File Name: DANMANN.TXT

 Key date: 09-12-95
 Keyed by: Errol Bruce-Knapp - UFO UpDates Toronto.



Sighting - October 6, 1994

On October 6, 1994, myself and two friends were moose-hunting, camped
approximately 50 Km south of Timmins in Northern Ontario. The
landscape is mixed  (logged-out areas, lakes, sandy soil and heavy
forest) off an old logging road.

Between 9:30 and 10:30pm on the 6th October, under a very solid closed
sky (no stars, moon, or rain), my friend, Bob Weeks called me outside
the camper to observe a strange bright object in the northeast sky
under the cloud cover.  This brilliant object was stationary at this
time, saucer shaped with a very bright light pulsating from the top
and bottom.  When the object moved, at a very high rate of speed from
the northeast sky to the northwest, I ran to the camper to get my
video camera. When I returned outside to film this object it was
moving so fast I had a difficult time focusing it in the view finder.
I would have liked to use the zoom lens to bring the object closer but
I was afraid I would lose it altogether.

The object was doing erratic maneuvering in front of my friend and I,
as if it were out of control.  It then seemed to flash brilliantly as
it turned on its side to show either top or bottom.  It also descended
to above the tree line in front of us and hovered there.  The battery
in my camera, a new 2-hour type, thought to be fully charged, went
dead at this point.  The camper battery also seemed to be depleted. We
observed the object for another one or two minutes until the object
rose vertically straight up through the clouds at an unbelievable rate
of speed.  We do not know if it made any noise as we had a generator
operating outside the camper.  We also don't know how long the object
was in the sky before Bob went outside.

I am 60 years old.  I was in the Armed Forces for 6 years, spending
one year in the Tank Corps in Korea in the 1950's.  I have seen many
types of fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters.  What we observed that
night, I believe was alien.

On returning home, I asked a retired astronomy professor from York
University in Toronto, Professor Ted Mann, to view the tape, which he
did, four or five times.  He said he had never seen anything like it,
and referred me to Professor Michael Persinger at Laurentian
University in Sudbury who analyzed the tape.  I do not agree with
Professor Persinger's findings, that this is a gas from underground in
quake prone areas.  There were no storms that night and I don't
believe gas would hold the same shape as this object.

I am sending two tapes (one - frame-by-frame - some frozen and one
normal speed tape).  I would appreciate your analysis of these tapes
and look forward to your findings.  My friend and I would like to know
what it was that we observed that night.

Thank you.

Daniel T. Mann,
##############,
######, Ontario
Canada, ### ###

-----

Laurentian
University

Behavioral Neuroscience Program

Ramsey Lake Road
Sudbury, Ontario
Canada P3E 2C6

(705) 675-4824


16 June 1995

Mr. D. T. Mann
###############
######, Ontario
Canada, ### ###

Dear Mr. Mann:

We thank you once again for the opportunity to view the videotape of
the anomalous phenomenon that you observed on 6 October 1994. Enclosed
you will find the technical paper that describes the results of our
analysis.  If there are any major errors concerning the contexts of
the observations, please advise.  The information was extracted from
your descriptions.

Sincerely,

M.A. Persinger, Ph.D.
Professor

-----

Geophysical Variables and Behaviour: ??
Periodicities and Energetic Characteristics of a Strobe-Light
Luminosity from Frame-by-Frame Analyses

M. A. Persinger
Brain Hart
Alex W. Thomas

Laurentian University

Thanks to Mr. Daniel T. Mann for his resourcefulness to videotape and
his courage to report this interesting phenomenon. Please send reprint
requests and correspondence to Dr. M. A. Persinger, center in Mining
and Mineral Exploration Research, Laurentian University, or Department
of Psychology, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario Canada P3E 2C6.

Summary.

A video tape of a 'strobe-light' luminosity that occurred in Northern
Ontario for several minutes during the evening of 6 October, 1994, at
the time of a geomagnetic storm, was analyzed frame-by-frame.
Brightness of the flashes decreased over the time of the observation.
The interflicker intervals displayed phase-shifted Periodicities that
would be compatible with a rotating electromagnetic dipole and with
the observations of the witnesses.  Movement and dynamics of the
luminosity were consistent with the predictions of the tectonic strain
hypothesis.

The tectonic strain hypothesis (Persinger, 1976; 1990) predicts that
most unusual luminous displays, often labeled as Unidentified Flying
Objects, are natural phenomena.  They are associated with accumulating
stress and strain release within a geological region.  We (Derr and
Persinger, 1986, 1990 have shown that , within large areas of space,
reports of luminous displays precede increased incidence of earthquake
activity within the order of weeks to months.

