Mystery AtlasDonald Menzel
Harvard astronomer and one of the most prominent public UFO sceptics of the mid-20th century, who argued that natural atmospheric and optical phenomena, including ball lightning, accounted for the great majority of reported sightings.
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Related Mysteries
- Levelland UFO Incident2-3 November 1957
Donald Menzel debunked Levelland UFO Incident — Menzel publicly championed the ball lightning explanation as the case's most probable cause; critics respond that no accepted ball lightning mechanism explains widespread automobile engine and headlight failure, and that no electrical storm was recorded in the area at the time.
Donald Menzel supports Ball Lightning — Menzel invoked ball lightning specifically as his proposed identification for the Levelland object and its reported electromagnetic effects.