http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/celnavtable.php

I was able to determine that at the reported time and place of the sighting, it was after sunset and Venus was 22 degrees above the horizon at an azimuth of 239 degrees. Still, I can’t imagine an amateur astronomer mistaking Venus for anything else.

It is sad that this incident has been used as evidence of President Carter’s supposed loopiness. His own remarks (and I didn’t know he was an amateur astronomer) indicate a properly scientific attitude to his own sighting. Another thing to keep in mind, as a former Naval officer, Carter would have been trained in the rudiments of aircraft observation and identification.

On January 6, 1969 the sky was clear in Leary and the planet Venus was near its maximum brightness and in the direction described by Carter. Ufologist Robert Sheaffer concluded that the object that Carter witnessed was a misidentification of Venus[4] (Peebles 1994:205). Ufologist Allan Hendry did calculations and agrees with the assessment of it being Venus (Miles 2006:50–52). This could also be the Venus “Halo” [1], as was discussed on The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe podcast #105[5] in a 2007 interview with Jimmy Carter. In the interview Carter stated that he did not believe the object was Venus, explaining that he was an amateur astronomer and knew what Venus looked like. He also said that as a scientist he did not believe it was an alien craft and at the time assumed it was probably a military aircraft from a nearby base. However, he said that the object did not make any sound like a helicopter would do. Carter also said that he did not believe that any extraterrestrials have visited Earth. He also stated he knows of no government cover-up of extraterrestrial visits and that the rumors that the CIA refused to give him information about UFOs are not true.

Yeah, you’d think as much time as we spend looking up at the heavens, “we” would have seen “something”

My bet is they were looking at Capella. It’s a stunning sight hanging low on the western horizon. Red blue and white with beautiful scintillation.

Plus there was no mention of angular movement.

I think the most damning evidence against UFO’s is the advent of the smartphone. Everyone has one now but I haven’t seen any convincing pics or video.

Seems we have strayed off-topic. Kinda nice actually…

You’re an amateur astronomer, maybe you can tell me. How come amateurs like us, who probably spend more time looking at the sky than even professional astronomers do, never see a UFO?

I’ve seen about a half-dozen weird things in the sky I couldn’t identify, but nothing that totally defied explanation, that is, HAD to be something truly extraordinary, like an extraterrestrial vehicle.

A reasonable answer to that question would be something on the order of…

“I personally don’t believe there has been any UFO activity or research there, but I promise that if there is anything to those rumors I will release the truth to the American people as soon as I learn it myself.”

But somehow, I can’t imagine Trump coming up with a reasonable answer, on a moment’s notice. You can count on it being a doozy.