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UFO redirects here. For other uses, see UFO (disambiguation) . A UFO or '''unidentified flying object''' refers to any real or apparent object in the sky that cannot be identified. The late astronomer and U. S. Air Force consultant Dr. J. Allen Hynek described a UFO as "the reported perception of an object or light seen in the sky or upon the land the appearance, trajectory, and general dynamic and luminescent behaviour of which do not suggest a logical, conventional explanation and which is not only mystifying to the original percipients but remains unidentified after close scrutiny of all available evidence by persons who are technically capable of making a common sense identification, if one is possible." Many people believe that UFOs are Extraterrestrial Spacecraft , while a more skeptical attitude is that the evidence is insufficient to support such a conclusion. Most scientists agree with the Philosophy Of Science expressed by Carl Sagan 's maxim that "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence," but the degree to which visitation by extraterrestrials is an "extraordinary claim" is debated in UFO circles. HISTORY Reports of strange apparitions in the sky have been recorded throughout history. Some may have been Comet s, bright Meteor s, or atmospheric optical phenomena such as Parhelia ; others remain unexplained. The army of Alexander The Great in 329 BC saw "two silver shields" in the sky. In 1235 the army of Oritsume in Japan saw mysterious lights in the sky. On April 14 1561 the skies over Nuremberg, Germany were reportedly filled with a multitude of objects, including cylinders and spheres, seemingly engaged in an aerial battle. Previously treated as divine portents, angels, and other religious omens, such phenomena came to be regarded as non-supernatural and suitable for scientific investigation in the immediate aftermath of World War II , when the term "UFO" was invented. There were a number of reports of strange, unidentified aerial phenomena throughout the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In more modern times, there were several reports of unidentified aircraft in the Scandinavian nations in the 1930s. In both the European and Japanese aerial theatres during World War II , " Foo-fighters " (balls of light that followed aircraft) were reported by both Allied and Axis pilots. In 1946, there were numerous reports of unidentified aircraft in the Scandinavian nations, along with isolated reports from France , Portugal , Italy and Greece , then referred to as "Russian hail," and later as " Ghost Rockets ," because it was thought that these mysterious objects were Russian tests of captured German V1 or V2 Rocket s. This was subsequently shown not to be the case, and the phenomenon remains unexplained. Experts generally believe that a significant fraction of the reports were based on misperceptions of natural phenomena, such as meteors. However, large numbers could not be explained, including about 200 picked up on Radar and others seen crashing into lakes. (see Ghost Rockets article for details) The post World War II UFO phase in the United States began with a reported sighting by American businessman Kenneth Arnold on June 24 1947 while flying his private plane near Mount Rainier , Washington . He reported seeing nine brilliantly bright objects flying across the face of Rainier towards nearby Mount Adams at "an incredible speed", which he calculated at at least 1200 miles an hour by timing their travel between Rainier and Adams. His sighting subsequently received significant mainstream media and public attention. Arnold would later say they "flew like a saucer would if you skipped it across the water" and also said they were "flat like a pie pan", "shaped like saucers," and "half-moon shaped, oval in front and convex in the rear. ...they looked like a big flat disk." (One, however, he would describe later as being almost crescent-shaped.) Arnold's reported descriptions caught the media's and the public's fancy and gave rise to the terms flying saucer and '''flying disk'''. Arnold's sighting was followed in the next few weeks by several thousand other reported sightings, mostly in the U.S., but in other countries as well. Perhaps the most significant of these was a United Airlines crew sighting of nine more disc-like objects over Idaho on the evening of July 4 . This sighting was even more widely reported than Arnold's and lent considerable credence to Arnold's report. For the next few days most American newspapers were filled with front-page stories of the new "flying saucers" or "flying discs." Starting with official debunkery