Bio: Erling Strand is an Assistant Professor at the School of Computer Sciences, Østfold University College in Norway (www.hiof.no).

He is one of the founders, and, since 1993, the project manager of Project Hessdalen, whose main task is to find out more about the mysterious lights in the Hessdalen Valley in Norway. He had the responsibility of the scientific and technical part of the two field works, which was run in 1984 and 1985.

An automatic station was put in operation in the Hessdalen valley in 1998. Since 2002, there have been science camps in the Hessdalen Valley, where young students spend one week in the valley searching for unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), equipped with a lot of instruments.

Erling Strand has participated in about 100 different TV programs, more than 100 radio programs, and he has held an oral presentation of the results and activities in Project Hessdalen, worldwide, more than 130 times.

Website: Hessdalen.org

Lecture: The Hessdalen Phenomena and Project Hessdalen – What has been achieved?

A big “UFO-flap” took place in the 15 km (10 miles) long Hessdalen Valley in Norway, from late 1981 to late 1984. At the peak there were up to 20 observations a week. After this big flap, the observation rate went down to about 20 a year. Project Hessdalen was established in 1983, and two field campaigns were run, with a lot of instruments and people. The project ran for five weeks in the winter of 1984 and four weeks in the winter of 1985.

The new Project Hessdalen was started in 1993. An automatic measurement station (AMS / Blue Box) was set in operation in August, 1998. Science camps have been held in September each year since 2002, where young students stay one week in tents, on the Hessdalen Mountains, looking for the phenomena each night, equipped with cameras and instruments. Professional scientists, mainly from Italy, France and Greece have cooperated with Project Hessdalen, doing measurements in the valley.

Erling’s lecture will present the history, major milestones, and key findings of the Hessdalen Project. Several important observations will be presented, together with pictures, videos and data. Come hear what has kept this project running for so many years, and why it is just now beginning to get the attention of mainstream science. What have we learned? Why is it important to the whole UFO question? And where do we go now?