September 9, 1999: NASA Career & UFOs - Gordon Cooper
The Art Bell Archive · Arthur William Bell III
July 22, 20241h 13m
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Show Notes
Art Bell welcomes Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper to discuss his extraordinary NASA career and personal encounters with unidentified flying objects. Cooper recounts his time as a test pilot at Edwards Air Force Base, his record-setting 22-orbit Mercury mission, and the harrowing moment he lost all electronics and had to manually guide his capsule back to Earth. He also shares his belief that the saucer shape holds untapped potential for aircraft design through his company Galaxy Group.
Cooper describes chasing metallic, wingless craft over Germany during the Cold War and reveals that photographers at Edwards captured images of a saucer-shaped vehicle with tricycle landing gear that landed on the dry lakebed. After reporting the incident through official channels, a general ordered the negatives shipped to Washington immediately. Cooper confirms he never received an explanation. He also recounts flying alongside Neil Armstrong when they investigated a distant object that turned out to be a weather balloon.
Throughout the conversation, Cooper states his strong belief in extraterrestrial intelligence and criticizes Project Blue Book as a cover-up. He expresses disappointment that America has not returned to the Moon or reached Mars, and advocates for privatizing space travel. Cooper discusses his forthcoming book Leap of Faith and offers his perspective on shuttle footage from STS-80 that appears to show an object launching from Earth at tremendous speed.
Cooper describes chasing metallic, wingless craft over Germany during the Cold War and reveals that photographers at Edwards captured images of a saucer-shaped vehicle with tricycle landing gear that landed on the dry lakebed. After reporting the incident through official channels, a general ordered the negatives shipped to Washington immediately. Cooper confirms he never received an explanation. He also recounts flying alongside Neil Armstrong when they investigated a distant object that turned out to be a weather balloon.
Throughout the conversation, Cooper states his strong belief in extraterrestrial intelligence and criticizes Project Blue Book as a cover-up. He expresses disappointment that America has not returned to the Moon or reached Mars, and advocates for privatizing space travel. Cooper discusses his forthcoming book Leap of Faith and offers his perspective on shuttle footage from STS-80 that appears to show an object launching from Earth at tremendous speed.