Alan Hale

About the author: Alan Hale is an astronomer, author, and co-discoverer of Comet Hale- Bopp.

The extraordinary claim that UFOs are vessels in which alien beings have traveled to Earth from other parts of the universe requires direct and convincing evidence before it can be accepted. Such evidence, including credible contact with aliens, is thus far lacking. Sightings of mysterious lights in the skies do not constitute direct evidence because people are unfamiliar with the many natural and artificial phenomena that can create UFOs. In addition to making observational mistakes, UFO witnesses may also in some cases be victims—or instigators—of hoaxes. While intelligent life may perhaps have evolved at other sites in the universe, the distances between the stars are so vast as to make interstellar travel unlikely...