50 Years Ago, This Small Kansas Town Was A Hotbed Of UFO Sightings
Editor's Note: Please note that there are no known photographs of the UFOs in Dighton, KS. The photos included in this story are of artists' representations and other reported UFO sightings.
Reported sightings of unidentified flying objects are nothing new. Sure, we might see these tales on the pages of supermarket tabloids and clickbait websites today, but UFO sightings actually date all the way back to 1947. Both the night sky and the seemingly endless Midwestern plains have a tendency to spark the imagination. It's hard not to look out at the endless Kansas landscape, or a star-filled clear sky, and not think that there could be something out there besides us humans. It doesn't come as much of a surprise, then, that some of the most famous UFO sightings in history occurred in the Sunflower State. Back in the 1970s, the little town of Dighton was an absolute hotbed of extraterrestrial sightings. Curiosity seekers came from all over to see if they could catch their own glimpse of a spaceship, The town is much quieter today, with only around 950 residents, but its name lives on in infamy as the home of dozens of UFO sightings during the 1970s.
Dighton, KS is a quiet little city in western Kansas, a region that reported more than 40 UFO sightings in the year 1972. Dozens of them occurred in Dighton, making it the unofficial UFO capital of the state.
The flying objects were reported by numerous citizens of Dighton, including the police chief and several farmers, all of whom were typically thought of as rational-minded, sane people.
The police attempted to investigate the mysterious floating lights, which hovered in the air and moved in strange directions.
Reportedly, when the patrol cars drew near, the lights would move away. The police chief reached speeds of over 100 miles per hour in an effort to catch up to the lights but was unable to do so.
The nearby Air Force Base reported that they didn't have any low-flying aircraft that could be attributed to the sightings.
The sightings were so noteworthy that the National Enquirer offered a $50,000 reward for anyone who could prove that the lights came from another planet. The reward remains unclaimed today.
Next time you're out in western Kansas, keep your eyes peeled: who knows what you might see in the sky!
Have you ever heard of the UFO sightings in Dighton, KS? Ever seen one with your own eyes? Share your experiences in the comments!
Looking to explore the night sky? Check out this cool monocular telescope from REI!
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