The Tennessee Chapter of the Mutual UFO Network is holding its second annual conference in Murfreesboro Saturday, Sept. 18.

Travis Walton, famed author and speaker, is set to speak at this year’s conference. Walton claims aliens abducted him in 1975. He told his story in the book “Fire in the Sky,” which was turned into a film by the same name in 1993.

Walton is at the center of one of the most documented cases of apparent extraterrestrial abduction in history, and will hold a discussion of his experience as well as a question and answer session for those in attendance.

The conference is slated for 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Patterson Park Community Center.

2010 has been a big year for UFOs in Tennessee, said Alyson Burgess, MUFON field investigator and state director of public relations.

“We’ve been very fortunate this year. Not only have we seen an increase in the number of sightings reported, but the quality of the reports has been improving by leaps and bounds. We’ve worked some very good cases in Tennessee this year and we’re very excited to present them to the public so that they can examine the evidence for themselves.”

Burgess wants Tennesseans to know they have a credible organization to call if they spot something strange in the skies.

“MUFON is a network of professionals. We have some members who are doctors, lawyers, police officers and educators, just to name a few. All our investigators are trained and certified, and have dedicated themselves to investigating these sightings using the scientific method. We take all our cases very seriously, because we feel that this is a legitimate subject that deserves to be examined using scientifically valid techniques.”

Tickets for the event are available online or at the door on the day of the event, and cost $15 for MUFON members, $20 for non-members, and $10 for students and military personnel with ID. Online ticketing and more information can be found on the Tennessee MUFON website at www.TNMUFON.com.