Black triangles are
UFO
An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...
s reported as having a triangular shape and dark color, typically observed at night, described as large, silent, hovering, moving slowly, and displaying pulsating, colored lights and can turn their lights off.
British sightings and UK Ministry of Defence Report
A declassified report from the
UK Ministry of Defence
The Ministry of Defence (MOD or MoD) is the department responsible for implementing the defence policy set by His Majesty's Government, and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces.
The MOD states that its principal objectives are to d ...
, addressing Unidentified Aerial Phenomena
(UAP) within the UK Air Defence Region and code named
Project Condign, includes analyses of black triangle sightings. The report includes the statement that "the majority, if not all, of the hitherto unexplained reports may well be due to atmospheric gaseous electrically charged buoyant plasmas" that are "capable of being transported at enormous speeds under the influence and balance of electrical charges in the atmosphere." The report also notes that "at least some" of the black triangle observations likely arise from meteor entry into the atmosphere.
Regarding the triangular shapes, the report also states: "Occasionally ... it seems that a field with, as yet, undetermined characteristics, can exist between certain charged buoyant objects in loose formation, such that, depending on the viewing aspect, the intervening space between them forms an area (viewed as a shape, often triangular) from which the reflection of light does not occur. This is a key finding in the attribution of what have frequently been reported as black 'craft,' often triangular and even up to hundreds of feet in length."
A recommendation in the report is that no attempt be made on the part of aircraft to intercept or outmaneuver these objects, and instead to place them astern to mitigate the risk of collision. The report also speculates that the hypothesized plasma formations, through their "magnetic, electric or electromagnetic" fields, could have the potential to induce in observers vivid, but mainly incorrect, perceptions.
The Project Condign report was not peer reviewed, and some authors have cast doubt on its scientific veracity.
Other sightings
1980s Hudson Valley sightings
During the early 1980s several hundred people claimed to have witnessed UFOs flying over, or near to, the
Hudson River
The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
in New York state. These sightings involved hovering or slowly-flying, V-shaped objects rimmed with colorful lights. Several pilots claimed responsibility for these UFOs, reporting that the objects, some of which were tracked to a local airport and parking lot, were
ultralight aircraft
Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with ailer ...
flown in formation.
1989–1992 Belgian wave
The Belgian UFO wave began in November 1989. The events of 29 November were documented by over thirty different groups of witnesses, and three separate groups of police officers. All of the reports related a large object flying at low altitude. The craft was of a flat, triangular shape, with lights underneath. This giant craft did not make a sound as it slowly moved across the landscape of Belgium. There was free sharing of information as the Belgian populace tracked this craft as it moved from the town of Liege to the border of the Netherlands and Germany.
In ''The Belgian UFO Wave of 1989–1992 – A Neglected Hypothesis'', Renaud Leclet & co. discuss the fact that some sightings can be explained by helicopters. Most witnesses reported that the objects were silent. This report argues that the lack of noise could be due to the engine noise in the witnesses' automobiles, or strong natural wind blowing away from the witnesses.
Black triangle UFOs have been claimed to be visible to radar. During the 1989-1990
Belgian UFO wave
The Belgian UFO wave was a series of sightings of triangular UFOs in Belgium, which lasted from 29 November 1989 to April 1990. The sightings
The Belgian UFO wave began in November 1989. Reports were filed, most many weeks after the events. Many ...
, two
Belgian Air Force
The Belgian Air Component ( nl, Luchtcomponent, french: Composante air) is the air arm of the Belgian Armed Forces, and until January 2002 it was officially known as the Belgian Air Force ( nl, Belgische Luchtmacht; french: Force aérienne belg ...
F-16s
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it ...
attempted to intercept an object detected by radar, but the pilots did not report seeing an object. This entire Belgian UFO wave, however, has been disputed by skeptics.
