Lake COtE
September 4th 1971 -
During an official government aerial mapping expedition, an unexplained anomaly appeared on film between frames 299 and 301. The image, cataloged within Costa Rica’s national archive, has endured decades of scrutiny. Preserved with a clear chain of custody, the photograph has been examined by some of the most respected academic and scientific voices — and remains unexplained.
THE INVESTIGATOR
Esteban Carranza is a Costa Rican attorney with extensive experience in corporate, financial, and insurance law, and internationally recognized as a leading insurance-law practitioner.
His professional reputation rests on an ethical, analytical, and problem-solving approach within dynamic and highly regulated business environments.
Esteban’s fascination with UFO/UAPs was sparked in the 1990s, after his late uncle, Hermann Kopper, shared an enlarged copy of The Cote Photo and recounted the story surrounding it.
Over the years, Esteban has gained recognition for his responsible study and dissemination of UFO phenomenon, a field he has approached with the same methodological rigor that characterizes his professional practice. His interest in the subject goes beyond mere curiosity: it is driven by the conviction that the phenomenon deserves a serious approach, free of prejudice and grounded in empirical evidence and critical thinking.
UFOs: what governments and scientists are no longer willing to rule out
“Non-Terrestrial” biological material: the enigma behind UFOs and FANI in the US
History Channel reports on UFO sighting in Costa Rica
The Analyst
Michael Strickland is an award-winning large-format photographer and alternative process printmaker based in Liberal, Kansas. His photographs are shaped by patience, material devotion, and a profound connection to place.
Rooted in analog tradition, Strickland works slowly and intentionally — composing on the ground glass, exposing sheet film, and printing each image by hand using historic processes including platinum-palladium and carbon transfer. Every stage of production takes place in his Kansas studio, where contemporary tools serve traditional methods executed with meticulous care.
courtesy of - michaelstricklandimages.com
The JOURNALIST
Leslie Kean is an independent investigative journalist and author widely recognized for her reporting on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAPs, formerly known as UFOs).
She rose to international prominence as a co-author of a series of groundbreaking New York Times stories beginning in 2017 that revealed the existence of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP), a previously undisclosed Pentagon program studying UAP, as well as sightings by Navy pilots.
These reports played a major role in bringing the UAP issue out of the realm of stigma and into mainstream public, scientific, and governmental discussion, prompting congressional interest, official Pentagon acknowledgments, and the establishment of subsequent U.S. government review offices.
Kean is also the author of the bestselling book UFOs: Generals, Pilots, and Government Officials Go on the Record (2010), which compiles testimony from high-ranking military, aviation, and government figures from multiple countries who describe firsthand encounters with unexplained aerial phenomena. The book is notable for its emphasis on credible witnesses, official documentation, and a cautious, evidence-based approach rather than speculative explanations.
Photo: © Tatiana Daubek
