When it comes to the strange lights that dance across the night sky, most of us think of anonymous orbs and fleeting glints. Yet a handful of cases go a step further – they involve actual humanoid figures stepping out of those mysterious vessels. Below, we count down the most compelling ten UFO encounters that feature alien humanoid entities, each one more bewildering than the last.

10 The Imjarvi Incident

On a frosty January afternoon in 1970, two seasoned Finnish skiers, Aarno Heinonen and Esko Viljo, paused at a familiar clearing near Imjarvi. A low humming filled the air, growing louder as a bright object surged toward them. When the craft hovered just three meters away, it released a strange red‑gray mist that enveloped everything. A blinding flash erupted from beneath the vessel, temporarily wiping out the men’s vision.

Regaining sight, Heinonen felt an invisible force yank him backward, nearly sending him sprawling. As he steadied himself, a diminutive, child‑sized humanoid stood bathed in the luminous tube, clutching a black box that glowed with an internal yellow light. The being directed the box toward Heinonen, spewing more mist and sparks. The mist thickened, the light intensified, and in an instant the craft and its passenger vanished, leaving Heinonen with a numb right leg and a baffling episode of black urine.

While many researchers deem the incident authentic, Heinonen’s later claims of encounters with “blond alien women” have tarnished his credibility among skeptics.

9 The Kinnula Encounters

Just a year after the Imjarvi episode, February 1971 brought two separate sightings in Kinnula, Finland. At roughly 8 p.m., a pair of women driving toward Oulu noticed a strange light tailing their vehicle. When the light caught up, it vanished, leaving a 90‑centimeter‑tall humanoid dressed in a brown‑green suit and tight helmet standing beside the road. The figure stared briefly before slipping into the surrounding woods.

Three days later, lumberjacks Petter Aliranta and Esko Sneck were wrapping up work when a silver disc settled in a clearing. From it emerged a meter‑tall humanoid clad in a green one‑piece suit with a scuba‑style helmet. When Sneck brandished his chainsaw, the being retreated, only to be pursued by the men. Aliranta managed to grasp the creature’s heel, feeling a wave of pain surge through his body. The silver disc then lifted, shooting upward and disappearing.

8 The Luumaki Encounter

Travel back to the summer of 1965 in the Finnish hamlet of Luumaki, where the Kuningas family were busy picking blueberries. While spreading out to cover more ground, father Matti heard a bubbling sound from above. Looking up, he saw a man‑like silhouette perched on a rocky slope, its orange, thick skin glistening in the sunlight. The creature, about 100 centimeters tall and robust, fixed its gaze on Matti before moving toward him.

Rooted to the spot, Matti watched the being draw ever nearer, his legs refusing to obey. When the entity reached only a few yards away, it vanished into thin air. Their youngest son, Teuvo, later claimed to have seen the same figure approach his father from the opposite side of the field, only for it to disappear just as suddenly.

7 The Salzburg Abduction

In the winter of 1951, an American soldier stationed near Salzburg, Austria, took a shortcut through a deserted brushway after his shift ended. At roughly 11 p.m., a dark humanoid emerged from the shadows, pointing an unseen device that instantly paralyzed him. The figure attached a strange black patch to the soldier’s torso and, using the device, hauled him toward a waiting craft as if by an invisible rope.

Inside the ship, the soldier reported a transparent chamber and described his captor as a 152‑centimeter‑tall, bald, pale‑skinned being with eyes that resembled “a fly’s eyes within eyes.” The craft allegedly lifted off, journeyed to a paradisiacal planet—perhaps Mars—before returning the soldier to the exact spot of the abduction. Investigators who interviewed him repeatedly tried to expose inconsistencies, yet he remained steadfast.

6 The Encounter Of Filiberto Cardenas

On the evening of January 3, 1979, Filiberto Cardenas and his friend Fernando were cruising the outskirts of Miami in search of a pig for a barbecue. Their car sputtered and stopped, prompting them to pop the hood. While inspecting the engine, a humming sound rose from above, accompanied by dazzling lights that bathed the vehicle. Both men felt an overwhelming paralysis.

