delaware.”

Aug. 3, 2008 in Milford: “Three family members saw a green fireball, about the size of a tennis ball, travel E to W for 3 seconds, with trailing red-orange spark.”

‘Magical star’ and ‘cold fire’ spotted in Maryland 

There have been 20 UFO sightings in Maryland this year. The latest was in Clarksburg on May 19, where someone reported a “Triangle UFO,” according to the NUFORC database.

One incident that stands out occurred on April 11 in Baltimore:

“Pulsating orb, miles in the sky remained still. Broke into multiple lights, then back into 1. Disappeared after 20 minutes.”

Here are nine other reports of weird doings in the skies over Maryland:

July, 5, 2019 in Ocean City: “Light, size of a distant star, distinct movements in fast horizontal line, stopped, returned to starting point in opposite direction.”

Jan. 26, 2016 in Towson: “2 cigar shaped UFO hovered for about 10-15 minutes above horizon near forest, then immediately jetted directly vertical, into the sky.”

Feb., 21, 2014 in Stoney Beach: “Three objects over the water with flashing lights.”

July 31, 2010 in Ocean City: “Circular lights in ‘V’ formation that moved very quickly and changed patterns.”

Aug. 18, 2009 in Westminster: “A magical star looking thing at a football game, right before 2 [undefeated] teams played!”

Sept. 17, 2006 in Havre De Grace: “The object captured in a [photograph] appeared to be a silver disk/saucer above the Chesapeake Bay.”

Aug. 15, 2004 in Ocean City: “Object of green, active cold fire traveling at very high speed low above the ground in absolute silence.”

June 30, 1987 in Crofton: “A saucer circles the moon many times.”

May 15, 1946 in Chevy Chase: “Man in gray seen in my bedroom when I was a child of around 4 years old.”

Aliens are everywhere — at least on TV, film 

Zombies have fought hard to try to steal attention from aliens, but extraterrestrials have too much pride to bend the knee. Here are just some of the aliens that have captured our collective imaginations.

1. Groot 

It’s impossible to throw shade at Groot, because he’s an alien tree. A beloved member from “Guardians of the Galaxy,” this special tree can drastically increase his size, which makes him stronger; he can also regenerate.

2. The Coneheads 

Their claim to fame was starring in their 1993 hit film, featuring Dan Aykroyd. The Coneheads are a family with heads shaped like bullets, so that makes them legitimate big shots. If you ask them, they’ll tell you they’re from France.

3. Gonzo

The blue and long-nosed Muppet Gonzo hails from outer space. After realizing he had found his true family on Earth, Gonzo declined going home with his alien brethren, in favor of staying put with his motley friends.

4. Baby Yoda

Arguably the most adorable alien is a future Jedi master: Baby Yoda. Even as an adult, Yoda is still baby sized. Yet his younger relative is undeniably sweeter than cotton candy.  

5. Mork

One of Robin Williams’ early roles was as a red jumpsuit-wearing alien named Mork, who starred in the “Mork and Mindy” sitcom in the late ‘70s to early 1980s.

6. Martian Manhunter

A worthy green superhero not named the Incredible Hulk is the Martian Manhunter. He’s a shapeshifter who’s one of the last from his alien race. He’s an important member of the Justice League, alongside Wonder Woman, Batman and Superman (who’s an alien, too).

7. Little green men

The squeezable, three-eyed green men from the “Toy Story” franchise often are  overshadowed by Buzz and Woody, which is no surprise. But these little triclops deserve to have some respect put on their name, after surviving the claw machine.

8. ALF

Alien Life Form or simply “ALF” also found success on TV in his namesake show. ALF is a furry comedian who looks like an anteater.

9. Xenomorph

The Mount Rushmore of aliens has to include the Xenomorph from the “Aliens” sci-fi series. Although she’s lovable, she’s the most vicious on this list. The Xenomorph can spit acid, impregnate foes with a baby alien, and she has claws sharper than a bowl of Cap’n Crunch.

Battle of Los Angeles

For some newcomers, the “Battle of Los Angeles” is merely a 2011 Hollywood blockbuster about an alien invasion. But its origins aren’t fictional, according to lifelong UFO believers like Davenport.

