I know this sounds a little whacky/conspiracy theorist...
But the wife and I were taking a walk last night in Riverside from St. Vincents to Memorial Park to Riverside Park back to Copeland. Near the Cummer we look up and above our head (a hundred yards I guess? Not good with vertical measurement. About 2-3 higher than a telephone pole) we see a frisbee sized flying object with a blinking light, just hovering there.
We wrote it off as one of those Brookstone toy drone things and forgot about it. 20 minutes and a mile or two later, we see it again. Couldn't see anyone around us with a joystick.
From my research, looks like it's a domestic drone. Probably a "new toy" of JSO or local feds.
Anyone seen this? If this what I think it is.....eerie, terrifying precedent. If it's just a toy and somebody has seen this before, let me know.
Ben, I think that there are a couple of companies around that take aerial photos and videos using drones. There is a condo project scheduled for the area you were in and they might have been surveying the area for planning purposes about that.
One of the companies that uses drones used to use a small, tethered balloon with fins for the same purpose, but the drones are more versatile so they have changed over.
(http://31.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lzkjmpxsBV1qhjyb0o1_500.jpg)
Oy...
There's a big difference between a widget attached to balloons, and a disk shaped object flying around for miles in various directions.
Sir Ben's suspicion that it may be a drone is given more evidence by this news article:
http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2013-02-11/story/jacksonville-could-be-home-new-navy-drone-operators
Quote from: Uncle Marx on August 29, 2013, 11:30:37 AM
Sir Ben's suspicion that it may be a drone is given more evidence by this news article:
http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2013-02-11/story/jacksonville-could-be-home-new-navy-drone-operators
Those are BIG Global Hawk drones, not something that could hover over Memorial Park.
Quote from: Dog Walker on August 29, 2013, 10:51:21 AM
Ben, I think that there are a couple of companies around that take aerial photos and videos using drones. There is a condo project scheduled for the area you were in and they might have been surveying the area for planning purposes about that.
One of the companies that uses drones used to use a small, tethered balloon with fins for the same purpose, but the drones are more versatile so they have changed over.
Drones are used for things other than law enforcement/spying.
Plus ANYONE can go buy one of these and mount a camera to it if they wish.
http://www.nitroplanes.com/quadcopters.html
The link you provided are to drones that look like play toys. We'll have to see if Ben confirms that the drone he saw looked like those.
I don't think the Navy limits itself to one size drone...
I've alerted the authorities to this thread. Expect to not hear from Metro Jacksonville user ben says for a long, long time.
The drone didn't look like any of those on the link.
Clearly we are being invaded by teeny tiny aliens. Admit, we all knew this day was coming........
They make a $300 quadcopter that has a camera and can be flown from a iphone over wifi. It was probably someone's toy. For a little more investment you can upgrade one to be able to fly miles away using video goggles.
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on August 29, 2013, 01:09:35 PM
Clearly we are being invaded by teeny tiny aliens. Admit, we all knew this day was coming........
OMG Batteries Not Included was real!!!! (80's movie reference)
Quote from: Cheshire Cat on August 29, 2013, 01:09:35 PM
Clearly we are being invaded by teeny tiny aliens. Admit, we all knew this day was coming........
Do they at least come with batteries this time?
(http://i.imgur.com/cPggFf9.jpg)
Probably nothing to worry about, citizen. Go about your day.
Actual photo of the mysterious Cummer UFO...
(https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRS2ivwlzSzybtl-ElaqKrt4EIlwLuTQW9kvtCUgbyPLNpA6wVQ)
The Cowford Beastie...
(http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/files/2013/07/Loch-Ness-Monster-Shiels-muppet-photo-small-version-300-px-tiny-July-2013.jpg)
The Middleburg Skunk Ape...