Suddenly, Filiberto was lifted into a bright column of light emanating from the craft, vanishing before Fernando’s eyes. He reappeared two hours later, 16 kilometers away on a busy road, bewildered but unharmed. Police took him into custody, later releasing him after confirming his identity. In a hypnotic regression session months later, Filiberto recounted being strapped to a seat, a suction device attached to his back, and small needles piercing his skull. The aliens communicated in several languages before settling on Spanish, which he understood.

He also claimed the beings transmitted future events: a catastrophic earthquake in Mexico City (which struck in 1985) and the submergence of major Californian cities, predictions later echoed in a 1983 Newsweek article. Additionally, he foresaw Ronald Reagan’s presidency and the AIDS epidemic.

5 The Abduction Somewhere Between Columbus And Mansfield

Amid a wave of 1973 humanoid sightings, a driver on Ohio’s I‑71 observed a strange light trailing his car in late September. After a brief blackout, he found himself on a lone dirt road, inexplicably steering off the highway. Suddenly, three entities surrounded his vehicle as a massive UFO descended.

The next memory was of being strapped to a table, surrounded by the beings who examined his body. One placed a device near his head, unleashing a blinding flash. He awoke back in his speeding car on the highway, with an hour of missing time to account for.

4 The Boianai Visitants Over Papua New Guinea

During the summer of 1959, missionary Father William Gill and 37 witnesses gathered near Boianai, Papua New Guinea, to watch strange lights. Over two evenings, four humanoid figures emerged from the crafts, waving at the crowd. Professionals—including doctors and teachers—were among the observers, lending credibility to the event.

The visitors responded to the crowd’s Morse‑code signals with flashes from their ships, creating a back‑and‑forth light dialogue. While many investigators concluded the beings were extraterrestrial, Gill believed they were human, perhaps part of a secret military project.

3 The Emilcin Encounter

May 10, 1978, found 71‑year‑old Jan Wolski driving a horse‑drawn cart through a Polish forest near Emilcin. He encountered two black‑clad humanoids, each about 152 centimeters tall, with light‑green hands and faces. As he passed, the figures hopped onto his wagon, positioning themselves behind him.

Moments later, a massive silver‑white, bus‑shaped craft hovered overhead. Wolski entered via a lift, where one being placed two gray discs over his body, likely scanning him. After a brief examination, the entities bowed, and he exited, thanking them. Opinions remain split on the veracity of the encounter, though a stone monument now marks the site.

2 The 1996 Fife Incident

On September 23, 1996, Mary Morrison (a pseudonym), her friend Jane, and Mary’s son Peter set out for coffee in Fife, Scotland. Around 8 p.m., a bright light split in two as they drove, revealing a massive triangular craft with red underside lights hovering overhead before vanishing.

On the return trip, the craft reappeared, hovering close to their car. After reporting the sighting, they, along with Mary’s daughter Susan, returned to the location at an investigator’s request. They observed a lit area at a field’s edge, where thin figures moved back and forth, each carrying a cube‑like object. A cocoon‑shaped capsule then rushed toward them, after which a hypnotic regression suggested an abduction occurred before they were returned to their car.

1 The Corroborative Sighting Of Edith Boatright

On the frigid night of February 21, 1973, a high‑school basketball team from Piedmont, Missouri, lost a playoff game and drove home along Highway 60. Coach, staff, and three players witnessed a dazzling craft hovering over a field for several minutes. Simultaneously, Edith Boatright, lying in bed 19 kilometers away, saw a bright, flashing craft from her bedroom window.

The craft illuminated the sky with red, green, and white lights, and Edith swore she could see people moving inside. She watched the vessel for minutes before it zipped away at high speed. The proximity in time and location suggests both parties observed the same UFO, providing valuable corroboration for investigators.

10 UFO Encounters Overview

These ten accounts illustrate how the universe might be populated with beings that resemble us in form yet act in ways that baffle our understanding. From the snowy forests of Finland to the misty fields of Scotland, each story adds a unique thread to the tapestry of extraterrestrial folklore.

In the 1920s and ’30s, H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos not only started a new genre of horror but also introduced some of the most iconic aliens in all of Science Fiction.

While it’s fairly common to find plushies in the form of Cthulhu at Walmart, you will be hard pressed to find any of the other entities that make up his vast pantheon reduced to such a cute, plushy form. 