1997 Phoenix Lights incident
A widely reported appearance(s) of black triangles involved the "Phoenix Lights" events, during which multiple unidentified objects were observed near Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...
and videotaped by both the local media and residents beginning on Thursday, March 13, 1997. Some of the observed objects/lights appeared to be grouped in a large "V" formation that lingered for several minutes. Some residents reported one of the black triangles to be over a mile wide, and that it drifted slowly over their houses blocking out the stars of the night sky.
An official report from the US Air Force concluded that the military had been locally testing aircraft-launched flares during that time period.
2000 Southern Illinois incident
The "St. Clair Triangle", "UFO Over Illinois", "Southern Illinois UFO", or "Highland, Illinois UFO" sighting occurred on January 5, 2000 over the towns of Highland
Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
, Dupo, Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...
, Shiloh, Summerfield, Millstadt, and O'Fallon, Illinois, beginning shortly after 4:00 am. The incident was featured in several television shows including ''Seeing is Believing'', a Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...
special ''UFOs Over Illinois'', and an episode of the Syfy
Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Lau ...
series '' Proof Positive''. Sufjan Stevens
Sufjan Stevens ( ; born July 1, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has released nine solo studio albums and multiple collaborative albums with other artists. Stevens has received Grammy and Academy Award nomi ...
included this incident in the song "Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois" from his 2005 album ''Illinois''.
Science writer Brian Dunning has reported that the observed object was identified by the FAA
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
as an advertising blimp operated by the American Blimp Company
American Blimp Corporation (ABC) is an American privately owned Hillsboro, Oregon-based company that is the largest manufacturer of blimps in the United States. It manufactures the hardware and rigging for the Lightship and Spector brands of air ...
.
2004–2006 Tinley Park Lights
Three red lights hovered in a triangular formation were seen by multiple witnesses in Tinley Park
Tinley Park (formerly Bremen) is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, with a small portion in Will County. The village is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, the population was 55,971. It is one of the fastest growing suburbs ...
and Oak Forest, Illinois, on August 21, 2004, two months later on October 31, 2004, again on October 1, 2005, and once again on October 31, 2006. The lights were photographed and captured on video by some witnesses. According to some ufologists, the video evidence suggests that the lights kept the geometrical shape and moved as if they were attached to each other through a dark object. The incident was examined in a '' Dateline NBC'' episode on May 18, 2008, and in the episode "Invasion Illinois" of the television series '' UFO Hunters'' premiered on The History Channel on October 29, 2008.
Military aircraft
Classified military aircraft may be responsible for a number of black triangle UFO reports. Several such sightings have been reported over Antelope Valley
The Antelope Valley is located in northern Los Angeles County, California, and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated between the Tehachapi, Sierra Pelona, and the ...
, an area of desert in southern California. This stretch of desert draws people interested in potential "black project" aircraft, because it is close to several known military research and testing areas, such as Edwards Air Force Base
Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation in California. Most of the base sits in Kern County, but its eastern end is in San Bernardino County and a southern arm is in Los Angeles County. The hub of the base is E ...
in California, and United States Air Force Plant 42. A geographic analysis by the now-inactive National Institute for Discovery Science suggested that black triangles might be U.S. Air Force craft.
At least some of the proposed military types may be fictitious. The Northrop TR-3A Black Manta is a speculative surveillance aircraft
A surveillance aircraft is an aircraft used for surveillance. They are operated by military forces and other government agencies in roles such as intelligence gathering, battlefield surveillance, airspace surveillance, reconnaissance, observa ...
purported to belong to the United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
and to have been developed under a black project. It was said to be a subsonic stealth
Stealth may refer to:
Military
*Stealth technology, technology used to conceal ships, aircraft, and missiles
**Stealth aircraft, aircraft which use stealth technology
**Stealth ground vehicle, ground vehicles which use stealth technology
** Stea ...
spy plane with a flying wing
A flying wing is a tailless fixed-wing aircraft that has no definite fuselage, with its crew, payload, fuel, and equipment housed inside the main wing structure. A flying wing may have various small protuberances such as pods, nacelles, blis ...
