10 Freaky and Unexplained UFO Encounters in Arizona

Gazing at Arizona's Dark Skies

You haven't lived until you've spent an evening under Arizona's dark skies. With a reputation for space discoveries, our state was the first to identify Pluto, comets, and other outer space objects.

However, natural and scientifically explainable space objects are not the only things Arizona's skygazers have noticed over the years.

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Arizona has been a hotspot for UFO sightings since the 1950s, and the reports go back decades. One of the earliest incidents happened in 1947 when William Rhodes captured a series of photos of a flying saucer over Phoenix.

This event launched Arizona’s reputation as a UFO sighting hub.

READ: How High School Drop Out Made a Famous Discovery in Arizona

The Phoenix Lights

One of the most famous incidents happened in 1997, an occurrence that's never been adequately explained. Thousands of people across the Phoenix Valley witnessed, filmed, and photographed the Phoenix Lights in an era before cell phone cameras were the norm.

READ: Arizona Explores Flat Earth and Alien Conspiracy Theories

The mysterious lights formed a V-shaped that hovered over the Phoenix skyline for hours. This mass sighting was one of the most well-documented in history; to this day, it's still hotly debated.

The Travis Walton Abduction Incident

In 1975, the Travis Walton abduction incident happened near Snowflake.

In yet another curious incident involving UFOs in Arizona, a young man named Travis Walton worked as a logger in the area. He claimed to have been taken aboard a UFO, and the experience was later turned into the movie Fire in the Sky.

Whether you believe in UFOs or think they may have another explanation, this list of ten UFO Encounters has been submitted for your examination. What do you believe?

Sources: Phoenix Lights - Wikipedia | Phoenix New Times | AZ Central | Travis Walton Incident - Wikipedia | Space.com