The mythos has been immensely influential to science fiction and horror writers alike, inspiring the likes of Stephen King, Neil Gaiman, Ridley Scott’s Alien film, and many of Guillermo Del Toro’s fascinating creature designs. 

And the Call of Cthulhu tabletop RPG is one of the most popular roleplaying games on the market currently, coming in 3rd place in the US market and even eclipsing the popularity of Dungeons and Dragons in Japan.

This incredible table-top experience follows human players who take the role of investigators that stumble onto nefarious plots orchestrated by evil cults determined to raise Cthulhu and his brethren from their ancient resting places. 

But what if, in real life, you were one of those unlucky investigators? What if you were to encounter the god-like entities and aliens in Lovecraft’s mythos in real life? Which ones would you be able to survive, and which ones would more than likely reduce you to a raving maniac, or a pile of gelatinous goo? 

“They were pinkish things about five feet long; with crustaceous bodies bearing vast pairs of dorsal fins or membranous wings and several sets of articulate limbs, and with a sort of convoluted ellipsoid, covered with multitudes of very short antenna, where a head would ordinarily be…”  

– H.P. Lovecraft, The Whisperer in Darkness 

For the unlucky investigator, stumbling upon one of the Mi-Go‘s many secret bases is a risky endeavor. The Mi-Go are an interstellar species whose primary base is located on a planet in our Solar System they call Yuggoth where they mine for rare metals. We know this world as Pluto. 

But they also have many bases on Earth. 

While the Mi-Go lack the reality-bending power of many of the Lovecraftian entities cataloged on this list, they are brilliant scientists.  

Though these strange, alien creatures seem to be insect-like in appearance, their characteristics are more in line with certain fungi on Earth. Despite being an interstellar species, the Mi-Go do not travel the cosmos in ships, but rather, with their own immense wings. 

The Mi-Go have been known to perform twisted experiments on human subjects. In many cases, this results in the unlucky human subject having their brain extracted and placed into a tube-shaped metallic device. This device can be attached to various peripherals to allow the subject to speak, see, and listen to their environment. 

An investigator would be lucky to escape these eager alien surgeons with their body and brain intact. 

The Elder Things in At the Mountains of Madness are another example of an interstellar species who traveled to Earth by way of their own membranous wings. Their appearance is somewhat plantlike. Their bodies are rigid, barrel-shaped things from which spoke-like appendages radiate from.  

For millions of years, the Elder Things ruled our planet, establishing great cities on all the major continents and in the unknown depths of the ocean. Like the Mi-Go, the Elder Things were brilliant scientists who may have accidentally created life on Earth and are responsible for the engineering of the dreaded Shoggoths that they used to build their vast empire.  

Throughout their mysterious, eons-spanning civilization, they waged wars against Cthulhu’s Star Spawn, the Flying Polyps, and the very Shoggoths that helped build their vast empire—who rebelled against their creators. 

Over time, however, the Elder Things slowly degraded, losing the ability to travel through space and eventually, dying out almost entirely. They left behind vast ruins, the largest of which rests in a mysterious, reality-defying set of mountains in Antarctica.  

While it is unlikely that an investigator would ever stumble upon an Elder Thing in those vast ruins, there are rumors of survivors living in the ocean. These survivors maintain a scientific mind, and are curious to take apart things both living and dead, especially humans. 

Such an encounter would more than likely be deadly, but there is at least a chance of survival.

“The nightmarish, plastic column of fetid, black iridescence oozed tightly onward…A shapeless congerie of protoplasmic bubbles, faintly self-luminous, and with myriads of temporary eyes forming and unforming as pustules of greenish light all over the tunnel-filling front that bore down upon us…” 

– H.P. Lovecraft, At the Mountain of Madness 

Shoggoths are massive, shapeshifting protoplasmic monstrosities that can reach up to 15 feet in diameter. If an investigator were to have the misfortune of meeting one, they might describe their charging form as something akin to a locomotive. And it would very likely be the last thing they ever laid eyes on. 

Though they were created by the Elder Things to be mindless instruments, the Shoggoths steadily intelligence over time until at last they rebelled against their creators and destroyed their once great civilization. 

