>US to deploy ‘optionally manned’ hover-dirigible in 2011

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The US military will deploy an “optionally manned” 250-foot surveillance airship to Afghanistan by the middle of 2011, according to reports. The dirigible spy-ship will be able to lurk high above Afghan battlefields for up to three weeks at a time, relaying information to ground commanders.

Aviation Week reports that the US Army Space and Missile Defence Command is putting together a group of organisations aimed at building an enlarged version of the well-known prototype P-791 airship test-flown in 2006 (see the vid above). The new, bigger ship will be termed the Long Endurance Multi-intelligence Vehicle (LEMV).

The P-791 and the LEMV which will follow it are termed “hybrid” airship designs as they are not supported entirely by the buoyancy of their lifting gas like a conventional sky-ship. Rather, 80 per cent of their weight is supported by the gas cells and the remainder by aerodynamic lift when the ship is underway.

To move about on the ground, the missing 20 per cent lift is generated by a hovercraft-style aircushion system (the round openings underneath), allowing the craft to be taxied about. The aircushion can also be switched into reverse, allowing the ship to suck itself down firmly in place and potentially avoid the need for mooring masts and/or large ground-handling teams.

In order to lift off before gathering speed, such a ship uses vertical thrust from its swivelling propulsors, in this case driven by powerful turbodiesels. Once in the cruise, these fuel-hungry engines are shut down and the props are driven electrically by a central generator.

The P-791 was actually built with a view to heavy military airlift. The much, much bigger “Walrus” transports intended to develop from the prototype were intended to haul hundreds of tons to a landing far from base deep in rough terrain – perhaps dropping off a large, well-equipped ground combat unit.

via US to deploy ‘optionally manned’ hover-dirigible in 2011 • The Register.

>Buried treasure found in Córdoba

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13 gold coins have been found, wrapped together, by the river in Córdoba

If you know where to look, buried treasure can still be found in Spain. The latest find was not however thanks to a map marked with an ‘X’, but came as part of an archaeological excavation as part of new drainage works in Córdoba, close to the famous Roman Bridge in the city centre.

13 gold coins, escudos, from the reign of Carlos III, dated from 1776 to 1801, and wrapped in a cloth, were found under a layer of limestone which has kept them in a perfect condition for more than two centuries. Each escudo weighs 27 grams and has a diameter of 36mm.

El País reports that Enrique León, the head of the archaeological team, thinks that the coins could have been deliberately hidden ahead of the French invasion, led by General Dupont which pillaged the city in July 1808.

However he thinks the hiding place, next to the river, is a surprising one, as the area is thought to have been used as a rubbish tip at the time.

The mystery that will remain is why the person who hid the coins never returned to dig them up. Or perhaps he did but could not find them.

via Buried treasure found in Córdoba.

>Australia under threat of volcanic eruption

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Three Australian states are at risk from a major volcanic eruption which geological history indicates is “well overdue” an expert warned this week.

University of Melbourne geologist Bernie Joyce said the threat of volcanic eruption in Victoria, South Australia and Queensland should be given more attention by emergency management authorities.

“The geological record shows that new volcanoes in these areas have erupted perhaps every 2,000 years in the past 40,000 years — and given there has not been a major eruption there for the past 5,000 years, a significant eruption seems well overdue,” he said.

Melbourne in the firing line

A volcanic eruption in Victoria’s Western Uplands could potentially see lava flows and ash falls impacting on Melbourne, Joyce told Cosmos Online.

“There is also similar volcano risk present in various provinces in Far North Queensland, stretching from south-west of Townsville to near Cairns and up to Cooktown in the Far North.

“There are more than 380 volcanoes in total across this part of Queensland,” said Joyce, who will receive the Selwyn Medal for significant contributions in the Earth Sciences tomorrow at the Geological Society of Australia’s annual Selwyn Symposium. …

via Australia under threat of volcanic eruption | COSMOS magazine.