that began the night of July 8 with the Roswell UFO Incident , reports rapidly tapered off, ending the first big U.S. UFO wave. Starting at the end of 1947, which became Project Grudge at the end of 1948, and then Project Blue Book in 1952. Blue Book closed down in 1970, ending the official Air Force UFO investigations. Use of "UFO" instead of "flying saucer" was first suggested in 1952 by Capt. Edward J. Ruppelt , the first director of Project Blue Book , who felt that "flying saucer" did not reflect the diversity of the sightings. Ruppelt suggested that "UFO" should be pronounced as a word — "you-foe". However it is generally pronounced by forming each letter: "U.F.O." His term was quickly adopted by the Air Force, which also briefly used "UFOB" circa 1954. Ruppelt recounted his experiences with Project Blue Book in his memoir, ''The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects'' (1956), also the first book to use the term. book online Air Force Regulation 200-2 , issued in 1954, defined an Unidentified '''F'''lying '''Ob'''ject (UFOB) as "any airborne object which by performance, aerodynamic characteristics, or unusual features, does not conform to any presently known aircraft or missile type, or which cannot be positively identified as a familiar object." The regulation also said UFOBs were to be investigated as a "possible threat to the security of the United States" and "to determine technical aspects involved." Furthermore, Air Force personnel were directed not to discuss unexplained cases with the press. {Link without Title} UFOS IN POPULAR CULTURE Beginning in the 1950s, UFO-related spiritual sects, sometimes referred to as Contactee Cults , began to appear. Most often the members of these sects rallied around a central individual, who claimed to either have made personal contact with space-beings, or claimed to be in telepathic contact with them. Prominent among such individuals was George Adamski , who claimed to have met a tall, blond-haired Venusian named "Orthon," who came to warn us about the dangers of Nuclear Proliferation . Adamski was widely dismissed, but an Adamski Foundation still exists, publishing and selling Adamski's writings. At least two of these sects developed a substantial number of adherents, most notably The Aetherius Society , founded by British mystic George King in 1956, and the Unarius Foundation , established by "Ernest L." and Ruth Norman in 1954. A standard message-theme from space beings to these cults was a warning about the dangers of nuclear proliferation. More recent groups organized around an extraterrestrial theme include Ummo , Heaven's Gate , Raël , and the Ashtar Command . An interesting feature that many of the early as well as the later UFO sects share is a tendency to incorporate ideas from both Christianity and various eastern Religions , "hybridizing" these with ideas pertaining to Extraterrestrials and their benevolent concern with the people of earth. The notion of contactee cults gained a new twist during the 1980s, primarily in the USA, with the publication of books by Whitley Strieber (beginning with ''Communion'') and Jacques Vallee (''Passport to Magonia''). Strieber, a horror writer, felt that aliens were harassing him and were responsible for "missing time" during which he was subjected to strange experiments by ' Grey Aliens '. This newer, darker model can be seen in the subsequent wave of " Alien Abduction " literature, and in the background mythos of TV's '' X-Files ''. However, even in the alien abduction literature, motives of the aliens run the gamut from hostile to benevolent. For example, researcher Dr. David Jacobs believes we are undergoing a form of stealth invasion through genetic assimilation. The theme of genetic manipulation (though not necessarily an invasion) is also strongly reflected in the writings of Budd Hopkins . The late Harvard psychiatrist Dr. John Mack (1929-2004) believed the aliens ethical bearing was to take a role as "tough-love" Gurus trying to impart wisdom. Dr. James Harder claims abductees predominantly report positive interactions with aliens, most of whom have benevolent intentions and express concern about human survival. Another key development in 1970s UFO folklore came with the publication of ''. An interesting 1970s-era development was a renewal and broadening of ideas associating UFOs with Supernatural or Preternatural subjects such as Occultism , Cryptozoology , and Parapsychology . Some 1950s contactee cultists had incorporated various religious and occult ideas into their beliefs about UFOs, but in the 1970s this was repeated on a considerably larger scale. Many participants in the New Age movement