June 22nd Falcon Project Fundraiser Kick-off in Portland Oregon

Rendering of the Bigfoot Blimp to be used in the Falcon Project

Experts will present compelling evidences that motivate the most ambitious undertaking to search for the legendary and elusive North American primate from the air, using the latest in aerial surveillance technology.

Press release from Dr. Jeff Meldrum:

Date:  6/11/13

Written by: 

Contact: Dr. Jeff Meldrum, 208-282-4379

An all-day symposium event to kick-off fundraising for the THE FALCON PROJECT – The most penetrating search for the legendary sasquatch ever undertaken, will take place June 22, 2013 in Portland OR.  Hosted by Olympia Beer, in the Bossanova Ballroom, the symposium will feature multimedia presentations, panel discussions and exhibits. (http://www.bossanovaballroom.com/event-details/?The-Falcon-Project-72-Portland).

The Falcon Project proposes to conduct an extensive aerial search for an unrecognized North American primate, a.k.a. sasquatch or Bigfoot, by means of an helium-filled airship, upon which a platform supporting thermal-imaging and high resolution wireless videography equipment is mounted. The Aurora Mk II airship offers major advantages over similar applications with helicopter or fixed-wing aircraft platforms, foremost, stealth and maneuverability.

The former permits approach and observation with minimal or no disturbance of the subject’s natural behavior.  The latter is critical for surveying in areas of dense stands of forest where a sustained vertical perspective is essential for locating animals on the forest floor.

The unmanned 45′ dual airship is equipped with a proprietary propulsion system that can carry the airship at speeds of 35-45 mph and maneuver with the degree of precision necessary to track a fast-moving animal. The construction, instrument integration, and flight training is being provided by Remote Aerial Tripods Inc. of Canada, (www.ratsinc.net) with Stephen Barkley as lead designer of the Aurora Mk II. The airship, gyro-stabilized camera mount, and ground operations equipment have been designed specifically for the requirements of this task. The sleek, quiet, never-before-used technology eliminates the noise produced by conventional aircraft and on the ground investigators, allowing stealthy approach to wary reclusive species. The challenge of locating a solitary, nocturnal far-ranging, intelligent primate is demonstrated by the dearth of definitive photographic evidence. The Falcon Project offers a novel approach employing the latest technologies.

The research is to be coordinated through Idaho State University, with Dr. Jeff Meldrum, professor of anatomy & anthropology, acting as principal investigator. Meldrum has been probing the question of sasquatch’s existence for nearly 17 years, ever since examining a line of inexplicable 15-inch bipedal footprints in southeastern Washington. Meldrum is author of one of the most authoritative treatments of the subject, Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science. He has published a number of scientific papers examining the footprint evidence.  He now edits an on- line refereed journal, The Relict Hominoid Inquiry (www.isu.edu/rhi) examining the global phenomenon of relict “wildmen.”

This initiative gets underway even as a critical DNA study is being conduct by the Oxford-Luassane Collateral Hominid Project is examining a number of hair samples attributed to sasquatch.  Lead by Professor Bryan Sykes a human geneticist from Oxford University and director of Oxford Ancestors Ltd.  Sykes's books include the New York Times best-selling The Seven Daughters of Eve. “Even if definitive DNA sequence data point to the existence of a novel species,” states Meldrum, “it will not suddenly become easy to study such a rare and elusive primate in the field. That’s where the Falcon Project comes in. Aerial reconnaissance holds the greatest potential for locating and observing the range and the behavior of the sasquatch.”

William Barnes (williamallenbarnes@yahoo.com; 435-230-0351) is the project founder and manager, with over 25 years experience operating his own businesses, including gold dredging and marketing.  Barnes had an encounter with a sasquatch in 1997, and is motivated by the challenge of bringing definitive image evidence before the scientific community for the purpose of finally resolving the mystery of sasquatch. 

