The participants in this forum have often demonstrated their ability to track down and identify obscure references in the space science/fiction field, here's another challenge for you.

In the late 'eighties, while prowling the physics and astronomy stacks of the Stanford University bookstore, I stumbled across one lonely copy of a peculiar and fascinating book. It appeared to be a privately published volume, but an expensive one, well-illustrated with photographs and line drawings. I don't recall the author or the press, all I remember is that the author had a Mittel-Euro sounding name, and he claimed to be a scientifically trained former NASA employee. I have no doubt that the book was placed there by a junior bookstore employee; it was not unusual to find astrology books in this section, as were volumes on numerology in the mathematics shelves.

I glanced through the book on several visits to the bookstore, but did not buy it because 1) it was too expensive, and 2) I didn't believe a word of it. The theme of the volume was that the author had assembled a large number of recently acquired space probe images that revealed evidence of gigantic (several hundred kilometer long) spacecraft operating in the rings of Saturn (presumably of extrasolar origin). The imagery (it appeared to be flawed or reject, unprocessed, but genuine) images from real robot spacecraft) provided absolutely no proof of this, in my opinion, but the author went on to reconstuct elaborate and highly detailed drawings of these vessels which resembled biological organisms more than they did mechanical artifacts. They varied in appearance, but resembled a cross between a tarantula and a jellyfish. Not only was the morphology of these spacecraft depicted in extraordinary detail, but a great deal of speculation as well as to the function of structures and features on these ships. The tone of the monograph was deadpan and serious, as if it had been written as a routine report by some NASA functionary for his supervisors. It lacked the usual anomalist conspiracies and sensational tone, and it was clear that the author had considerable scientific training. I could find no obvious technical boners or howlers, and it was written in a style as if it were completely legit and had somehow miraculously escaped the NASA censors who allegedly work to keep the real truth from us mere mortals.

My impression was that the book was a deliberate hoax, probably put together as a prank by Stanford science and math graduate students. But it was clear that even a minimum print run in a vanity press would exceed the financial resources of typical college students. I really don't have any evidence as to its origin.

Have any of you stumbled across anything like this?