Spatial-temporal characteristics of the individual event have been
predicted on the basis of basic physical principles (Persinger, 1985).
Experimentally-induced microluminosities, generated when piezoelectric
rocks are fractured by gradually increasing applied stresses, exhibit
life times within the range of milliseconds.  These microluminosities
display episodic releases of energy (perceived as light during their
brief lifetime.  If the relationship between experimentally induced
luminosities and a comparable form of natural luminosities involves
similar physical principles and the effects are scale invariant, then
the physical characteristics of these macroluminosities should be
ultimately predictable.

For approximately 3 to 4 min. between 2130 hr and 2230 hr on the
evening of 6 October, 1994, two men witnessed and videotaped (Sony 8mm
camcorder) an anomalous event about 50km south of Timmins, Ontario.
One of the men was an experienced (Korean War) veteran.  They were
members of a small hunting team who were camped in a sandy region near
a local lake.

The sky was overcast and the ceiling was estimated to be about 1500m.
The luminous flicker was first viewed as a very bright stationary
pulsating object.  It then moved quickly and erratically (zig-zag
trajectory) from west to east and involved a sector that would have
been equivalent to 45 degrees (of the 360 that would be associated
with a complete circle around the observer).  The phenomenon was
perceived to move towards the south and to descend from a high
altitude over a hill that contained trees  ("hovered over the
tree-line").  The luminosity moved erratically, remained stationary
for about 1 min., moved in the same direction towards the north then
ascended quickly to a higher altitude (still visible) and exhibited
more erratic movements (reported as "maneuvers").  At this point the
camera failed and no longer recorded.  The phenomenon then accelerated
vertically ("at an unbelievable speed") through the clouds.

The Luminosity was reported to be saucer-shaped with brilliant white
lights pulsating from the top and the bottom.  After the observers had
excluded possible explanations on the bases [sic] of their experience
with aircraft, they concluded the phenomenon was alien.  Subsequent to
the phenomenon to the phenomenon, the (D.C.) battery of the camper in
which the men were sleeping was observed to have been depleted.  There
was no report of missing time or other anomalies.

Aurora borealis were noted the following night (clearer sky).
According to Geomagnetic Indices Bulletin, the provisional aa (average
antipodal values (in nanoT) for the northern hemisphere during the
first 12 days of October was 9, 32, 99, 54, 66, 57 (day of
observation), 69, 35, 22, 34, 36 and 28 respectively.  The 24hr period
within which the observation was made was one of the 5 most disturbed
days of the month.

The videotape was analyzed frame by frame.  The material was dubbed to
betacam SP for playback at the university studio.  The video
processing amplifier was adjusted from unity to enhance the contrast
and to minimize the colour noise for the slow analysis.  The playback
was from a Sony BVW-10, controlled by a Sony RM-450 and viewed on a
Panasonic BT-1300 monitor on the Y-C channel.  Although the term
'frame' is employed two interlaced fields to create one frame during
normal playback.  This factor was accommodated when the real time of
each frame was calculated.

The most conspicuous property was a quasiperiodic enhancement of light
emission (no obvious shape) that was evident in only one frame for 95%
of the light emissions and in two contiguous frames for the remaining
cases.  Between frames the phenomenon was discriminable within the
background noise only as a pin-point movement through the constant
field of minute disparities within the magnetic tape.  The following
information was collected: 1) the numbers of frames between each
successive flash, 2) the number of frames that were involved with each
appearance (1 or 2) and the brightness (maximum, attenuated). The
total numbers of frames between flashes were converted to msec. The
equivalent frequency (Hz) was calculated by dividing the duration in
msec between the flashes by 1000 msec.

The interstimulus intervals (time between flashes) during the 130
successive light emissions are shown in Figure 1.  Autocorrelations
were completed for each of 25 successive lags.  In order to attenuate
the effects of outliers, Spearman rho correlations were employed.  The
only statistically significant (set at p <.01) correlations (rho
values) occured for lag 1 (-0.40), lag 3 (0.42), lag 4 (-0.36), lag 6
(0.21), lag 7 (-0.21), lag 10 (-0.23), lag 12 (0.24), lag 13 (-0.31)
lag 16 (-0.24), lag 17 (0.26).  This meant, for example, that the
longer the interstimulus (flash) interval on any given segment the
longer the interstimulus interval three flashes later.

------

Figure 1 about here

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To discern changes in the brightness of the flash over the observation
period, the numbers of time the flash was bright or attenuation over
progressive segments each composed of 10 successive sequences were
calculated.  As can be seen with the cumulative record (upper right
panel) in Figure 1, as time progressed the strength of the flashes
decreased.  During the first 30 sequences, all of the flashes were
bright while during the last 30 sequences only 66% of the flashes were
bright.  The Mantel-Haenszel test for linear association (11.01) was
significant (p <.001);  the equivalent correlation coefficient was
-0.37;  the Spearman value was -0.29.

