Posted on 10/09/2022 7:14:07 AM PDT by BenLurkin
On a four-mile rural road eerily nicknamed the Devil's Promenade, just off the old Route 66 in the north-east corner of Oklahoma, a paranormal mystery has puzzled spirit seekers for more than 100 years. The Hornet Spook Light – a mysterious, basketball-sized glowing orb named for the former town of Hornet – has been appearing in the night sky here since 1881. No-one knows what this peculiar, smouldering ball of light signifies, where it comes from or what it's composed of. Even the Army Corps of Engineers have concluded that it's a "mysterious light of unknown origin".
It moves, spinning and bobbing up and down, like a lantern held by a dancing ghost, and is usually spotted from inside the Oklahoma border looking to the west.
The first documented investigation into the Hornet Spook Light was undertaken by AB MacDonald, a reporter for the Kansas City Star, in January 1936. MacDonald judged that the mysterious lights were the headlights of cars driving east on Route 66.
Writer Robert Gannon concluded the same in a 1965 article in Popular Mechanics after conducting a test: he flashed his headlights on the adjacent highway at a specific time. His assistant, stationed on Devil's Promenade, reported that the Hornet Spook Light appeared simultaneously.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
“From I-44, take exit 4 - HWY 86 South. Follow approx six miles to junction Route BB. Turn right on BB Highway and follow the road until it ends. Turn right again, go one mile, turn left on E50 Road (also known as Spooklight Road). Approx 1 1/2 - 2 miles is the darkest and best place to wait.”
- https://www.joplinmo.org/575/The-Spook-Light
Of interest.
Kinda like Marfa, TX. The lights in the hills are car headlights shining off the quartz in the rocks.
Ping !
There is a “ghost road” southeast of here that is kinda the same.
How about a spectrophotometric analysis similar to what they do with stars. Could easily tell if they were halogen headlight ( which didn’t exist 100 years ago).
There are other possible physical explanations.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ball_lightning#Direct_measurements_of_natural_ball_lightning
There is one in Pueblo, Colorado too. It’s called the Overton Road Light. Seen it myself several times. Never did find out what it is, but being so close to Ft. Carson, I figure it’s some sort of signaling device.
Rod Sterling lives
1881, eh?
The car headlights were pretty bright back then. (sarc)
By ‘here’ I mean Henderson County, TX.
I love that movie, just for the soundtrack alone. Don Felder topped it off.
Or moon reflections...
It is great.
There’s actually a South Park episode that was heavily referencing the movie.
If you don’t mind crass humor, it’s quite hilarious.
Takin’ A Ride:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYqEgFEkxek
***1965 article in Popular Mechanics***
I read that article way back then!
Newspaper editors in the 1880s were known to fill empty space on their newspapers with wild made up stories.
The New York SUN, in the early 1800s got it’s start with wild stories about finding flying men on the moon.
Well, it’s October, I guess time for some stories of the paranormal. Two from my Dad, from his time flying B-52’s into Southeast Asia.
First story he told me: B-52 took off from Andersen AFB on Guam, loaded with bombs for Hanoi. The plane suffered engine failure on takeoff, and went off the cliff at the end of the runway. It crashed into the ocean below the cliff, all 6 crew were killed. Shortly after, USAF maintenance crews began to refuse to work alone in the parking spot that plane had occupied prior to takeoff. They reported smelling cigar smoke, and hearing voices. One Airman said he’d actually been clapped on the back, and asked, “Hey buddy, you got a light?” There was nobody out there but him.
Second story: Dad is out walking with his co-pilot one night in Thailand, when his co-pilot asks him what the bright light in the sky near the horizon was. Dad was a Navigator, and knew his celestial navigation. He said, “Oh, it’s probably just Venus.” Then he did a double take, because Venus wasn’t in that part of the sky at that time of year. But there was this bright light, hovering off the horizon. The next morning at Squadron Briefing, the Wing Commander came in and asked if anyone had seen the light the night previous. A number of hands went up. The Wing Commander said they’d sent a helicopter out to investigate the light, but when the helo pilot got within a mile or so of it, the pilot said, “Screw this, I have a wife and kids at home, I’m turning around.” No other information that he had about it.
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