Hey, Oregonians and Washingtonians: The next time you look up in the sky, remember that you are more likely to catch a glimpse of an unidentified flying object than any other residents in the country.
Keep Portland Weird — and a large swath of the Pacific Northwest while you’re at it.
Yes, the PNW is a veritable HQ for UFO sightings. And an online casino site has the proof.
First, the numbers.
All-time (well, since 1974), Washington has recorded 7,625 UFO sightings. That’s one UFO sighting for every 1,021 of its residents (based on the state’s current population). In Oregon, it’s one unexplained sighting for every 1,105 souls.
This means the odds of seeing the oddity known as an unidentified flying object are (comparatively speaking) quite high in Washington and Oregon.
Though sightings are rarer in Idaho, that state still ranks 10th nationally, with one UFO report for every 1,461 residents.
This is all according to a Canadian online casino website (of all things), which analyzed all-time numbers from the National UFO Reporting Center (again, since 1974) and then extrapolated per capita rankings for all 50 U.S. states and the Canadian provinces and territories.
Based on this methodology, the least likely places to see a UFO in the U.S. are Louisiana (1 per 3,583 residents), Mississippi (1 per 3,403) and Alabama (1 per 3,238).
What, do aliens have something against the South?
Guess not, because Florida (surprise, surprise) ranked No. 3, with one sighting for every 1,108 residents.
But wait. In certain Canadian locales, UFO sightings apparently are even more common (per capita) than in the United States. Alberta tops the list with a sighting for every 568 residents, followed by Ontario (1 per 639), British Columbia (1 per 742) and Manitoba (1 per 853).
Maybe those northern lights are more than just lights?
All of this info arrives just in time for World Space Week, which runs Oct. 4-10, and of course comes during the spooky month of October.
Eerie stuff.
Speaking of unidentified things, we can’t quite pinpoint the reason why a Canadian online casino site took up this cause. It seems odd. But come to think of it, casinos’ main currency, aside from real currency, is actually odds. Got to keep the advantage tilted toward the house, whether it’s table games, sportsbooks or slots.
And speaking of slots, in another oddity, the website took the opportunity in the “summary” section of its UFO post to remind readers to play their favorite UFO- and alien-themed slot games. “Enjoy titles like UFO Frenzy from Gameplay Interactive or Journey to Mars by Relax Gaming with Casino.ca’s impartial reviews of Canada’s top-rated online casinos.”
OK, got it.
In summary here: UFOs are, by definition, weird. Keep Portland Weird. Keep The PNW Weird. Keep Canada Weird.
And maybe most important: Keep The Internet Weird.
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