Looking to the Necronomicon, investigators might take comfort in the claims of its late, mad author, Abdul Alhazred, that no such beings exist on Earth. But they would be fools, because, tucked away in Earth’s unknown cervices and great ruins, some Shoggoths still live.  

It is possible to survive an encounter with a Shoggoth, if only because their size and habit of charging and destroying everything in their path make them easy to spot.

“They all lay in stone houses in their great city of R’lyeh, preserved by the spells of mighty Cthulhu for a glorious resurrection when the stars and the earth might once more be ready…” 

– H.P. Lovecraft, The Call of Cthulhu 

The Star Spawn take on the likeness of Cthulhu himself. These creatures are often described with cephalopod-like features, as well as two glowing eyes and a set of great wings. In the feverish visions described by artists under the influence of Cthulhu’s mind-warping presence, these things have also been described as possessing humanoid bodies, but this is not always the case. 

Though they are not as large as Cthulhu, many texts suggest that they are from the same species. Given that, any human foolish enough to face a Star Spawn may be subject to similar feats of strength and magic. 

“I see it – coming here – hell-wind – titan blur – black wings – Yog Sothoth save me – the three-lobed burning eye…” 

– H.P. Lovecraft, The Haunter of the Dark 

Poor Robert Blake made an unfortunate discovery upon entering an abandoned Gothic cathedral in Providence, Rhode Island. Staring into a mysterious box holding an otherworldly black gem, he saw terrible visions of alien worlds and sunken cities. And, unfortunately for him, this unknowing act also unleashed a creature often thought to be one of Nyarlothotep’s oldest forms.  

When an investigator peers into the Shining Trapezohedron, they experience visions, but at the cost of releasing the Haunter of the Dark, a dangerous entity that establishes a psychic link with the one who opens the box. The affected investigator will begin seeing visions of the creature’s activities. 

For Robert Blake, this strange connection to a being engulfed in smoke, with great shapeless wings, meant that he had a front-row seat to its escape from its cathedral prison in the midst of a violent thunderstorm. 

In the chaos, the creature made its way to Blake’s apartment. 

Later, he was found dead, an expression of complete terror written upon his face. 

The only discernable feature of the Haunter of the Dark seems to be a single crimson eye with three lobes. 

Encountering this entity could be deadly, especially if the investigator has made a psychic connection with it, but the creature does have a weakness. The Haunter of the Dark avoids light sources at all costs. 

So, you know, carry a flashlight and hope for the best. 

“A monster of vaguely anthropoid outline, but with an octopus-like head whose face was a mass of feelers, a scaly, rubbery-looking body, prodigious claws on hind and fore feet, and long, narrow wings behind.” 

– H.P Lovecraft, The Call of Cthulhu 

According to records kept by the Elder Things, inscribed in great murals in the ruins of their Antarctic city, Great Cthulhu came from a place known as Xoth with its Star Spawn 350 million years ago. It was then that it forged the terrible city of R’lyeh and various other places whose names have been lost to time.  

At some point, something caused the corpse city of R’lyeh to sink beneath the ocean, entombing the Great Priest of the Old Ones and other members of his race in the Pacific Ocean, where he lies dead and dreaming, waiting for the stars to be right once more so that he and his Star Spawn may rise again to rule the Earth. 

Artists who have possessed idols made in the being’s image have described Cthulhu in many different ways. These artists are rumored to suffer intense, hellish visions when under the influence of Great Cthulhu. Though Great Cthulhu may not be the most powerful member of the Old Gods, there can be no doubt that unlucky investigators who find themselves facing down the Great Priest himself are certain to be doomed, even if they survive the encounter.

“He stands in state upon the balcony. He has no face, and is twice as tall as a man, He wears pointed shoes under his tattered, fantastically coloured robes, and a streamer of silk appears to fall from the pointed tip of his hood…At times he appears to be winged; at other, haloed.” 

– James Blish, “More Light” 

Hastur the Unnameable has three main forms. His home is thought to be near the star Alderbaran, where he lives beneath the sea. There are some who believe that there is some kinship between Hastur and Great Cthulhu; others who believe that the beings are one in the same, but split in two knowing halves. Whatever the case, Hastur has far more freedom than Great Cthulhu, and may have designs on destroying the cosmic order that the Old Ones have maintained since Azathoth accidentally created our universe.  