He said the government has known about aliens for decades and pointed to the Battle of Los Angeles as an example.

This incident took place Feb. 25, 1942, during World War II.

“1,433 rounds of anti-aircraft ammunition were fired at a UFO that was hovering over Los Angeles. There’s copious quantities of information about it on the internet,” Daveport said. 

According to History.com, the U.S. military radar picked up what was thought to be an enemy contact about 120 miles west of Los Angeles.

Following reports of an object in the skies, troops in Santa Monica unloaded a barrage of anti-aircraft and .50 caliber machine gun fire.

As the story goes, there was no enemy attack. While there may never be a conclusion on what happened that night, it is most often explained as a case of mistaken identity involving weather balloons.

A lot of interesting reports emerged, such as one from the Los Angeles Times.

“Powerful searchlights from countless stations stabbed the sky with brilliant probing fingers,” the LA Times wrote, “while anti-aircraft batteries dotted the heavens with beautiful, if sinister, orange bursts of shrapnel.”

First experience: ‘lasted all of my life’

Davenport has seen at least five UFOs, he says.

His first sighting was with his mom and older brother at a drive-in movie theater in July or August of 1954, at the tender age of 6, he said. The theater was located on the edge of the St. Louis Lambert International Airport.

Suddenly a disturbance started brewing in the theater. People were getting out their cars, slamming their doors and running toward the side of his mom’s 1953 Studebaker car.

“I looked out the right side of the car, looking east, and I saw an intensely bright object about the shape of an English rugby football. It was hovering motionless in the nighttime sky,” he said.

The object suddenly accelerated, rose up in the sky and went behind the drive-in theater screen and disappeared into the northwest. “All of this took place in about five to 10 seconds,” Davenport said. “It’s left an impression on me that’s lasted all of my life.”

He knew it wasn’t a plane, because his dad worked worked at the St. Louis airport and “I prided myself on my ability to identify almost every aircraft that entered the airport.”

When he later saw his father after work that night, his dad said he saw the same thing. His mom did, too.

NASA talks about UFOs

If the government does release a UFO report later this month and it doesn’t confirm that our planet has had visitors from outer space, Davenport won’t be surprised.

He maintains the government knows some UFOs are not from this planet, but he doesn’t know why they’d hold this info back from the public.

For those who have spent years examining such cases, recent disclosures by the military come with much apprehension. James Krug serves as a regional director for the Pennsylvania Mutual UFO Network, teaches astronomy, and runs the Neil Armstrong Planetarium at Altoona Area High School.

Krug suspects the government has released crumbs of information steadily about unexplained phenomena in order to brace the public for a future disclosure.

“I am cautious regarding the pending disclosure from the U.S. military regarding UFOs,” said Krug. “On one hand, it does seem like the public is in the midst of a multi-year disclosure to make us more comfortable with the idea of UFOs. Some believe this is intentional, designed to avert panic like that shown when many mistook Orson Welles’ 1938 Halloween radio broadcast of The War of the Worlds as a genuine alien invasion.”

The military is playing a shell game in changing the way it classifies UFOs now as unidentified aerial phenomena, said Krug. 

“Their terminology was recently changed from ‘UFO’ to ‘UAP,’ largely to dissuade Freedom of Information Act requests for ‘UFOs.’ The military could claim they have little to no information on ‘UFOs,’ when in reality, they’ve simply changed the terminology to something new.”

The News Journal reached out to NASA to see what it had to say about UFOs and the government space agency responded in a statement:

“To date, NASA has yet to find any credible evidence of extraterrestrial life, however, NASA is exploring the solar system and beyond to help us answer fundamental questions, including whether we are alone in the universe.”

“We stand ready to support the rest of the government in the search for life in the universe, be it close to home, on the planets or moons of our solar system, or deeper into space.”

Andre Lamar is the features/lifestyle reporter. If you have an interesting story idea, email Andre Lamar at alamar@gannett.com

James McGinnis, Bucks County Courier-Times, contributed to this report.

*** This article has been archived for your research. The original version from The News Journal can be found here ***