By Tim Binnall
A legendary UFO sighting which took place in Canada over four decades ago is being celebrated by way of a colorful new coin. The 1978 case reportedly saw an RMCP constable named Jim Blackwood called to investigate an unidentified flying object spotted hovering over the water off the coast of the community of Clarenville, Newfoundland. Initially thinking the report was the result of someone's overactive imagination, the officer was stunned when he arrived on the scene and witnessed the craft for himself.
According to a recounting of the case by the Royal Canadian Mint, Blackwood was able to examine the craft using binoculars as well as a high powered scope and "observed the fin-tailed, oval-shaped craft as it hovered above the water." Looking back on the incident, which has since become known as the Clarenville Event, in a 2016 interview the constable recalled how he "activated the roof lights of my police car and it activated lights at the same time."
After lingering in the air for a staggering two hours, the silent craft eventually began rising up into the air and then vanished without a trace. The case is considered an iconic event in Canadian UFO lore in large part due to the number of witnesses who saw the craft as well as the fact that it was documented by an RMCP constable. And now it will be immortalized as the third commemorative coin issued in the 'Unexplained Phenomena' series produced by the Royal Canadian mint following 2018's Falcon Lake and 2019's Shag Harbour pieces.