>Ales Stenar, Sweden: a ship of stones

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…It’s the mystery surrounding these prehistoric stone circles that appeals to us. We can imagine they were erected with great difficulty, massive boulders being dragged across country and up a steep hill, then carefully aligned with the heavens and set on end. But the purpose of all that effort remains unknown and even scholars can only make guesses.

A collection of 59 standing stones, each from one to three metres high, the Ales Stenar (or Ale’s Stones) rise from a field on a coastal ridge in southern Sweden’s Osterlen district, above the arty-crafty town of Kaseberga. They’re arranged in the rough shape of a ship, 67-metres long, with taller stones at the prow and stern. Cream-coloured cows graze around them, sometimes pausing to use them as convenient neck scratchers.

The Ales Stenar are thought to date from the time of the Vikings, about AD600-AD1000. They may not be the pyramids, or even Stonehenge, but they’re no less intriguing – the largest, most complete and possibly the most beautiful prehistoric monument in northern Europe. At summer solstice the sun sets precisely over the prow stone and at winter solstice rises over the ship’s stern. Nobody knows why. Was this the tomb of an ancient chief, a religious meeting place or an astronomical calendar? Or a landing pad for alien spaceships?

Visitors want to touch the stones, rub them, even try to push them over, knowing that others down the centuries have done the same. An excited party of Swedish children on a school excursion plays hide and seek between them. Backpackers spread out a picnic on the grassy slope overlooking the sea, then lean back against the stones to eat.

There is no charge to visit Ales Stenar and surprisingly, given their archaeological importance, no security, only a polite warning notice by the cattle grid asking us to respect and preserve the area for future generations. We’re happy to do that.

via Ales Stenar, Sweden: a ship of stones.

>Former Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) supervisor, Roswell crash object was alien spacecraft

>One more puzzle piece in the Roswell story.

Robert L. Hastings, who researches the connection between UFOs and nukes, has an article on The UFO Chronicles adding a new voice to the “it was aliens” explanation.

… a former, high-level nuclear weapons specialist has now provided dramatic, hitherto unknown information about the controversial case. In 1998, I conducted a taped interview with former Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) supervisor Chester “Chet” W. Lytle Sr., whose work in the early 1950s put him in the right place, at the right time, to hear a very interesting story about Roswell. Lytle told me that he was “absolutely” certain that the mysterious object secretly recovered in the New Mexico desert was an alien spacecraft. According to Lytle, the unimpeachable source of this information was none other than William H. Blanchard, the commander of Roswell Army Airfield at the time of the incident. …

Lytle unexpectedly mentioned the Roswell Incident. He said the former base commander of Roswell Army Airfield, then-Colonel William Blanchard, had once confessed to him that the object recovered in the desert in July 1947 was in fact a crashed extraterrestrial spacecraft. According to Lytle, this revelation occurred in mid-February 1953, when both he and Blanchard were visiting Eielson AFB, Alaska. …

Lytle, who held Top Secret clearances relating to his work with the AEC, was informed that an extraterrestrial spaceship had been recovered. The general said that four dead humanoid beings had been aboard. Startled by Lytle’s unexpected admission, I asked, “Blanchard actually told you that the Roswell object was an alien spacecraft?” Lytle emphatically replied, “Oh, absolutely!”

Hastings is appropriately cautious and offers this context:

If Lytle is to be believed, his old friend had let him in on what was arguably the greatest secret in history—even though he had no need-to-know about it. I will simply say that if the conversation occurred as portrayed, it certainly would not have been the first time that an important military secret was informally discussed between friends, in violation of the security measures surrounding it. …

But Blanchard was not Lytle’s only source for the crashed-spaceship story. Lytle added that he had later heard from another high-level Air Force source that some of the alien bodies were initially sent to Muroc Army Airfield (now Edwards AFB) in California, however, eventually “they all wound up at Wright Field.” Then, alluding to still other sources, Lytle said that he had been privy to “leaks about autopsies on the bodies from people who had been in and seen them.”