The Aurora will be deployed in selected areas of appropriate habitat where reports suggest sasquatch may range. The specifically built gyro-stabilized camera mount will house state of the art equipment that can view and film in infrared, thermal imaging and High Definition.  The camera is the highest resolution (1024 x 768 pixel) uncooled, long wave 7-14 um and 17 micron pixel pitch system in the world today, except for classified U.S. military equipment. Peak emittance from the human body is around 10 um and so this camera will provide the best possible resolution. ICI IR Flash software used with the camera allows image enhancement to 12 Mega Pixels which is better than any uncooled thermal imaging camera in existence today. In other words you will be able to literally print a 12 Mega Pixel image with a Thermal/Infrared Camera by using the proprietary ICI IR Flash Software. This is unheard of in the entire infrared camera manufacturing industry. The FOV (Field Of View) lens used will be a 44 mm x 176 mm optic, f 1.2. To our knowledge no company has used a telephoto lens of this size with an uncooled 1024 x 768 camera for such a project other than possibly the U.S. Defense. Putting an optic on this particular camera will be a first for ICI as it is the newest uncooled IR camera on the market today and not even offered to the public at this time.

Funding and tax deductible donations for ongoing operations of the Falcon Project will be handled through the ISU Foundation, to the attention of Janet Schubert, Development Officer for the College of Science and Engineering. For further information contact Dr. Meldrum (meldd@isu.edu; 208-282-4379).

In addition to Meldrum and Barnes, speakers will include Dr. John Bindernagel and Bill Munns.  Special guest will be Bob Gimlin, witness to the famous Patterson-Gimlin film of a Bigfoot in northern California in 1967.  For advance ticket sales ($25 advance / $30 at the door) to the upcoming Portland event go to http://www.bossanovaballroom.com/event-details/?The-Falcon-Project-72-Portland.

For details on the June 23rd follow-up event hosted by Bigfoot Lunch Club please click on the following link. June 23rd HopsSquatch with Dr. Jeff Meldrum.

Dr.Meldrum Backs 3-Year-Old Bigfoot Blimp Project

Rendering of the Bigfoot Blimp to be used in the Falcon Project

We have been covering the Falcon Project since February 2010. Click the following link to read our entire Falcon Project coverage. The blimp project has been trying to get off the ground since before then. This may change if Dr. Jeff Meldrum, Professor of Idaho State University, can raise over $300,000.

Originally the Falcon Project was the dream child of gold dredger, William Barnes, and business-owner, Jason Valenti.  Back in 2010 the Bigfoot blimp had a different design (see picture below)

2010 version of Bigfoot blimp

On November 4th 2010 Reuters picked up the story read excerpt below.

Now Meldrum is seeking to raise $300,000-plus in private donations to build the remote-controlled dirigible, equip it with a thermal-imaging camera and send it aloft in hopes of catching an aerial glimpse of Bigfoot, also known as sasquatch.

Meldrum, author of "Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science," said the undertaking represents a giant leap in the quest for an animal he believes may have descended from a giant ape that once inhabited Asia and crossed the Bering land bridge to North America.

"The challenge with any animal that is rare, solitary, nocturnal and far-ranging in habitat is to find them and observe them in the wild; this technology provides for that," he said.

SRC: Reuters.com

Since the Reuters piece Utah's KSL.com has picked up on the news and posted two videos on it's website.

SRC: KSL.com

Discovery News has high praise for Dr. Jeff Meldrum's credentials and rightly notes his reputation is why the Falcon Project is getting attention:

Part of the reason that the plan -- dubbed the Falcon Project -- is gaining such notoriety is the participation of Jeffrey Meldrum. In stark contrast to the vast majority of Bigfoot hunters and enthusiasts across the country and on television, Meldrum has legitimate scientific credentials as a professor of anatomy and anthropologist.

While these areas of research are not directly relevant to Bigfoot, Meldrum is more academically qualified than most to examine and analyze alleged Bigfoot tracks and photographs.

SRC: Discovery News

According to TheWeek.com it is a "Wacky Plan"

The plan, dubbed the Falcon Project, was first envisioned by a Utah man named William Barnes who allegedly came face-to-face with a "well-manicured" hairy creature in northern California sometime in 1997 and subsequently approached Meldrum with the notion of finding Bigfoot using an airship. The Falcon Project is projected to take flight next spring. 

