Man photographs hovering cigar-shaped UFO for over two hours as it is witnessed by thousands across three states
By James Nye - |The sighting has excited the UFO community online - leading to a group of enthusiasts known as the Ashtar Command Crew claiming the craft to be a 'Lightship'
Something very strange was spotted high above the skies of Pike County last week leaving those who witnessed the UFO bewildered as to what it could be.
The mystery glowing object which has left people wondering what is flying over their heads was watched by amateur astronomer Allen Epling from his Virgie, Kentucky home for over two hours.
Taking video and pictures of the unusual craft, Epling was just one of thousands who saw the cigar-shaped craft across three states and the part-time star-gazer estimated the UFO to be operating at over 100,000 feet - over twice the height a commercial jet flies.
UFO: Allen Epling captured these images of a mysterious object hovering for hours
'It wasn't anything I recognised. Definitely not an airplane, and I've never seen a helicopter that looked like that,' said Allen Epling to WSAZ News.
Witnessed across Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee the UFO was unlike anything the veteran amateur astronomer had ever seen before.
'Looked like two fluorescent bulbs, side by side, parallel, shining very brightly,' said Epling.
'It would get so bright they would seem to merge, and you could see it very clearly with the naked eye. Then it would dim down almost invisible.'
The cigar-shaped craft glowed at regular intervals and it was seen by thousands across three different states
'I don't understand how it could stay up there in one place. There was no sign of propellers or any kind of propulsion system. No gas is coming out,' said Epling.
Police in the area reported that they received a large number of calls about the object but they were unable to find the craft.
'We received several calls about it, but our trooper was unable to locate any object in the sky,' said Kentucky State Police Trooper Shaun Little to the Appalachian News Express.
Local airports from Pine County also said that they do not have any records of aicraft flying over their airspace during the hours that Epling videoed and photographed the UFO.
Viewed through his astronomical telescope Mr. Epling videoed and photographed the UFO for over two hours
Mr. Epling was sure the object was real - but he was unsure whether it was of alien origin
The Meade 8" SCT astronomical telescope that Mr. Epling used to watch the UFO
Observed through a Mead 8" SCT astronomical telescope the unidentified object did not drift more than 10 degrees in any direction and was sighted approximately 60 degrees above the horizon.
On Epling's YouTube posting of the UFO video he explained the movement of the craft: 'I want to emphasize that the object is NOT moving. The picture is unsteady because I had to hold the camera in hand while trying to video it through the eyepiece of the telescope.'
The craft has excited the UFO community nationwide, with some speculating that the craft is in fact an alien spaceship from the Ashtar Galactic Command.
Jose Ignacio Contreras, who operates the blog, Ashtar Command Crew, commented that Epling's video shows 'what appears to be two large Lightships recorded in clear skies during day light hours.'
Epling himself is unsure of what exactly the craft is, but is sure that it is of Earthly origin.
'I’ve wanted to see a UFO all my life,' he said. 'I wasn’t scared, I was fascinated, especially to see something out of the ordinary.'
