UFOs??

[leeham991]

Weird thing happened to me today.

I was coming in for return from the Mun, about 100km above Kerbin, then a bright light appeared on the horizon. I thought it was Minmus or just a star at first, but then it quickly got closer before stopping paralel to my craft to the north. Up close it looked like a shiny black square, but it only stayed for a couple of second before shooting off into space. My first thought it that it was a particularly bizarre graphical glitch, but then I started thinking maybe it is a random event programmed into the game? Maybe orbiting easter eggs??

I'm pretty sure it wasn't rocket debris because I'd not left anything up in orbit in the career yet, and it moved in a weird way.

In the way of graphics I am using Distant Objects, Visual Enhancement and Active Texture Management. All of the other plugins I have are physics or parts based, nothing which adds any space debris or planets or anything, or makes any graphics changes.

Anyone else encountered any bizarre UFOs like this?

[Sirrobert]

Nope, there is no such thing in the game

[Shna_na]

This is a bug, by my guess. It is not programmed into the game, but may be in one of the mods. You also have a lot of these graphics-based mods, some of which may not be compatible with each other or the version of the game you're running. That can lead to problems, stuff like this happens all the time under such circumstances.

As for it not being programmed into the game, Squad have said that they don't want intelligent life to be in the game (other than Kerbals, of course). Mods can do it, sure, but it is not and will not be in the stock game. If I recall correctly, it is rumored that there may be an expansion pack in a few years, when the game is finished, that might add things like life and possibly intelligent life, but I can't confirm that.

Edited May 18, 2014 by Shna_na

[Aethon]

Typical rocket scientist party doctrine. I suppose somebody'll "prove" it was the light of Eve reflected off swamp gas or some other such nonsense. I've seen some strange things out there too leeham. One time Jeb disappeared, and when he came back he made strange entries in his mission report about a "probe", something about a "ring around Uranus" and Multi- player??. I believe we may, one day discover "others" out there!

To paraphrase The Bard, there are stranger things in heaven and earth than can be dreampt of in your philosophy Horatio. Keep looking to the skies leeham, the truth is out there! Discounting a theory simply because of it's long association with crackpots gives crackpots entirely too much credit. :^)

Edited May 18, 2014 by Aethon

[leeham991]

What with the monoliths all over the place, a crashed alien craft on Kerbin and the dead octopus I didn't think it was unlikely that I was seeing something which was supposed to be there. I'm pretty sure none of the mods I use add anything like that, they are mostly things that people with better technical skills will play around with to get the realism overhaul to work. Just a really weird graphical glitch UFO then I suppose xD

[Justin Kerbice]

It's in fact the skybox of Kerbin or something like this (a texture use for the sky), I see it all the time by using my own UFO with the reflection plug-in by Starwaster.

At least it's an harmless bug !

(+bonus, I also see a UFO-Mun travelling the same way)

(is it the UFO season here ?)

[Sirrobert]

Typical rocket scientist party doctrine. I suppose somebody'll "prove" it was the light of Eve reflected off swamp gas or some other such nonsense. I've seen some strange things out there too leeham. One time Jeb disappeared, and when he came back he made strange entries in his mission report about a "probe", something about a "ring around Uranus" and Multi- player??. I believe we may, one day discover "others" out there!

To paraphrase The Bard, there are stranger things in heaven and earth than can be dreampt of in your philosophy Horatio. Keep looking to the skies leeham, the truth is out there! Discounting a theory simply because of it's long association with crackpots gives crackpots entirely too much credit. :^)

*puts on sunglasses*

Sir please look very close at this little light

[Commander Jebidiah]

I think the OP is on to some thing.

I can also post a video tomorrow when I get home from school.

In the video there is a blinking light.

[Shna_na]

I think the OP is on to some thing.

Squad are a company that prides themselves on their transparency towards their consumers, and have already stated repeatedly that intelligent life is not and will not be in the game. I trust that they aren't lying, as I trust everything they say. So far, they haven't wronged me. The only hint of intelligent life in the game is certain easter eggs in the game

The crashed polar UFO, Vallhenge, the monoliths/munoliths, etc.