The numbers of successive frames (1 or 2) within which the phenomenon
occurred was negatively correlated with its brightness (rho=-0.34, p
<.001).  There was no statistically significant association between
the interstimulus interval and either the numbers of successive frames
within which the phenomenon occurred (r=-0.15) or its brightness
(rho=0.10).  The mean and standard deviation for the equivalent
frequency for the flashes during the period that was recorded were
4.9Hz and 5.0 (range=1.3Hz to 30Hz;  the median value was 2.7Hz.
However the distribution of frequencies was clearly bidodal; 23% of
the cases occurred between 2.3 and 2.5Hz while 16% of the cases were
either 10Hz or 15Hz.

The occurrence and description of the phenomenon within the Mann (the
primary observer) videotape are consistent with the predictions of the
tectonic strain hypothesis (Persinger), 1976, 1990).  Temporal
contiguity (in the order of one to three days) between a marked
increase in global geomagnetic activity and the display of energetic
luminosities, has been a frequent empirical observation (Derr and
Persinger, 1986;  Persinger, 1985;  Persinger and Derr, 1985).  The
movement towards and stationary positions over geometric structures
(e.g., tops of trees) that encourage the accumulation of electric
charge, is also compatible with the model for the behaviour of the
single event (Persinger, 1984).  In fact the dynamics of this
phenomena, including the quick vertical ascent, has been represented
graphically on the basis of the tectonic strain hypothesis (Persinger,
1990).

The additional information that was obtained from the present analysis
involves the potential physical processes within the phenomenon.  The
occurence of a conspicuous double periodicity of comparable magnitudes
within the interflicker times (less than 500msec) could be associated
with the rotation of dipoles from which visible electromagnetic energy
is emitted;  this interpretation would be compatible with the
subjective observations of the witnesses. However the phases for the
periodicities for the two poles of the dipole were not temporally
congruent.  The slower, higher amplitude periodicity, could be
considered the analogue of a synergistic 'beat'.

The likelihood that all of the periodicities were associated with
motor (muscle) artifacts as the camera person contained and lost the
moving phenomenon within the viewing field is minimal in light of the
symmetry of the periodicity.  However the occasional outliers (Figure
1) that involved much longer latencies may have involved this
mechanical problem.

Because the camera failed during the recording of the luminosity, we
cannot exclude the possibility that the periodicites (sic) could have
been associated with intrinsic factors that determined the tape speed.

We suggest a possible cause for the erratic movements of the
luminosity.  If the phenomenon were rotating about an axis and the
electromagnetic dipole from which the light was emitted was displaced
from this axis, erratic movement would occur.  The extent of the
irregular movement would have been a function of the congruence in
angle between the axis of the electromagnetic dipole and the axis of
rotation.  Whereas erratic movements (interpreted as "maneuvers")
would occur during maximum discrepancy between the axes, maximum
congruence would be associated with linear movement or stationary
activity.

References

Derr, J.S. & Persinger, M.A. Luminous phenomena and earthquakes in
southern Washington.  Experientia, 1986, 42, 991-999.

Derr, J.S. & Persinger, M.A. Luminous phenomena and seismic energy in
the central U.S.A. 'Journal of Scientific Exploration', 1990, 4,
55-69.

Persinger, M.A. Transient geophysical bases for ostensible UFO-related
phenomena and associated verbal behavior?  'Perceptual and Motor
Skills, 1076, 42 215-221.

Persinger, M.A. Geophysical variables and human behavior: XVIII.
Expected perceptual characteristics and local distributions of close
UFO reports. 'Perceptual and Motor Skills', 1984, 58, 951-959.

Persinger, M.A. Geophysical variables and behavior: XXI.  Geomagnetic
variation as possible enhancement stimuli for UFO reports preceding
earthtremors.  'Perceptual and Motor Skills', 1985, 60, 37-78.

Persinger, M.A. The tectonic strain theory as an explanation for UFO
phenomena:  a non-technical review of the research, 1970-1990.
'Journal of UFO Studies, 1990, 2, 105-137.

Persinger, M.A. & Derr, J.S.  Geophysical variables and behaviour:
XXIII.  Relations between UFO reports within the Uinta Basin and local
seismicity.  'Perceptual and Motor Skills', 1985, 60, 143-152.

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Figure 1.  Interstimulus (flicker) intervals during the 130 successive
flashes of the phenomenon.  The open circle indicates an attenuated
emission intensity.  The upper right panel is the cumulative number of
attenuated emissions per segment (containing 10 sequences) during the
observations.