came to believe in alien contact, both through mediumistic Channeling and through literal, physical contact. A prominent spokesperson for this trend was and is actress Shirley MacLaine , especially in her book and miniseries, '' Out On A Limb ''. The 1970s saw the publication of many New Age books in which ideas about UFOs and extraterrestrials figured prominently. UFOs constitute a widespread international Cultural phenomenon of the last half-century. Folklorist Dr. Thomas E. Bullard writes, "UFOs have invaded modern consciousness in overwhelming force, and endless streams Book s, Magazine articles, Tabloid covers, Movies , TV shows, Cartoon s, Advertisement s, Greeting Card s, Toy s, T-shirt s, even alien-head salt and pepper shakers, attest to the popularity of this phenomenon. Gallup Poll s rank UFOs near the top of lists for subjects of widespread recognition -- a 1973 survey found that 95 percent of the public had heard of UFOs, whereas in 1977 only 92 percent had heard of Gerald Ford in a poll taken just nine months after he left the White House ." (Bullard, 141) A 1996 Gallup Poll reported that 71% of the United States ' population believed that the Government was covering up information regarding UFOs. A 2002 Roper Poll for the Sci Fi Channel found similar results, but with more people believing UFOs were extraterrestrial craft. Again about 70% felt the government was not sharing everything it knew about UFOs or extraterrestrial life. But 56% thought UFOs were real craft and 48% that aliens had visited the Earth. {Link without Title} RESEARCH Ufology is a Neologism coined to describe the collective efforts of enthusiasts who study UFO reports and associated evidence. While ufology does not represent an academic research program, UFOs have been subject to various investigations over the years, varying widely in scope and scientific rigor. Governments or independent academics in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Sweden, Brazil, Mexico, Spain, and the Soviet Union are known to have investigated UFO reports at various times. No national government has ever publicly suggested that UFOs represent any form of alien intelligence. Perhaps the best known study was Project Blue Book , previously Project Sign and Project Grudge , conducted by the United States Air Force from 1947 until 1969. Other notable investigations include the Robertson Panel (1953), the Brookings Report (1960), the Condon Committee (1966-1968), the Green Fireballs /Project Twinkle investigation (1948-1951), the Sturrock Panel (1998), and the French GEPAN / SEPRA (1977-2004) and COMETA (1996-1999) study groups. UFO categorization Some researchers recommend that observations be classified according to the features of the phenomenon or object that are reported or recorded. Typical categories include:
Hynek system Dr. J. Allen Hynek developed another commonly used system of description, dividing sightings into six categories. It first separates sightings on the basis of proximity, arbitrarily using 500 feet as the cutoff point. It then subdivides these into divisions based on viewing conditions or special features. The three distant sighting categories are:
The distant classification is useful in terms of evidentiary value, with RV cases usually considered to be the highest because of radar corroboration and NL cases the lowest because of the ease in which lights seen at night are often confused with prosaic phenomena such as meteors, bright stars, or airplanes. RV reports are also fewest in number, while NL are largest. In addition were three " Close Encounter " (CE) subcategories, again thought to be higher in evidentiary value, because it includes measurable physical effects and the objects seen up close are less likely to be the result of misperception. As in RV cases, these tend to be relatively rare:
Hynek's CE classification system has since been expanded to include such things as alleged Alien Abductions and Cattle Mutilation phenomena. Vallee System Jacques Vallee has devised a UFO classification system which is preferred by many UFO investigators over Hynek' system as it is considerably more descriptive than Hynek's, especially in terms of the reported behavior of UFOs. Type - I (a, b,c, d)- Observation of an unusual object, spherical discoidal, or of another Geometry , on or situated close to the ground (tree height, or lower), which may be associated with traces - thermal, luminous, or mechanical effects.
Type - II (a, b,c) - Observation of an unusual object with vertical cylindrical formation in the sky, associated with a diffuse cloud. This phenomenon has been given various names such as "cloud-cigar" or "cloud-sphere."
