Scots lead the way for UFO sightings
Source: The Guardian (London, England) (June 24, 2002): p5. (249 words)
Document Type: Newspaper
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Full Text :COPYRIGHT 2002 Guardian Newspapers Limited
Byline: Kirsty Scott
If the truth is out there, there's a good chance it might be found north of the border.
Researchers have discovered that Scotland has the highest concentration of UFO sightings in the world, with 300 reported close encounters every year.
The study, published today on International UFO Day, put Scotland at the top of the global league for reported sightings, with four times as many as any other country.
The research was commissioned by VisitScotland, the country's national tourist body.
According to the figures, Scotland has 0.004 UFO sightings per square kilometre and one sighting per 17,000 inhabitants. By contrast, France has just 0.001 sightings per square kilometre and one sighting for every 86,857 of its citizens. Scotland's reputation as a UFO hotspot has grown since the early 1990s when a spate of sightings in the central belt, near the small industrial town of Bonnybridge, drew enthusiasts from all over the world. The area became known as the Falkirk triangle.
Ron Halliday, author of a number of books on the subject, said: "One theory is that the area around Bonnybridge is a kind of window into another dimension. That would explain why some people see a UFO and others don't - because a UFO is a paranormal phenomenon rather than a nuts and bolts spaceship."
Graham Birdsall, editor of UFO magazine, has a more prosaic explanation. "Scotland does have what we would call a higher than average level of military overfly in some more remote parts."