History of UFO

Unusual aerial phenomena have been reported throughout prehistory (flying saucers in cave paintings in Hunan, 47,000 B.C., southern France, 20,000 B.C., etc.) and history. Some of these phenomena were undoubtedly astronomical in nature: comets, bright meteors, one or more of the five planets which can be seen with the naked eye, planetary conjunctions, or atmospheric optical phenomena such as parhelia and lenticular clouds. An example is the Comet Halley , which has been recorded the first time historically by Chinese astronomers in 240 B.C. and possibly as early as 467 B.C.. Other historical reports seem to defy prosaic explanation, but assessing such accounts is difficult at best, since the information in a historical document may be insufficient, inaccurate, or embellished enough to make an informed evaluation difficult.

* On September 24, 1235, General Kujo Yoritsune and his army observed unidentified globes of light flying in erratic patterns in the night sky near Kyoto, Japan. The general’s advisers told him not to worry — it was merely the wind causing the stars to sway.[2][3]

* On April 14, 1561 the skies over Nuremberg, Germany were reportedly filled with a multitude of objects seemingly engaged in an aerial battle. Small spheres and discs were said to emerge from large cylinders.[4][5](image right)

Whatever their actual cause, such sightings were usually treated as supernatural portents, angels, and other religious omens. Some contemporary investigators believe them to be the ancient equivalent of modern UFO reports. Art historian Daniela Giordano[6] cites many Medieval-era paintings, frescoes, tapestries and other items that depict unusual aerial objects; she admits many of these paintings are difficult to interpret, but cites some that depict airborne saucer (example left) and domed-saucer shapes that are often strikingly similar to UFO reports from later centuries.