At the end of July, members of the Kingsbridge Estuary U3A gathered in Malborough for their monthly meeting. This time, their speaker was familiar friend Adam Hart-Davis, who shared tales of some of the most enduring mysteries that have puzzled scientists and historians over the years, beginning with UFOs and how the phrase “flying saucer” came into common use.

The talk then turned to Siberia in 1908, where a meteor explosion about a mile above the ground flattened an estimated 18 million trees. The remote location meant it took 19 years before investigators could reach the site. From Siberia, the audience was transported to Peru to learn about the Nazca Lines—vast animal drawings etched into miles of desert, visible only from the air, seemingly crafted for the gods’ gaze.

Adam also spoke about the rare phenomenon of ball lightning, which has even been witnessed close to home in Widdecombe. These glowing, spherical lights sometimes follow sheet lightning and have been known to enter homes via chimneys.

Attention then turned to man-made ancient enigmas, including a device resembling a battery dating back over 2,000 years. Similarly, the Antikythera Mechanism, found accidentally by fishermen near the Greek islands, functioned as a primitive computer more than two millennia ago. Adam posed the intriguing question of how such advanced inventions could be lost over generations.

After a brief mention of reported sightings of creatures like the Yeti, Bigfoot, and Nessie, alongside true but unexplained stories of fish and frogs falling from the sky, the audience saw images of California’s Death Valley. In this remote desert, stones and boulders appear to have moved across the landscape, leaving tracks behind. However, the mystery here has a natural explanation: after rare rains, the surface becomes slick enough for wind to push the stones along.

It was a fascinating and entertaining morning, thoroughly enjoyed by all who attended.