A SCEPTICAL scientist has recorded an official sighting of the Loch Ness Monster after spotting the creature lurking near an unsuspecting boat.
Monika Pyarali, 24, spotted Nessie during a holiday to Invernesshire with some friends.
The reluctant academic, who is studying Public Health, admitted she was initially unsure of what she had seen, but was convinced to send in her sighting by a friend.
The Official Loch Ness Sightings Monster Register has since verified her sighting, making it the eighth this year.
Monika described how she saw a mysterious shape break the surface of the water on 15 September seconds after a boat passed by.
The shadow was visible for only a moment, before receding back into the lake.
She captured an image of the sighting, which shows the curious object on the left hand side of the frame trailing behind the boat.
Monika took another image at the exact same spot two hours later for reference that shows the loch’s water still and calm.
Her sighting comes after the “most compelling” evidence of Nessie was recorded by Cruise Loch Ness director Ronald Mackenzie last week.
He captured the creature using sonar imaging that showed a 33ft long object that was 620ft deep under the water on Wednesday afternoon.
Speaking today, Monika said: “The water around the shadow appeared to be disturbed before the shadow broke through the surface just slightly.
“It was too distant to make out the exact shape of the shadow, how large it was or what colour, it appeared black from a distance.
“It was a large shadow right at the surface of the water that broke through for a few seconds before receding.
“The most notable feature was the size of the shadow, which was visible from the other side of the lake where we were standing.
“I’m a scientist at heart and have been trained as such through schooling, so naturally, I’m a skeptic when it comes to occurrences that are not easily explicable or evidence-based.
“However, this sighting happened in the presence of my friend Cephas Avoka, who pointed out the shadow almost simultaneously to me noticing it.
“It took a second for us to react, but we tried our best to capture a photo to verify for ourselves what it was that we had seen. “
