Not even close encounters: If UFOs really exist, why would intelligent life forms use 1950s earth technology to travel here?
Sun Kwok says that if intelligent life exists elsewhere in our galaxy, and it probably does, then it will be far more technologically advanced than our own primitive civilisation

When people hear that I am a professional astronomer, they often ask "Do you believe in UFOs?" Sometimes they say, "I have seen a UFO…" and then proceed to describe their incredible encounter. Quite often they say they saw a bright light in the sky; some describe it moving at high speed and following them.
These types of stories are quite common among UFO believers. In 1967, police officers in 11 counties in the US state of Georgia chased after a reported UFO for several days - until someone told them they were chasing the planet Venus.
If extraterrestrials visit our planet, they will travel in forms that are entirely unknown and invisible to us
Venus is the brightest celestial object in the sky after the sun and moon. Since many city folk are not accustomed to viewing the sky, they are often astonished when they suddenly catch a glimpse of Venus. It can at times be very bright, even in early morning or late afternoon light. When the observer is in a moving vehicle, he often has the illusion that Venus is chasing after him. When I hear reports of UFOs, my first response is usually, "Which direction was it?" If the person says west, I then ask, "What time of day did you see it?" If they answer, "In the evening," I reply, "It is quite likely you saw Venus".
Casual observers have been known to confuse planes, balloons, meteors, fireballs, clouds and optical atmospheric phenomena with UFOs. Our skies are crowded with artificial satellites that move quickly across the sky. When sunlight reflects on them, they may be perceived as UFOs.
UFO believers may accuse me of being narrow-minded or conservative. But I would argue that it is they who are conservative. If an alien civilisation was capable of space travel and came hundreds of light years to reach us, why would they travel in a primitive mechanical device? Why would their spacecraft emit visible light, when they have the entire electromagnetic spectrum available? We forget that visible light is only a very narrow part of the spectrum, and our eyes are tuned to this narrow part to take maximum advantage of sunlight.