That is, at least, if it ever takes off. Fundraising efforts have been slow. Reuters reports that Meldrum has yet to raise a single dollar for his cause. Still, he's hardly the only party interested in finding the legendary beast. Spike TV is offering a $10 million reward to anyone who can offer irrefutable evidence of Bigfoot's existence as part of a new reality show.
SRC: The Week

Bigfoot Balloons for Falcon Project Yet to be Built

We have been following the falcon project all year. We first brought it up in February with our post The Falcon Project: A Blimp to Find Bigfoot and recently had an update, aptly titled The Falcon Project Update

We have been so excited about this blimp. Initially described as:

"The blimp is 35 feet long and holds 1800 cubic feet of helium. It is run on electric batteries and is remote-controlled from the ground. The batteries will enable it to be airborne for five hours at a time, and can cover about five miles in any direction."

In a new article by a CBS Affiliate, Sacramento's Channel 13, Neda Iranpour reports most of what is already covered in our previous two post. Interestingly we learn the Blimps have yet to be built.

"He's still waiting for the balloons to be built. He's also waiting for funding from groups as far away as Russia."

Although this does not directly contradict the information on the website. We had the feeling that these Blimps were already built.

The website still has a paragraph stating:

"Since this website was launched, expert technicians have blessed this project toward a remote-controlled, dual-airship, 35 feet long, with a patented propulsion system, run by a very quiet gas engine that will keep the blimp up for five hours, and for a five mile radius."

We sent a message out to William to get further clarification and hope to update you fans as soon as possible. We want to know when these things are gonna start patrolling the forest from above!

One thing we can say is the official Falcon Project website (www.bigfoot24-7.com) has also been updated. We thought the Business Plan page was worth reading.

OUR PREVIOUS POSTS
The Falcon Project: A Blimp to Find Bigfoot
The Falcon Project Update

RELATED LINKS
CBS Channel 13 article
Falcon Project Website
SasquatchResearch.net

The Falcon Project: A Blimp to Find Bigfoot

According to Bigfoot24-7.com the blimp is described as:

The blimp is 35 feet long and holds 1800 cubic feet of helium. It is run on electric batteries and is remote-controlled from the ground. The batteries will enable it to be airborne for five hours at a time, and can cover about five miles in any direction.

The thermal- imaging cameras (we assume these will be on the blimp) are the newest in today's technology, and are the same as the ones being used by the military. The infra-red camera can portray an image in the dark, as clearly as though it were in daylight.

The territory to explore, are spots that have traditionally been known for their multiple sightings. The target states for filming are Northern California,
Oregon, Washington, Texas, Arkansas, and Florida,( in search of the "Skunk Ape.")

Even if the blimp fails to find Bigfoot, with all that helium, think how long you could make funny voices. You could probably recite all the chipmunk lines from both Alvin and the Chipmunk movies--the original and the squeakquel!

The man behind this blimp effort is William Barnes. In an article at the Humboldt Beacon, Barnes discusses the encounter that triggered his interest in Bigfoot and the methodology that he will use to search for her.

Having seen the creature with his own two eyes, Barnes is convinced there is something to the stories, and is determined to set out in July to capture photographic proof of the creature. To help rally support around the investigation, Barnes set up a website (www.bigfoot24-7.com) and described his search as “the most penetrating search for Sasquatch/Bigfoot ever conducted in North America.”

From his website, Barnes wrote, “As a weekend goldminer in Northern California, I had such a creature walk up to my tent, so close I could have touched it, and then walk past me and up the side of the hill. Since that night by the creek, I have pondered for years, about how one could be filmed for any length of time, and how it could be studied in it's own safe habitat.”

When Barnes arrives in mid-July, he will be focusing on areas that have a history of sightings, “including the area around the Klammath River, and yes, I would be using historical sighting maps and documentation that has been deemed credible. I would not stop in one place for long durations, since there have been many sightings on the entire West Coast,” Barnes explained.

Barnes added that a great deal of preparation would be in order to make the study possible. “I would want residents of each area I plan to be in, to know what the blimp is doing there. It would be unfortunate if a pot grower, who didn't understand my intentions, shot down my expensive blimp.”

On the bigfoot24-7 site there is an interesting positive review by SasquatchResearch.net, a web site known for supporting Loyd Pye's Hominoid theories. In his book Everything You Know Is Wrong, Pye claims that these animals (Bigfoot, Yeti, Etc..) are Earth's only indigenous bipedal primates, and that early hominids such as Neanderthals and Australopithecines are not intermediates in human evolution.

EXTERNAL LINKS
Falcon Project Website: www.bigfoot24-7.com
Humboldt Beacon Article
SasquatchResearch.net
Lloyd Pye Wikipedia Page