(http://theshadowlands.net/SKUNKAPE.jpg)
Florida alien sighting:
(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cp_PFgaG_OA/T52hQlKj-rI/AAAAAAAAATI/pGEvrEsLU1k/s400/Alien+Rodeo.jpg)
Quote from: Tacachale on August 29, 2013, 03:35:42 PM
Florida alien sighting:
(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cp_PFgaG_OA/T52hQlKj-rI/AAAAAAAAATI/pGEvrEsLU1k/s400/Alien+Rodeo.jpg)
Notice the blurry, out of focus, poor photography in my images and the clear sharp images in your example? MY photos are real... yours is an obvious photoshop fake...
I saw one a couple weeks ago in Avondale. Yes, this pic is real. And yes, I mooned it. :)
(http://i.imgur.com/mpYN5Rn.jpg)
Quote from: BridgeTroll on August 29, 2013, 03:41:37 PM
Quote from: Tacachale on August 29, 2013, 03:35:42 PM
Florida alien sighting:
(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cp_PFgaG_OA/T52hQlKj-rI/AAAAAAAAATI/pGEvrEsLU1k/s400/Alien+Rodeo.jpg)
Notice the blurry, out of focus, poor photography in my images and the clear sharp images in your example? MY photos are real... yours is an obvious photoshop fake...
Pshaw. I just had a better camera. Thankfully I had my Nikon on my when I spotted that.
True story: a few years ago I was driving in my old neighborhood in St. Nicholas when a flying saucer flew in out of nowhere, bounced off my windshield, and clattered into the street. I put on the breaks, trying to process whether that had really just happened. Then a shirtless neighbor with a remote control strolls over, scowls at me like I'm the jerk, then collects his saucer and goes back to his lawn chair. Strange times we live in.
Ben, there are a number of different types of drones anyone can buy. Not to long ago we had a media company come out to UNF shooting video with a mini-helicopter. For what it's worth I don't think JSO has them.
Quote from: peestandingup on August 29, 2013, 03:46:40 PM
I saw one a couple weeks ago in Avondale. Yes, this pic is real. And yes, I mooned it. :)
(http://i.imgur.com/mpYN5Rn.jpg)
I think we were standing by the same tree!!!
(https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRS2ivwlzSzybtl-ElaqKrt4EIlwLuTQW9kvtCUgbyPLNpA6wVQ)
There have been videos posted various places of creepy voyeurs with too much money using higher-end personal drones to capture footage of people in subdivisions and other places sunbathing and even filming into windows. I'd put my money on something like this more than the navy or JSO. If it's mil, I don't think they're going to put lights on it and if it's supposed to fly that low to the ground, you probably wouldn't even hear it.
The ones you can buy/build are getting really advanced and unfortunately, these things are replacing creepy neighbors with telescopes and binoculars.
Quote from: BridgeTroll on August 29, 2013, 03:51:55 PM
Quote from: peestandingup on August 29, 2013, 03:46:40 PM
I saw one a couple weeks ago in Avondale. Yes, this pic is real. And yes, I mooned it. :)
(http://i.imgur.com/mpYN5Rn.jpg)
I think we were standing by the same tree!!!
(https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRS2ivwlzSzybtl-ElaqKrt4EIlwLuTQW9kvtCUgbyPLNpA6wVQ)
Lol, holy shit. I think you're right! What does it all mean?!
BTW, were you at Stinson Park?
Quote from: Tacachale on August 29, 2013, 03:35:42 PM
Florida alien sighting:
(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Cp_PFgaG_OA/T52hQlKj-rI/AAAAAAAAATI/pGEvrEsLU1k/s400/Alien+Rodeo.jpg)
I want to believe...
Quote from: stephendare on August 29, 2013, 01:19:52 PM
(https://sphotos-b-mia.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/321466_10151585874813979_382765724_n.jpg)
these were at the Welcome to Rockville festival.
That one is a consumer Quadcopter. It doesn't even have the GoPro on the mount on it.
http://www.nitroplanes.com/13h-dji-phantom-white-rtf-24g.html
They were describing something similar at the Georgia Dome last night - dropping T-shirts on parachutes.
BTW, get ready for the big boys around town:
(http://breakingdefense.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2012/06/bams.jpg)
http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/news/2013/08/14/bams-contract.html
Maybe something more like this:
http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=68841788&force_embed=1&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=1&color=00adef&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0