the buzz log

NASA astronaut Edgar Mitchell doesn't just want to believe. He knows. The sixth man to walk on the moon says aliens have been among us "many times" and the government is well aware of the fact.

The Apollo 14 pilot has made statements like this before, but a recent interview set off a flurry of new buzz. Even The New York Times jumped into the fray, offering up a blog post titled "When an astronaut believes in aliens." It includes links to past video clips of the scientist expostulating on the intergalactic visitors.

Many searchers, it seems, want to believe, too. Interest in "edgar mitchell" jumped more than 490% yesterday, while queries spiked for "ufos," "aliens," and—our favorite—"real aliens." None of the cheap plastic kind for us.

What do the space-travelers look like? According to Dr.Mitchell, they are "short, (with a) slight frame, large eyes, and large head." So keep an eye out.

Filed under: UFOs, Aliens

Call it the change in season or the chill in the air. Call it the time of year when the human mind turns to unexplained phenomena. Whatever the reason, demand for mysterious "sightings" has stolen upwards in Buzz. In the past week, fearless searchers scanned the Web for evidence of extraterrestrial visitors, otherworldly callers, and one American Idol. Here's how the queries lined up in popularity...

Some notes...

–The truth is out there—and it's shaped like a saucer. UFOs dominate the "sightings" galaxy. Other unidentified flying queries whooshing through Search this week include "haitian ufo sightings," "ufo sightings 2007," "latest ufo sightings," and "recent ufo sightings."

–Why "moonsighting" at #7 and not "moon sightings"? Rather than seeking general glimpses of the Moon, this popular query  tracks one specific destination—moonsighting.com. The web site helps Muslims to determine the "start of Islamic months based on possibility of crescent sighting."

–Dermot Mulroney (#13) and Taylor Hicks (#14)? We have no idea how this unlikely pair vaulted into a list of supernatural phenomena and mythical creatures. But we congratulate them for outranking demons, angels, and the Man of Steel.

–No Nessie? Though "real loch ness monster sightings" did surge recently, the Scottish beastie still doesn't draw enough search interest to appear in our top 20 list. Sorry, sea serpent...

Filed under: Ghosts, UFOs, Aliens

It was a close encounter of some kind. But the saucer-shaped object that reportedly hovered over Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on November 7 didn't make headlines until yesterday. Apparently, the FAA got "confused" about the sighting, first denying it and then citing weird weather. Regardless, "as many as 12" employees of United Airlines—including several pilots—testified to seeing something not-of-this-Earth float over the Windy City's runways and then take off into the clouds.

As soon as the Chicago Tribune broke the news, investigative searchers hit the Web for more on the story. Buzz on every variation of "ohare ufo," "chicago ufo," and "ufo at ohare" soared up Search. Further inquiries into the befuddled "federal aviation administration" lifted the organization more than 800%.

The sighting also triggered scrutiny of other unidentified flying objects—excuse us, unidentified aerial phenomena—and demand for "ufo sightings," "ufo pictures," "ufo videos," "2006 ufo sightings," and (our favorite) "real ufo or aliens pictures" blasted through the Buzz atmosphere. Nothing fake for us, thank you. Sadly, general "alien" buzz failed to register on the Search radar. But we're still holding out hope—and scanning the skies.

Filed under: UFOs