Those who have followed the Roswell saga know that Wright Field—later renamed Wright-Patterson AFB—figures prominently in the narrative. According to Lytle’s sources, the recovered alien craft was also stored there, but in Hanger 5—not Hanger 18—as Roswell lore has it. “I had the highest clearances involving atomic weapons stockpiling,” said Lytle, “I was very heavily cleared to do what I did, but I was never allowed into that area.” – link

Lytle, Hastings says, was coerced into silence after this by someone from an unnamed part of the government and he died in 2004.

Interesting, but without physical evidence,  we can’t really say who is telling the truth.

>Former Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) supervisor, Roswell crash object was alien spacecraft

>One more puzzle piece in the Roswell story.

Robert L. Hastings, who researches the connection between UFOs and nukes, has an article on The UFO Chronicles adding a new voice to the “it was aliens” explanation.

… a former, high-level nuclear weapons specialist has now provided dramatic, hitherto unknown information about the controversial case. In 1998, I conducted a taped interview with former Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) supervisor Chester “Chet” W. Lytle Sr., whose work in the early 1950s put him in the right place, at the right time, to hear a very interesting story about Roswell. Lytle told me that he was “absolutely” certain that the mysterious object secretly recovered in the New Mexico desert was an alien spacecraft. According to Lytle, the unimpeachable source of this information was none other than William H. Blanchard, the commander of Roswell Army Airfield at the time of the incident. …

Lytle unexpectedly mentioned the Roswell Incident. He said the former base commander of Roswell Army Airfield, then-Colonel William Blanchard, had once confessed to him that the object recovered in the desert in July 1947 was in fact a crashed extraterrestrial spacecraft. According to Lytle, this revelation occurred in mid-February 1953, when both he and Blanchard were visiting Eielson AFB, Alaska. …

Lytle, who held Top Secret clearances relating to his work with the AEC, was informed that an extraterrestrial spaceship had been recovered. The general said that four dead humanoid beings had been aboard. Startled by Lytle’s unexpected admission, I asked, “Blanchard actually told you that the Roswell object was an alien spacecraft?” Lytle emphatically replied, “Oh, absolutely!”

Hastings is appropriately cautious and offers this context:

If Lytle is to be believed, his old friend had let him in on what was arguably the greatest secret in history—even though he had no need-to-know about it. I will simply say that if the conversation occurred as portrayed, it certainly would not have been the first time that an important military secret was informally discussed between friends, in violation of the security measures surrounding it. …

But Blanchard was not Lytle’s only source for the crashed-spaceship story. Lytle added that he had later heard from another high-level Air Force source that some of the alien bodies were initially sent to Muroc Army Airfield (now Edwards AFB) in California, however, eventually “they all wound up at Wright Field.” Then, alluding to still other sources, Lytle said that he had been privy to “leaks about autopsies on the bodies from people who had been in and seen them.”

Those who have followed the Roswell saga know that Wright Field—later renamed Wright-Patterson AFB—figures prominently in the narrative. According to Lytle’s sources, the recovered alien craft was also stored there, but in Hanger 5—not Hanger 18—as Roswell lore has it. “I had the highest clearances involving atomic weapons stockpiling,” said Lytle, “I was very heavily cleared to do what I did, but I was never allowed into that area.” – link

Lytle, Hastings says, was coerced into silence after this by someone from an unnamed part of the government and he died in 2004.

Interesting, but without physical evidence,  we can’t really say who is telling the truth.

>Did Iran shoot down one of our spy planes?

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Iran downs strange bright craft over Persian Gulf

Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has targeted and downed an unidentified shining object after sighting it over Persian Gulf waters.

“Glowing objects were sighted over the Persian Gulf. IRGC air defense targeted one of the objects successfully, forcing it to plummet and sink in the seas off Boushehr (Province),” said top regional commander, Brigadier Ali Razmjou.

“The three bright objects were detected by our radars when flying over the Persian Gulf Islands of Khark and Khargou,” he added, according to a Monday report posted on IRNA.

