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ctfchallenge | all galleries >> Challenge #22: UFOs - Unidentified Photographed Objects >> Challenge #22: UFO Exhibition Gallery > Pops' UFO #1
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15-JAN-2002 Pops

Pops' UFO #1

Cropping, USM, and auto levels only.

Canon PowerShot S300
1/60s f/2.7 at 5.4mm (35mm equivalent: 37mm) with Flash full exif

other sizes: small medium original auto
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Jim B (MSP)09-Jan-2003 13:53
Ann has it. According to Pop's : Pops' UFO #1 - Is the heat shield on the Gemini II capsule. An unmanned capsule launched Jan 19, 1965 and currently on display at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Matt S 09-Jan-2003 04:06
I think Ann's got it!



Diameter of heat shield: 2.26 m (7 ft 5 in)
Heat shield: Silicone-elastismer-filled, phenolic-impregnated fiberglass honeycomb

of course, I've been wrong before.
Ann Chaikin09-Jan-2003 03:05
Part of the Gemini spacesip... or something called gemini. Ann C
Jim B (MSP)08-Jan-2003 22:28
Mike - you are the closest yet with a couple of your guesses. Not quite exact, however. (Pops left me the answer and asked me to look at the comments)
Jim
Guest 08-Jan-2003 19:15
is it what they use to catch the flames of rockets? that should be the right shape, size, would explain the lack of craters but the smoke smears and the texture of the fiberous but ceramic like texture.


---Mike Savad
Guest 08-Jan-2003 19:12
is it a blasting range, for shells or bullets? a really messed up squash wall?


---Mike Savad
Guest 08-Jan-2003 18:12
Satellite Dish! Satellite Dish! Right shape but wrong function. And they had them 38 years ago except they were 100 feet in diameter.
I am literally laughing out loud. Why? Because, my fellow challengers, your guesses are around the mark but no bullseye. AND because the answer has *ALWAYS* been there for you and I think that's a colossal joke on me! The answer has *ALWAYS* been there! Do you want to know what this strange object is? Here's the biggest hint I can give you. Save it to your hard drive and study it carefully. The answer will be there. If you look in the right place it will be right before your eyes, plain as day. I know it works on my PC and my son, who is a MacHead, checked it out on his system. It works there as well. So take a moment, save the file and then laugh with or at me! I'm about to go out of town for the rest of this challenge. I couldn't leave you hanging without an answer. I've enjoyed this challenge more than any other.
Guest 08-Jan-2003 17:30
it couldn't be a very old satellite dish, could it? i thought of it but decided they didn't have those 38 years ago - or did they? otherwise, i'm guessing it's a real alien space-ship from the planet zorgon :-)
Guest 08-Jan-2003 12:37
In its day (38 years ago) this was very high tech! Alas, a crucible hasn't been high tech for a century.
ctfchallenge08-Jan-2003 00:44
Large crucible for melting steel or some other metal? Ann
Guest 07-Jan-2003 23:34
Sorry, Ann, it has nothing to do with microwaves. Mike's got the closest guess yet. The pattern is the result of very high heat, but not from a flame. This image is about 3 or 4 feet across while the entire thing is over seven feet across. It would be perfect for making small jewelry for (as I raise my extended pinkie finger to the corner of my mouth) GODZILLA!
ctfchallenge07-Jan-2003 16:49
i'll give it a stab - it's a heat proof tile, in this case it looks like it was for smelting of small jewelry with a non oxygen rich flame.


---Mike Savad
ctfchallenge07-Jan-2003 16:37
Is it a microwave antenna or something like that? Ann
Guest 05-Jan-2003 21:05
yes - i notices later it was too big to be a bowl
Guest 05-Jan-2003 13:06
Close. I had to look it up to be sure. Today's equivalent is made from ceramics but this is fiberglass and resin. And although it is "bowl" shaped it is definetly not a bowl.
Guest 05-Jan-2003 01:11
could it be. i wonder - one of those 70's ceramic bowls?
Guest 04-Jan-2003 22:36
Actually this is about 38 years old, so it's not petrified wood. There is some depth to this but not much and what there is, is totally not visible in this picture. The brown area in the middle is a puzzle to me as well. I think it was put there after this item was created. I can almost guarentee it wasn't there originally. There was no color adjustment, this is the way it looks. Sorry, Ann, it's never seen mud, never been on the street and I don't think it's even metal. Let me see, not paper, not cloth, not metal, not petrified wood, what is this?
ctfchallenge04-Jan-2003 21:21
Splash of mud and dirt on a metal grate in the street? Ann
Guest 04-Jan-2003 20:32
it looks like very old or petrified wood . . . shot through a screen door (or covered with duct tape). is it flat or is there some depth? was there any color adjustment or is this how it would look with our eyes? the brown area near the middle is puzzling to me(or at least more puzzling than the rest). tom
Guest 04-Jan-2003 15:46
looks to me like part of a painting on canvas
Guest 04-Jan-2003 00:33
I don't recognise the texture or color, but is it a concrete block wall?
Guest 03-Jan-2003 21:34
There certainly is a strong texture in this picture but it's not paper. Nor is it cloth. And no paint was used to make this. The area of this photo is between three and four feet across, that's about 1.0 to 1.3 meters. Keep on guessing!
ctfchallenge03-Jan-2003 20:48
Paint on watercolor paper? Ann
ctfchallenge03-Jan-2003 15:48
That's a very generic guess, Ann. Check out the EXIF data. It gives you the focal length and the focus distance. That will give you an idea on how large or small this object is ;-) Pops
Ann Chaikin03-Jan-2003 01:47
Some kind of splatter pattern on something with texture?
ctfchallenge02-Jan-2003 12:59
Matt Soliie guessed. "Is it the backside of vinyl flooring/tile?" - No! Pops
Sony Forums Challenges02-Jan-2003 00:34
Is this a piece of crinkled paper with dirt on it? Ann C