Type - III (a, b,c, d,e)- Observation of an unusual object of spherical, discoidal or elliptical shape, stationary in the sky.
Type IV (a, b,c, d) - Observation of an unusual object in continuous flight.
Type V (a, b,c)- Observation of an unusual object of indistinct appearance, i.e., appearing to be not fully material or solid in structure.
Source: 1. Jacques and Janine Vallee: ''Challenge To Science: The UFO Enigma,'' LC# 66-25843 Physical evidence Besides visual sightings, cases sometimes have alleged associated direct or indirect physical evidence, including many cases studied by the military and various government agencies of different countries. Indirect physical evidence would be data obtained from afar, such as radar contact and photographs. More direct physical evidence involves physical interactions with the environment at close range—Hynek's "close encounter" or Vallee's "Type-I" cases—which include "landing traces," Electromagnetic Interference , and physiological/biological effects. Some of these cases have been shown to be deliberate hoaxes. Others have been shown to be explainable as natural or manmade phenomena. The remaining fraction have been labeled unidentified or unexplainable. Analyses of such cases have results that are usually ambiguous or inconclusive. A list of various purported physical evidence cases from government and private studies includes:
These various reported physical evidence cases have been studied by various scientist and engineers, both privately and in official governmental studies (such as Project Blue Book , the Condon Committee , and the French GEPAN/SEPRA). A comprehensive scientific review of physical evidence cases was carried out by the 1998 Sturrock UFO panel. {Link without Title} Attempts have been made to / NASA engineer Paul R. Hill in his book ''Unconventional Flying Objects'', and German rocketry pioneer Hermann Oberth . Among subjects tackled by McCampbell, Hill, and Oberth was the question of how UFOs can fly at Supersonic speeds without creating a Sonic Boom . McCampbell's proposed solution of a Microwave Plasma parting the air in front of the craft is currently being researched by Dr. Leik Myrabo , Professor of Engineering Physics at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute as a possible advance in Hypersonic flight. 1995 ''Aviation Week'' article Notable UFO-related sightings and events Explanations and Opinions Statistics compiled by U.S. Air Force studies found that the strong preponderance of identified sightings were due to misidentifications, with hoaxes and psychological aberrations accounting for only a few percent of all cases. Nevertheless, many cases remained unexplained. An Air Force study by Battelle Memorial Institute scientists in 1954 of 3200 USAF cases found 22% were unknowns, and with the best cases, 35% remained unsolved. Similarly about 30% of the UFO cases studied by the 1969 USAF Condon Committee were deemed unsolved when reviewed by the American Institute Of Aeronautics And Astronautics (AIAA). The official French government UFO scientific study (GEPAN/SEPRA) from 1976 to 2004 listed about 14% of 5800 cases as inexplicable. [http://www.ufoevidence.org/documents/doc1627.htm Despite unexplained cases, the general opinion of the Mainstream Scientific Community is that no UFO sighting requires extraordinary explanations . On the contrary, such sightings can be explained by the following prosaic explanations : #ordinary misidentification of natural and man-made phenomena #deliberate Hoax es #psychological phenomena such as Optical Illusions or Dreaming / Sleep Paralysis (often given as an explanation for purported Alien Abductions ) Skeptics point out that most evidence is ultimately derived from notoriously unreliable eyewitness accounts. Very little in the way of solid Physical Evidence has been reported, and because UFO sightings are transitory events, there is no opportunity for the repeat testing called for by Scientific Method . Ockham's Razor is invoked by such skeptics since it is considered less incredible for the explanations to be the result of scientifically verified phenomena rather than resulting from novel mechanisms (e.g. the Extraterrestrial Hypothesis ). Popular ideas for explaining UFOs To account for hardcore unsolved cases, a number of explanations have been proposed by both proponents and skeptics. Among proponents, some of the more common explanations for UFOs are:
Similarly, skeptics usually propose the following explanations:
