Have you ever seen something you can't explain in the night sky? According to a new book, 105 people have reporting seeing something unusual in the skies above Oneida County.

Syracuse-based authors Cheryl Costa and Linda Miller Costa have put together a new reference book that takes a look at all the UFO sighting data in the United States since 2001 through 2015, and, spoiler alert: there are a LOT.

According to a press release, Cheryl Costa is a columnist for the Syracuse New Times in Syracuse, NY, retired aerospace industry information security professional, and a combat veteran who served in both the U.S. Air Force and Navy. Linda Miller Costa, M.L.S, worked in scientific research and publishing at The National Academies of Sciences and the Environmental Protection Agency. She is currently employed by LeMoyne College in Syracuse, NY.

According to their new book:

  • There were more than 121,000 eyewitness accounts during those years.
  • California led the nation in reports, at 15,836.
  • Florida, Texas, Washington State, Pennsylvania, New York, Arizona, Illinois, Michigan, and Ohio round out the top 10 states for reported eyewitness sightings.

They drilled down into the data to get really specific about Central New York sightings:

  • There were 105 UFO sightings in Oneida County, 23 in Madison County, and 31 in Herkimer County.
  • The City of Utica was responsible for 38 reports, while Rome made 19.
  • Sightings are more common in the months of June through October.
  • There were 468 UFO sightings in CNY, and 5141 in New York State.

I wonder why folks in Utica saw more? Is it because some of the buildings are a bit taller and we're able to see a little farther? Or maybe it has something to do with the bars down on Varick Street and Saranac Thursdays...hmmm.

The Costas suggest, in a New York Times interview,  that most sightings can be explained by some earthly phenomena but a few are truly inexplicable.

According to the New York Times article, entitled "People Are Seeing U.F.O.s Everywhere, and This Book Proves It":

One of the most intriguing occurred on the afternoon of Sept. 17, 2011, when a man on the roof terrace of the New Museum on the Bowery photographed a fast-moving diamond-shaped object with windows and flashing blue and red lights against the TriBeCa skyline.

The book, "The UFO Sightings Desk Reference: United States of America 2001-2015" by Cheryl Costa and Linda Miller Costa, is available from Amazon.

What do you think? Are UFO sightings real or imagined?

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