So the Pentagon has admitted studying UFOs, and not a single person is shocked. I thought it would be fun to find out if our alien friends visit Mexico as well. Looks like they do!
In fact, Mexico ranks seventh in the world for the number of UFO sightings. One of Mexico’s ufologist pioneers was Pedro Ferriz, who even advised former president Gustavo Díaz Ordaz on the matter in the 1960s.
He has since been followed by others including UFO hunter Salvador Guerrero and journalist Laura Castellanos. By far, the best-known is Jaime Maussan, who has hosted a show on UFOs and the paranormal called Tercer Milenio (Third Millennium) since 2005.
There are reports of UFO sightings from all over Mexico, but some places seem to be more popular with aliens. One early incident is something that appears on a home video taken at Mexico City’s 1968 Olympic Games during the opening ceremony. Perhaps the best known are the sightings that occurred on July 11, 1991 during a total eclipse.
In both Mexico City and Puebla, one or more gray disk-shape objects were reported in the skies and were even filmed in both places. The event remains unexplained and launched a new generation of UFO enthusiasts.
In 2017, the X Files filmed an episode in Mexico City, even bringing a “damaged gray flying saucer” into the main square of the capital. The capital has, by far, the most reports of UFOs. One area with many sightings is the San Mateo corridor, where planes coming in from the north approach the international airport.
Sightings here usually describe a light or spherical object that moves off to the side as a plane approaches and returns after it has passed. Even more reports come out of an area called the “Ruta OVNI” (UFO Route) that extends around the southern perimeter of the megalopolis.
The big magnet for the aliens seems to be the Popocatépetl volcano. Because of its height and location, sightings related to it have been reported from Puebla, Morelos, the state of México and Mexico City. The installation of 24/7 webcams to monitor the volcano’s activity has only served to heighten interest in strange lights, and movements are regularly seen around the crater, especially during eruptions.
Such images have made the news at various times, including those in which an object appears to pass through the eruption, come out from the crater, or dive into it. Even lenticular cloud formations around the crater lead to speculations about alien activity. Popocatépetl has drawn foreign ufologists such as Scott C. Waring, who believes that there is an alien base kilometers below the crater’s opening.
Like in Egypt and other places, there has been speculation that aliens had something to do with the advanced ancient civilizations of Mesoamerica. Some claim that there are artifacts that indicate extraterrestrial contact, and UFO sightings are still associated with pyramids. Chichén Itzá was featured in UFO specials produced by NatGeo, Discovery Channel and Fox.
In November 2017, Uruguayan Matias Ferreira and a film crew reported a sighting at Teotihuacán where they were working and claim to have caught something on film. Local residents in Tepoztlán, just south of Mexico City, regularly claim that strong blue and yellow lights can be seen flying around the small pyramid on a nearby crag.
Other sightings have occurred in Guerrero, in southwest Mexico. In 2019, a UFO was spotted over Acapulco, causing a local government official to quip that the tourist destination was “not only recognized nationally and globally, but also outside of the planet.”
But the best known incident occurred in the rural town of Mezcala. For three days starting on December 31, 2007, circular lights appeared in the sky over the Pie de Minas Mountain, with one person recording video of part of the event.
Sonora has had more than its share of reports in various parts of the state, including the capital of Hermosillo. One of these sightings was later proved to be a hoax when a helium balloon with LED lights was found in the area where the UFO “landed.”
Monterrey is noted for one particular sighting over the city’s iconic Cerro de la Silla mountain, filmed accidentally during the making of a commercial for Coca-Cola. No one saw it at the time, but review of the footage showed an elliptical object moving fast, in daylight hours.
Sightings in Durango date back at least to 1955 when two adolescents reported being stopped in their car by a light that then disappeared over the horizon.
Not to be outdone by Popocatépetl, residents of Ciudad Madero, Tamaulipas, also talk of an alien base. The “evidence” for its existence includes the fact that there have been no major hurricanes in the area since 1966. Supposedly, the aliens divert them northward to Texas. The stories prompted the erection of a statue of a “Martian” on Miramar Beach, where sightings are reported regularly, but the statue was stolen.
The interest in UFOs is not going way anytime soon in Mexico. There are various groups that watch the skies and document sightings and other evidence of extraterrestrial visits to the country. One of the most active groups is Vigilantes del Cielo (Sky Watchers), whose work can be seen on Facebook.
Leigh Thelmadatter arrived in Mexico 17 years ago and fell in love with the land and the culture. She publishes a blog called Creative Hands of Mexico and her first book, Mexican Cartonería: Paper, Paste and Fiesta, was published last year. Her culture blog appears weekly on Mexico News Daily.