The King in Yellow may be the most famous and dangerous manifestation of all as it possesses “free will” apart from Hastur and its two other avatars. Ruling a kingdom known as Carcosa, whose sky is dominated by twin black suns, the King in Yellow spreads his influence through an infectious cult. Their main means of recruitment is to give potential members a small sigil with profound psychic properties. 

Known as the Yellow Sign, this strange marker is rumored to have a corrupting influence on mortals. Those who have seen the Yellow Sign are considered to be “chosen” by Hastur’s cult and are rumored to fall under the King in Yellow’s influence.  

Especially weak-willed investigators who find themselves in the possession of such a sigil may find themselves raving mad within a month’s time, even if they don’t end up serving the King in Yellow directly. 

Nyarlathotep, otherwise known as the “Crawling Chaos” is sometimes considered to be the most powerful entity in the mythos. But unlike other entities, Nyarlathotep possesses one thousand different forms, each of which maintains a will of its own, yet all are guided by one single will that is Nyarlathotep. 

Nyarlathotep seems to favor appearing to human beings, often taking shapes that conform to their cultures. His avatars will offer promises of riches or the fulfillment of an unlucky investigator’s deepest desires. But these promises always lead to the furthering of Nyarlothotep’s ultimate goal of sowing chaos and bringing about the return of the Great Old Ones.  

Ultimately, to encounter Nyarlothotep in any of his forms is to court ruin, if not the very end of humanity as we know it. Nyarlathotep may not outright kill an investigator, but he will make them wish they were dead. 

“He thought of the ancient legends of Ultimate Chaos, at whose center sprawls the blind idiot god Azathoth, Lord of All Things, encircled by his flopping horde of mindless and amorphous dancers, and lulled by the thin monotonous piping of a daemonic flute held by nameless paws.” 

– H.P. Lovecraft, The Haunter of the Dark 

Azathoth exists at the center of the universe and appears different to anyone who views his ancient, star-sized body. He is the most powerful being in the mythos but lacks any knowledge on how to consciously use that power.  

Many believe that he has been there since the beginning of time. He dreams our universe into being, and should he ever wake from his eternal slumber, the dream that is our reality would crumble.  

To prevent this, the blind idiot god is constantly lulled to sleep by amorphous beings known as Servitors of the Outer Gods, whose tendrils rap about ancient flutes that lull the mindless force of cosmic nature to sleep. 

In the unlikely event that an investigator gazes upon Azathoth’s form and somehow survives, they are sure to end up a raving lunatic for the rest of their days.

Sometimes described as being comprised of orbs, or “holes” in the fabric of space-time, Yog Sothoth’s true size is unknown, and while the deity might not have the all-encompassing power of Azathoth, it is said that it is capable of instantly comprehending and knowing anything. 

Yog Sothoth dwells between the barriers between dimensions, manipulating the laws of reality, and even possesses the power to break them.  

While Azathoth is able to create and destroy entire universes, Yog Sothoth is unable to manipulate matter on such a large scale. But the being’s omnipotence seems to suggest that in some ways, it has near equal power to Azathoth. Some have suggested that while Azathoth dreams our universe into being, Yog Sothoth is the connecting tissue that exists between dimensions.  

Yog Sothoth is often referred to as “The Key and the Gate” and is rumored to have spawned many entities that can be found in the dreaded Necronomicon—including that of Hastur. But, the being seems to have a keen interest in taking biological form, having done so in one particularly gruesome case in a rural town called Dunwich back in the years 1913-1928. More often than not, these offspring take on the characteristics of their master, and their horrific, amorphous, mouth-covered forms are usually invisible to the naked eye. 

The reason for this fascination with siring half-mortal offspring is unknown, but some believe that this is the key to Yog Sothoth destroying the shackles forced on it by the Old Ones, to bring forth a new age, where humanity will cast aside its morals and the Old Gods will return to our universe. 

In this way, Yog Sothoth may very well be the most dangerous being in all of the mythos.