design. It was alleged to have been used in the Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
to provide laser designation
A laser designator is a laser light source which is used to designate a target. Laser designators provide targeting for laser-guided bombs, missiles, or precision artillery munitions, such as the Paveway series of bombs, AGM-114 Hellfire, o ...
for Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk bombers, for targeting to use with laser-guided bomb
A laser-guided bomb (LGB) is a guided bomb that uses semi-active laser guidance to strike a designated target with greater accuracy than an unguided bomb. First developed by the United States during the Vietnam War, laser-guided bombs quickly p ...
s. There is little evidence to support the TR-3's existence; however it is possible that black triangle UFO reports associated with Black Manta could be a technology demonstrator
A technology demonstration (or tech demo), also known as demonstrator model, is a prototype, rough example or an otherwise incomplete version of a conceivable product or future system, put together as proof of concept with the primary purpose of ...
for a potential new-generation tactical reconnaissance aircraft
A reconnaissance aircraft (colloquially, a spy plane) is a military aircraft designed or adapted to perform aerial reconnaissance with roles including collection of imagery intelligence (including using photography), signals intelligence, as ...
, and/or that TR-3 refers to a Technical Refresh of an existing programme.[Pope, Gregory T. Archive link]
"America's New Secret Aircraft"
''Popular Mechanics
''Popular Mechanics'' (sometimes PM or PopMech) is a magazine of popular science and technology, featuring automotive, home, outdoor, electronics, science, do-it-yourself, and technology topics. Military topics, aviation and transportation o ...
'', Vol. 168, No. 12, December 1991.[Mystery Aircraft: TR-3A](_blank)
Global Security. (retrieved 28 March 2022)
Geoscientist Ben McGee has identified border patrol drones with infrared anti-collision or identification lights as an explanation of some black triangles.
References
Further reading
* "TR-3A Evolved From Classified Prototypes, Based on Tactical Penetrator Concept" Aviation Week & Space Technology
''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', often abbreviated ''Aviation Week'' or ''AW&ST'', is the flagship magazine of the Aviation Week Network. The weekly magazine is available in print and online, reporting on the aerospace, defense and aviati ...
, June 10, 1991. p 20-21
* “Triangular Recon Aircraft May be Supporting F-117A” AW&ST, June 10, 1991. p 20. William Scott
* "America's New Secret Aircraft" Popular Mechanics
''Popular Mechanics'' (sometimes PM or PopMech) is a magazine of popular science and technology, featuring automotive, home, outdoor, electronics, science, do-it-yourself, and technology topics. Military topics, aviation and transportation o ...
, December 1991. p. 32-5. Gregory T. Pope
Gregory may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Gregory (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* Gregory (surname), a surname
Places Australia
*Gregory, Queensland, a town in the Shire of ...
* "Possible Black Aircraft Seen Flying In Formation with F-117As KC-135s." Aviation Week, March 9, 1992. p. 66–67
* Popular Science
''Popular Science'' (also known as ''PopSci'') is an American digital magazine carrying popular science content, which refers to articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. ''Popular Science'' has won over 58 awards, incl ...
, March 1993
* "Stealth Watchers" Wired, ''Issue 2.02'' February 1994. Phil Patton
Phil may refer to:
* Phil (given name), a shortened version of masculine and feminine names
* Phill, a given name also spelled "Phil"
* Phil, Kentucky, United States
* ''Phil'' (film), a 2019 film
* -phil-, a lexical fragment, used as a root ter ...
br>(article)
* Google Patent Search, patent Des. 244,265, issued May 10, 197
(description)
* NBC Nightly News, August 6, 1997 segment showing U-2 with triangle on undercarriage (CIA, USAF)
External links
*
{{US reconnaissance aircraft
Stealth aircraft
Unidentified flying objects