Mysterious crop circles that have been attributed to aliens and UFO's are actually the result of physics, at least according to Professor Richard Taylor.

Crop circles have confounded skeptics and believers alike since they first started appearing in farmers' fields during the late 1970s. Many believed them to be the work of aliens or supernatural beings because of the speed at which they were formed and the complex geometric patterns involved. It wasn't until 1991 that the pranksters, Doug Bower and Dave Chorley stepped forward and claimed their work. Having the two men demonstrate how they made the crop circle didn't stop believers from claiming it was the work of aliens. The increasing complexity of the circles has also led people to question whether humans could still finish it in one night.

Now Professor Taylor, director of the Materials Science Institute at the University of Oregon, suggests in this month's issue of "Physic's World" that crop circles are the result of lasers, microwaves and global positioning systems (GPS).

The modern patterns which involves elaborate geometric shapes suggests that circle makers have upped their equipment from the simple plank and rope to something more technologically sophisticated. GPS systems could help the circle makers cover vast spaces and keep the pattern intact while microwaves can be used to flatten large numbers of stalks, Taylor claims in the article.

Researchers had also analyzed the flattened stalks in crop circles and found that magnetrons can mimic the physical changes in some stalks. This suggests that crop circle makers may be using magnetrons, commonly found in microwave ovens to complete the circle in just one night.

"Crop-circle artists are not going to give up their secrets easily. This summer, unknown artists will venture into the countryside close to your homes and carry out their craft, safe in the knowledge that they are continuing the legacy of the most science-oriented art movement in history," said Professor Taylor.

"It may seem odd for a physicist such as Taylor to be studying crop circles, but then he is merely trying to act like any good scientist - examining the evidence for the design and construction of crop circles without getting carried away by the sideshow of UFOs, hoaxes and aliens," explained Martin Durrani, editor of Physics World on Taylor unusual research topic.