Brig. Razmjou explained that when the radars indicated that they were not Iranian aircrafts, the IRGC fired at the three objects. He also added that the fallen objects’ remains have not been found yet.

The exact time and location of the sighting and downing of the weird aircraft has not been announced.

via Iran downs strange bright craft over Persian Gulf.

>New tree man: coral man has ‘shells’ cut from his body

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Lin Tianzhuan, 38, of Shuimen, southern China, first noticed the growths on his hands and feet when he was just 13.

“It started with a few hard bumps so I tried to apply antibiotics and creams but it didn’t get better,” he explained.

“Instead it just got worse. They grew and grew and soon they were all over my arms and legs, my back and even my head. Ii was as if I was turning to stone and it was terrifying,” he added.

Horrified Lin became a hermit, hiding at the family home and shunned by friends and neighbours who dubbed him Coral Boy.

His experience closely resembles that of Dede Koswara, the “tree man” of Indonesia whose skin condition was first highlighted by Telegraph.co.uk.

“Gradually my shell became thicker and thicker and I could no longer bend my arms or my legs. It was very frightening,” Lin said.

“If I had to go out I wrapped myself up in blankets because people would scream when they saw me,” he added.

But now Lin is recovering from his bizarre condition thanks to medics from a special skin clinic who have begun a study on his case.

Fuzhou Dermatosis Prevention Hospital vice president Dr Liu Yinghong said: “His hands, forearms, feet and calf were covered with these dark brown hard shells, looking like dry branches. The seriousness and long-lasting nature of the disease shocked us.”

Now after a year of treatment and surgery, Lin is making a full recovery with just a few discoloured skin patches to show for his horrific condition.

“He may need radiotherapy for quite some time still but he has made very good progress,” said Dr Yinghong.

via New tree man: coral man has ‘shells’ cut from his body – Telegraph.

>’Booze therapy’ for brain injury

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A dose of alcohol may be a good treatment for people with head injuries, emergency doctors suggest.

Their basis for this is the discovery that people appear less likely to die following brain trauma if they have alcohol in their bloodstream.

It could be that alcohol dampens the body’s inflammatory response to injury, the US team told Archives of Surgery.

But they stressed that alcohol can cause medical complications and is contributory to many accidents.

Experts cautioned people should not interpret the findings as an excuse to drink more alcohol.

The amount of alcohol consumed appears to be important – too little and there is no effect, too much and the beneficial effects are lost, studies on animals suggest.

Experts believe the right dose of alcohol, however, stops the cascade of swelling, inflammation and further destruction of brain cells, known as secondary brain injury.

The latest work, based on more than 38,000 moderate-to-severe head trauma patients, is the largest yet to look at the effects of alcohol on brain injury survival.

via BBC NEWS | Health | ‘Booze therapy’ for brain injury.

However, if you don’t drink and drive, you can simply avoid most brain injuries.

>Toilet snake is finally captured

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A 3m snake believed to have been living in toilet pipes in a block of flats for three months has been caught.

The boa constrictor, named Keith, is thought to have been abandoned by a resident who was evicted after owing £5,500 in rent to his landlord.

The huge snake has been slithering out of toilet bowls throughout the flats in Manchester since August.

A brave resident finally put the snake’s antics to an end by coaxing the creature into a bucket.

Keith – who is actually thought to be female – had been sighted loads of times by the terrified homeowners but no-one had been able to catch the slippery customer.

Residents had been forced to put bricks on toilet seats in a bid to keep the snake from popping out of the pan.

A spokesman for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) said it was not uncommon for snakes to be found in household sewage pipes.

Spokesman Jimmy Ratcliff said the snake seems to have been living quite happily: “This is not really unusual, but for a snake of such size to have been found, is quite out of the ordinary.

“It would have no problem travelling up and down the waste pipe and has probably been eating rats from the sewer.”

via CBBC Newsround | UK | Toilet snake is finally captured.