Usually a combination of explanations is cited to explain all cases, and even proponents will sometimes invoke skeptical explanations, such as man-made craft, to possibly account for some unsolved cases. Identified flying objects (IFOs) It has been estimated from various studies that 50-90% of all reported UFO sightings are eventually identified, while typically 10-20% remain unidentified (the remainder being "garbage cases" with insufficient information). Studies also show only a tiny percentage of UFO reports to be deliberate hoaxes; most are honest misidentifications of natural and man-made phenomena. Generally studies indicate that misidentifications fall into three basic categories: astronomical causes (planets, stars, meteors, etc.), aircraft, and balloons. These typically account for 80-90% of the IFOs, with all other causes (such as birds, clouds, Mirage s, searchlights, etc.) being rare and accounting for the remainder. The actual percentages of IFOs vs. UFOs depends on who is doing the study and can vary widely depending on the used database, evaluation criteria, personal biases, and politics. Results can also fluctuate from year to year. For details, see Identified Flying Objects Hoaxes Among the many people who have reported UFO sightings, some have been exposed as Hoax ers. Not all alleged hoax exposures are certain, however, and many claimants have stuck by their stories, leaving the determination of specific cases as hoaxes contentious. Some of the controversial subjects include these:
Psychology The study of UFO claims over the years has led to valuable discoveries about Atmospheric Phenomena and psychology. In Psychology , the study of UFO sightings has revealed information on misinterpretation, perceptual illusions, Hallucination and fantasy-prone personality, which may explain why some people are willing to believe hoaxers such as George Adamski . Many have questioned the reliability of Hypnosis in UFO Abduction cases. Conspiracy theories See Also: UFO conspiracy theory UFOs are sometimes an element of elaborate Conspiracy Theories in which the government is said to be intentionally covering up the existence of aliens, or sometimes collaborating with them. There are many versions of this story; some are exclusive, while others overlap with various other conspiracy theories. Probably most Ufologists believe the basic premise that various national governments are covering up UFO information. In the U.S., opinion polls again indicate that a strong majority of people believe the U.S. government is withholding such information. Various notables have also expressed such views. Some examples are astronauts Gordon Cooper and Edgar Mitchell , Senator Barry Goldwater , Vice Admiral Roscoe H. Hillenkoetter (the first CIA director), Lord Hill-Norton (former British Chief of Defense Staff and NATO head), the 1999 high-level French COMETA Report by various French generals and aerospace experts, and Yves Sillard (former director of the French space agency CNES , new director of French UFO research organization GEIPAN). There is also speculation that UFO phenomena are tests of experimental aircraft or advanced weapons. In this case UFOs are viewed as failures to retain secrecy, or deliberate attempts at disinformation: to deride the phenomenon so that it can be pursued unhindered. This explanation may or may not feed back into the previous one, where current advanced military technology is considered to be adapted alien technology. (See also: Skunk Works and Area 51 ) It has also been suggested by a few fringe authors that all or most human technology and culture is based on extraterrestrial contact. See also Ancient Astronauts . Allegations of evidence suppression Some also contend that physical evidence of extraterrestrials is swiftly and sometimes clumsily suppressed by governments, aiming to insulate a population they regard as unprepared for the social, theological, and security implications of such evidence. See the Brookings Report . There have been allegations of suppression of UFO related evidence for many decades. (See also Men In Black ) Some examples are:
UFOLOGY - PEOPLE AND ORGANIZATIONS See also List Of UFO Researchers . Organizations: U.S. There have been a number of civilian groups formed to study UFO’s and/or to promulgate their opinions on the subject. Some have achieved fair degrees of mainstream visibility while others remain obscure. The groups listed below have embraced a broad variety of approaches, and have seen a correspondingly wide variety of responses from mainstream critics or supporters.
USE IN FILM AND TELEVISION See List Of Major UFO Movies/tv Shows SEE ALSO
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