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it one of the most discussed of 2007 was the presence of Gary King, Paula Presdee-Jones and UFO researcher Winston Keech, who claim to have been watching the field from nearby Knap Hill on the night of its arrival. All reported seeing a bright flash over the field at about 3.00 am. A video camera was running at this time, and on the tape the flash appears to show as a flicker of electronic interference. Initial enhancement of footage taken that night appeared to show a blank field at 1.35 am, but by 3.20 am the glyph was visible. Given that some man-made crop formations have taken many hours to construct, if the times are accurate—though sceptics are trying to cast doubt on this—this leaves only a very brief time window in which such a design could have been manually constructed. Put together with the claim that nothing suggesting human activity was seen or heard by the observers that night, much was made of this evidence in the "croppie" world, with a local press conference being held and a DVD being rushed into circulation. However, in true crop circle confusion style, this did not stop assertions from supposed human circle-makers that they in fact had made the formation. Claims and counter-claims of intrigue and dark deeds East Field, near Alton Barnes, Wiltshire. Reported 7th July. continue to circulate, without resolution, at the time of writing. Image: Lucy Pringle © 2007, www.lucypringle.co.uk Cerealogical business as usual, then. This same formation also seemed to attract several tales of military helicopters performing mysteriously low manoeuvres over the fields in the days after, and of strange men in white vans prowling around, but the more extreme stories remain largely unsubstantiated and low helicopters do not, in themselves, prove dubious purpose. Given that the Vale of Pewsey is a known military training area, such things are not entirely unusual, but others argue that this year's aerial activity was particularly—and oddly—intrusive. As the summer progressed, some truly remarkable creations graced the fields: a very accurate Yin-Yang symbol at Marksbury in Somerset on 7th July (the same night as the East Field controversy) was one of the few complex formations outside of Wiltshire and Oxfordshire this year, while the latter county produced the most unusual emblem of the season in the shape of an ingenious, fragmented butterfly design at Ashbury on 16th July. Of several ambitious and successful designs which appeared in the later part of the summer, two stand out in particular and seem linked in their themes. On 19th July, an extraordinary floral wheel was discovered at Martinsell Hill in Wiltshire, comprising four layers, each with 18 petals, the petals gradually widening from the centre with each layer. Its precision was stunning. On Ist August, a not-dissimilar but even more astounding wheel was found at Sugar Hill, near Aldbourne in Wiltshire. This time, four circular layers, with 36 perfect triangles each, surrounded 18 three-dimensional- looking cubes. This was considered by many to be the finest formation of the year, and a simple glance at images of it reminds us that whatever the origins of this amazingly persistent mystery—still argued over, after all these years—it should command our deepest respect. Excited speculation on the Internet, courtesy of astronomical interpretations of this year's glyphs circulated in July and early August by a mysterious individual known as "Red Collie" (in fact, an Australian scientist who made several appearances at UK circle gatherings this summer), had suggested 18th August as a time when something spectacular might occur. However, after a few more complex designs in the first half of August, the 18th was apparently ignored and things soon went quiet, with one last formation to date (at the time of writing) tucking in at Hackpen Hill, Wiltshire, on 30th August in the shape of a Celtic cross design. With researchers in a buoyant mood this summer (spoilt only bya Hailey Wood, near Ashbury, Oxfordshire. Reported 16th July. Image: Lucy Pringle © 2007, www.lucypringle.co.uk Marksbury, Somerset. Reported 7th July. Image: Steve Alexander © 2007, www.temporarytemples.co.uk NEXUS +57 OCTOBER — NOVEMBER 2007 www.nexusmagazine.com