UFO's in Canada by Michael Strainic This is where we are supposed to tell you who exactly we are and what we are trying to do with this site, and that sort of thing. And eventually we're going to do exactly that, but the truth is that we are pretty much like any other organization of this type, just bigger. We're a group of people -- professionals and non-professionals alike -- with one common interest: Unidentified Flying Objects, in all of their varying types and flavours.

In our specific case, we also have one other major thing in common: we are based in Canada and are primarily Canadians, in all of our varying types and flavours. And that -- our diversity of ethnicity, culture and geography -- gives us a unique perspective on our chosen topic of UFOs.

There are several things we hope are different about MUFON Canada. One of the major things is the fact that although we take the the topic of UFOs extremely seriously, we try not to take ourselves too seriously. Humour is a great diversion when dealing with what can be very unpleasant and even at times grim subject matter. We hope you agree.

As well, our approach may be a little different. Fact, though it may not be as titillating, must take precedence over rumour. We are here to add to our knowledge of the UFO phenomenon, not endlessly persue tantalizing chimera. That doesn't mean that you won't find rumour and speculation here, but if and when you do, we will try to make sure it is clearly labelled as exactly that.

This entire site will be evolving as time goes on, including this area.

Please stop back soon for more information about MUFON Canada and how you can become involved in researching and investigating the greatest mystery facing mankind.

So, for the time being, and whether you are Canadian or not, for the sake of perspective, here are a few facts about the backdrop against which we work that you might care to ponder.....

With the collapse of the former Soviet Union, Canada is now the largest country in the world. It extends 2880 miles from north to south, stretches 3426 miles from east to west, and encompasses 5½ time zones (it is, actually, six zones, but in typical Canadian idiosyncratic fashion, the time zone for Newfoundland is just a one half-hour difference).

Our smallest province, Prince Edward Island, is roughly twice the size of Rhode Island, USA.

Our largest province, the French-speaking Québec, is a bit larger than the US state of Alaska; Alaska itself is roughly twice the size of Texas.

You could put the entire US state of Texas into the Canadian Northwest Territories five times over.

We're large, and overall, not too crowded, either. According to the 1991 census, the population of Canada was 27,296,859. This is double what it was only 40 years ago. And yet it is only about one-tenth the population of the US.

Eight of our twelve provinces and territories have less than 1 million people.

Of our 27 million, 17 million live in the eastern industrial provinces of Ontario and Québec.

The Yukon Territory and Northwest Territories together have a combined area of 1.5 million square miles; this is approximately equal to the combined areas of Alaska, Texas, California, Montana, New Mexico, Arizona, and Nevada, with a little left over. Yet the combined population of these two territories tops out at a meagre 85,000 people.

It is estimated that between 80% and 90% of our population lives within 40 miles of US border.

We're very inventive. Some Canadian discoveries and inventions include: the McIntosh apple, kerosene, the steam-operated foghorn, basketball, the gas mask, insulin, the snowmobile, Superman®, pablum (the first pre-cooked cereal), the paint roller, mashed potato flakes, degradable plastic, Trivial Pursuit®, and the Canadarm (a.k.a. the Shuttle Remote Manipulator System or robot-arm).

Of course, not all is Warm and Fuzzy with Canada. In addition to our time-honoured but not unique tradition of electing our misfits to public office, Canada is also directly to blame for:

• those legendary "cold fronts" and "arctic blasts" that from time-to-time descend on a comfortable and unsuspecting continent
• the butter tart •the Goods & Services Tax (GST)
• talk show host Jenny Jones
• •rock star Bryan Adams
• •talk show host Jenny Jones (once is never enough)
• •actor Keanu Reeves
• •James "the Amusing" Randi

So, what does this have to do with UFOs? Well, a lot, really. This is a very large country with a very small population. With all our technology, we are still at odds with our geography, the elements and the vagaries of the human species. This makes investigation especially difficult. Add to it the fact that we are chasing an already-elusive beast, and it's surprising that we have been able to document much at all regarding UFOs. But the Canadian UFO files are high in both quantity and quality -- and in many instances, quite high in Strangeness, as well.

So, for now, climb on board, take a look around, and discover just how strange reality can be!