Idaho State University professor of anatomy and anthropology, Jeffrey Meldrum, believes Bigfoot exists, and he has announced a project that will hopefully see him launch a blimp to prove his theory.

Yes, an airship.

Codenamed the Falcon Project, Meldrum has combined his knowledge of Bigfoot with that of an idea originally proposed by William Barnes, a Utah man who claims to have encountered Bigfoot in 1997 in Northern California.

Meldrum is the author of Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science, a book based on a documentary originally aired in on the Discovery Channel in 2003, that analyses the most compelling evidence for the existence of Bigfoot.

Of the project:

The Falcon Project proposes to conduct an extensive aerial search for an unrecognized North American primate, a.k.a. sasquatch or Bigfoot, by means of an helium-filled airship, upon which a platform supporting thermal-imaging and high resolution wireless videography equipment is mounted. The Aurora Mk II airship offers major advantages over similar applications with helicopter or fixed-wing aircraft platforms, foremost, stealth and maneuverability.

They are hoping to launch the blimp early next year, but they need to raise at least R2,6 million in order to do so. Idaho State University has said it will support the project, but not financially.

The remote-controlled blimp will use a thermal-imaging camera to help with the search, as well as other sophisticated camera equipment, and Meldrum says:

The challenge with any animal that is rare, solitary, nocturnal and far-ranging in habitat is to find them and observe them in the wild; this technology provides for that.

With regard to funding, two cable channels are already contesting the rights to produce a reality series that would follow the expedition. Meldrum and his team hope that this might increase the likelihood that outright funding for the project can be acquired.

No real evidence actually exists proving Bigfoot or its cousin the Yeti’s existence, but there was a large ape that lived many years ago.

Many people believe it’s only a matter of time before we know otherwise about Bigfoot.

This is part of the documentary that was aired on the Discovery Channel:

[Source: Reuters]