-Caveat Lector- Basin no longer a UFO "hot spot," but agency says information still needed http://www.ubstandard.com/text/f1.html By Lezlee E. Whiting Time is of the essence when it comes to reporting unusual animal deaths or sightings of unusual aircraft. It's been about four years since a Las Vegas millionaire purchased a ranch in Uintah County and established a scientific outpost to research reports of documented, but unexplained UFO sightings and cattle disappearances on the property. Robert T. Bigelow's National Institute of Discovery Science, still maintains a presence in the area these days. The ranch, located south of Fort Duchesne, is regularly staffed by NIDS researchers and the organization remains vitally interested in what goes on in Duchesne and Uintah counties when it comes to suspected animal mutilations and possible sightings of unidentified aircraft. In fact, it is very serious business for the privately-funded Las Vegas-based research organization which is staffed with 15 scientists and consultants holding PhDs and equipped to investigate such anomalies. NIDS focuses on scientific exploration that emphasizes emerging, novel and sometimes unconventional observations and theories, explained Colm Kelleher, deputy administrator for NIDS. Before any scientific research can begin, however, cases of animal mutilation and UFO sightings must be quickly reported, and that's where NIDS is asking for help from Uintah Basin residents. In the 1960s and 1970s, the Uintah Basin was a recognized "hot spot" when it came to sightings of extraterrestrial objects in the night sky. While reports continue to be active, they are no where near the amount experienced 30 and 40 years ago. In the past year NIDS has received calls regarding six mutilation cases involving cattle and horses in the Uintah Basin and Utah. The problem is that the calls have come too late to conduct any real scientific analysis, Kelleher related. "Once it goes behind 72 to 96 hours after death it becomes very difficult to do any meaningful sampling," he said. "We would really prefer a system where ranchers and farmers would be more aware of us and able to inform us sooner than a week after the event." Pete Pickup lives in Randlett and works as a full-time field investigator for NIDS in the Uintah Basin. Whenever a suspected mutilation or unusual aircraft sighting in the Uintah Basin is reported to NIDS, Pickup is immediately dispatched to investigate. A 26-year law enforcement veteran with years of experience when it comes to probing possible animal mutilations and reports of UFOs, Pickup goes to the scene and begins taking blood samples, photographs, collecting tissue samples, taking compass readings, and interviewing the animal's owner. "Cattle mutilations need to be reported as soon as possible, because after they have decayed it's almost impossible to do an accurate analysis on tissues and samples," stated Pickup. All information is keep confidential and names of callers and witnesses are never released. All testing and necropsy costs are paid in full by NIDS. And in the right cases, money is no object, said Kelleher. "There are a lot of organizations that you can report to, but we will go to the limits of the scientific technology available," he detailed. "There is a very big difference between making a report and having a case fully investigated. If we feel a case is strong enough, we will go to the wall." In the fall of 1998, NIDS just did that on a reported cattle mutilation in Duchesne County, spending upwards of a $10,000 to investigate a case involving a cow which was missing an eye, ear and fetus, after it was reported within hours of being killed. The case remains one of the more intriguing investigated by NIDS because it was relatively fresh and a good amount of tissue and blood samples were able to be taken, something of a rarity. Tests, which NIDS had conducted at two separate veterinary laboratories at university research facilities, confirmed the animals' left eye and the portion of its left ear were removed with a sharp instrument and not by scavengers. In addition, there was no sign of an aborted fetus. Currently NIDS is actively investigating the June 25 sighting of an enormous, spherical-shaped object spotted between Fort Duchesne and Randlett. The witness called NIDS to report the sighting and was able to provide very concrete details enabling scientists to estimate the glowing object was close to the size of four football fields. "It was making a rhythmic sound and there was a light going on and off and on and off at the same time. We were able to estimate altitude and distance from the observer based on the speed of sound," Kelleher explained. Again, the timeliness in which a call is made to NIDS is critical because eye-witness memory is best when it is still new. "The fresher the case is the faster we can get on to investigating it. We beat the bushes to find out if any one else has seen something like this. We regard the timely report of a UFO as equally important as a timely report as an animal mutilation," said Kelleher. Calls and reports to NIDS are carefully screened to weed out possible hoaxes, said Kelleher. "Last year we checked out reports from 530 people around the world ... we corroborate all reports with additional eyewitnesses if possible, so we can fairly well distinguish between hoaxes, perceptions or delusions," he related, adding that several psychologists employed by NIDS also aid in determining authenticity. Long-distance calls placed to NIDS 24-hour hotline are returned immediately so the caller does not have to foot the bill for more than a few minutes. NIDS has found that serious callers do not mind paying for a minute or two of long-distance calling. Kelleher said Uintah Basin residents calling to report an animal mutilation or unusual aircraft sighting should first contact Pete Pickup at (435) 545-2466 or on his pager at (435) 646-1538. To contact the NIDS 24-hour hotline call (702) 798-1700. For further information on NIDS go to their website at www.accessnv.com/nids, or at www.nidsci.org. They can be reached by e-mail at [EMAIL PROTECTED] <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! 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