, however this is all they are: easter eggs, and nothing more.

[dryer_lint]

Reading this thread spooked me out a little bit

[ximrm]

Same thing happened to me too!

Did you mean this ?

[Deathsoul097]

It's in fact the skybox of Kerbin or something like this (a texture use for the sky), I see it all the time by using my own UFO with the reflection plug-in by Starwaster.

At least it's an harmless bug !

(+bonus, I also see a UFO-Mun travelling the same way)

(is it the UFO season here ?)

Last I heard there was a floating Munolith a few kilometres up. Maybe that's what people are seeing? Distant Objects Enhancements would make it more visible too, so that may be one possible explanation.

[Vallius]

Have you already been able to discount spacejunk? I've had a couple close calls with broken solar panels orbiting retrograde from early launches.

[Tex]

Quick! To the Sciencemobile!

[XVeris]

They should add into the game as an Easter Egg, one of those flying discs that have crashed landed, except this one moves around to various planets. Once it gets into a stable orbit around some planet or moon, it will stay there for a few days, choose another planet or moon at random, then get into an orbit around it. Somebody make a mod or something, maybe.

[thereaverofdarkness]

Sounds to me that you saw a monolith, though I thought they don't move under their own power. So I'm at a loss as I did not see what you saw.

[ximrm]

I think i solved the case.

This happens to me after i reach 30km and sometimes in space. I think it has to do with the new version of smokescreen.

These flares should normally be at the end of the vessel.

[Shna_na]

I think i solved the case.

This happens to me after i reach 30km and sometimes in space. I think it has to do with the new version of smokescreen.

These flares should normally be at the end of the vessel.

-snip-

You just might be right there. I've experienced this on occasion, too. Squad might have fixed this already if such is the case,

it might already be fixed, as 0.24 is confirmed to improve and add new particle effects

.

[Epthelyn]

You just might be right there. I've experienced this on occasion, too. Squad might have fixed this already if such is the case,

it might already be fixed, as 0.24 is confirmed to improve and add new particle effects

.

new version of smokescreen.

Not something Squad can fix if the issue is caused by a mod

[Javster]

This is a bug, by my guess. It is not programmed into the game, but may be in one of the mods. You also have a lot of these graphics-based mods, some of which may not be compatible with each other or the version of the game you're running. That can lead to problems, stuff like this happens all the time under such circumstances.

As for it not being programmed into the game, Squad have said that they don't want intelligent life to be in the game (other than Kerbals, of course). Mods can do it, sure, but it is not and will not be in the stock game. If I recall correctly, it is rumored that there may be an expansion pack in a few years, when the game is finished, that might add things like life and possibly intelligent life, but I can't confirm that.

You think Kerbals are intelligent??

Seriously though, I'm 90% sure it's Distant Object Enhancement that's doing it.

[Shna_na]

Not something Squad can fix if the issue is caused by a mod

If it's the particle effects causing it, it's likely not a mod unless the mod tweaks the particle effects.

I'm 90% sure it's Distant Object Enhancement that's doing it.

It could be a combination of the two, or more even.

[ximrm]

Something funny happened to me. It looks like a glitz. A monolith like object,(I'm pretty sure it was part of a button was slowly orbiting counterclockwise the solar system. When I turned off unknown objects,it disappeared,and did not reappear as I reenabled that filter.

Sure it was a glitch,but why was it orbiting there and for what object was it a placeholder? There were no asteroids as far as I can tell.

I bet it's the NSA,scanning my system!

Edited May 24, 2014 by ximrm

[UFO Researcher]

go to see this http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/entries/3541-UFO-Sighting%21%21%21 and say what you think in the comments.

[impyre]

I spotted some odd objects the other day that were blinking at me (i have distant objects enhancement also). I puzzled over what it could've been for quite awhile, as there were no planets in that area of space. I hadn't yet unlocked unowned object tracking, but I came to the conclusion that I was looking at an asteroid. Later on I saw my station "blinking" at me from 100km distance, so I'm pretty sure it was an asteroid.