Queensland's mysterious Min Min explained

By KATHY MARKS

SYDNEY - The tiny Queensland town of Boulia only ever had one claim to fame: the mysterious shimmering lights that appeared at night and chased terrified stockmen across the dusty plains of the desert.

The Min Min lights, as they were called, became part of Outback folklore and Boulia did its best to capitalise, building a Min Min museum to lure tourists to the remote town 1450km northwest of Brisbane. Some locals ascribed the nocturnal illuminations to UFOs, while others blamed swarms of fireflies or glow-worms. Some even swore they were caused by luminous vegetation eaten by birds.

Now a scientist has gone and spoiled all the fun, finding a perfectly rational explanation. John Pettigrew, a professor of neuroscience at Queensland University, has discovered that the eerie lights are caused by atmospheric refraction that occurs when cold air is trapped below warmer air – when a cool night follows a hot winter's day, for instance.

In the vast, flat spaces of the Outback, the conditions produces an "inverted mirage", bending light from car headlights or a bushfire hundreds of miles away across the horizon, Prof Pettigrew explained in a scientific paper published in the journal of the Optometrists Association of Australia.

He said he knew his findings would disappoint the 250 people of Boulia. "I know they are going to be upset," he said. "I have apologised to them." Boulia, which consists of 40 houses, a grocery store and a pub, invested more than £1m in the Min Min Encounter Centre, which offers a high-tech simulation of the lights and sells merchandise including Min Min fridge magnets, key rings and T shirts.

The chief executive of Boulia Shire Council, Kelvin Tytherleigh, said he doubted that Prof Pettigrew's explanation would affect interest. "A lot of people have tried to explain it," he said. However, in an indication that the town is rattled by the development, the Encounter Centre has waived its entry fee over Easter.

The legend of the Min Mins dates back thousands of years. Local Aborigines used to warn their children that the Min Mins would get them if they misbehaved.

Prof Pettigrew said that even hard-bitten Outback characters had been spooked by encounters with the Min Mins. "They are extremely alarming," he said.

- INDEPENDENT