Difference between revisions of "Unidentified Flying Object (UFO)" - New World Encyclopedia

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The acronym '''UFO''', '''Unidentified Flying Object''', refers to any real or apparent flying object which cannot be identified by the observer and which remains unidentified after investigation. If a UFO is identified as a known object (for example an [[Fixed-wing aircraft|aircraft]] or [[Balloon (aircraft)|weather balloon]]), it ceases to be a UFO and becomes an ''identified'' object. In such cases it is inaccurate to continue to use the [[acronym]] ''UFO'' to describe the object.
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Sightings of unusual aerial phenomena date back to ancient times, but reports of UFO sightings only became fashionable after the first widely publicized U.S. sighting in 1947. Many thousands of such claimed observations have since been reported worldwide. Often UFO's are linked to [[extraterrestrial life|extraterrestrials]], alien's in control of flying saucers being the most popular explination for UFOs. However, many researchers into the phenomena point out that the term UFO's only refers to any object of unknown origin.
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[[Image:PurportedNJUFO1952.jpg|thumb|This is a 1952 UFO over [[Passaic, New Jersey|Passaic]], [[New Jersey]]. It is derived from an FBI document with no information establishing its authenticity or falsity.]]
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==Description==
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Although there are hundreds of different types of UFOs observed all over the world, a majority of sitings can be grouped into five common categories:
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*Saucer, toy-top, or disk-shaped “craft” without visible or audible propulsion. (day and night)
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*Rapidly-moving lights or lights with apparent ability to rapidly change direction.
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*[[Black triangles|Large triangular “craft” or triangular light pattern]]
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*Cigar-shaped “craft” with lighted windows (Meteor fireballs are sometimes reported this way).
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*Other: chevrons, equilateral triangles, spheres, domes, diamonds, shapeless black masses, eggs, and cylinders.
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Although different in appearance, these crafts usually share similarly unusual characteristics. UFOs are often said to be able to go from a dead stop to high velocities and manuver in ways that defy the known laws of [[physics]], which is one reason that certain reports are ruled out as manned air craft. Some have reported that UFOs interfere with the local [[electro-magnetism|electro-magnetic field]], interrupting electrical devices in close contact to the UFO, and are also said to give off heat and possibly radiation. All evidence in support of these claims is at best circumstantial, but are popular in reports.
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==History==
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===Ancient accounts===
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Unusual aerial phenomena have been reported throughout history. Some of these strange apparitions may have been astronomical phenomena such as [[comet]]s or bright [[meteor]]s, or atmospheric [[Optical phenomenon|optical phenomena]] such as [[sun dog|parhelia]]. These sightings were usually treated as [[supernatural]] portents, angels, and other religious omens. Some contemporary investigators believe them to be the ancient equivalent of modern UFO reports. Ancient [[China|Chinese]] and [[India|Indian]] texts talk of flying vehicles that are driven by either [[deties]] or people from far off lands. <ref>(1988) "The UFO Phenomenon" Time-Life Books: Alexandria </ref> Some researchers even believe that sections of the [[Bible]], such as the pillar of fire that leads the [[Jewish]] exodus out of [[Egypt]] and the vision of God the [[prophet]] [[Ezekeil]], fit the description of modern day UFOs. Such ideas are difficult to verify; while every ancient society does report mysterious phenomena that appears to be concurrent with modern day reports, it must be taken into account that the ancients had a drastically different outlook on life than contemporary times; more often than not, metaphorical and supernatural explinations were given to occurences that contemporary science has explained. Much of the speculation regarding the UFO connection to ancient times comes from [[Erich Von Daniken]]'s 1968 book, ''Chariots of the Gods?'', in which it was argued that aliens, using UFOs as their transportation, had been visiting and influencing the evolution of Earth for centuries. However, it has been proven that much of Von Daniken's work was inaccurate and too broad.
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There is however some compeling artistic evidence. Several cave paintings by [[tribal]] groups, such as the [[Native American]]s of the [[United States]] and the [[Aborignies]] of [[Australia]], produced works that seem similar to the popular conception of what [[extraterrestrial life|grey aliens]] look like. Several [[Renaisance]] paintings, show what appears to be small crafts flying in the background sky, deliberately made by the artist.<ref>(1988) "The UFO Phenomenon" Time-Life Books: Alexandria </ref>
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===UFOs In the Modern Era===
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[[Image:1871UFO.gif|thumb|left|200px|Photo of a UFO taken in [[New Hampshire]] in 1870]]
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Before the terms “flying saucer” and “UFO” were coined, there were a number of reports of strange, unidentified aerial phenomena. These reports date from the mid-nineteenth to early twentieth century, and range from farmers in Europe, to whole cities in Califorinia, and the entire Northeastern region in the early twentieth century. During [[World War II]], both [[Axis]] and [[Allied]] airplanes reported strange lights that would trail them during flight. These lights were later given the name '''Foo Fighters'''.<ref> Ritchie, David (1994) "UFO:The Definitive Guide to Unidentified Flying Objects and Related Phenomena" MJF Books: New York </ref> As widespread, and unsettling as these reports were, there was no widespread context to place them into until 1947.
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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 (Washington)|Mount Adams]], which he calculated as traveling at at least 1200 miles per hour by timing their travel between Rainier and Adams. His sighting subsequently received significant media and public attention. Arnold’s reported descriptions caught the media’s and the public’s fancy and gave rise to the terms '''flying saucer''' and '''flying disk'''.<ref>(1988) "The UFO Phenomenon" Time-Life Books: Alexandria </ref>
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The next major event in the UFO phenomenon happened less than a month later in [[Roswell]], [[New Mexico]], in which a farmer discovered fragments of what some claimed to be pieces of a crashed UFO. Once word broke, the attention of the entire world focused on Roswell, only to have the U.S. military claim later that the sensation was mislead; the wreck was that of a weather balloon. The '''[[Roswell Incident]]''' as it has come to be known, is perhaps the genesis of many aspects of the current beliefs in UFOs. It marks the first direct involvement of the U.S. government and military with UFOs, aliens and is one of the earliest believed cover-ups and conspiracies in U.S. history. It also marks the first time out of literature that UFOs are defined as extraterrestrial space crafts.
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While the government may have denied the retrival of a UFO at Roswell, it could not deny what was happening in the U.S. and around the world. Exponentially, on nearly every continent, people were seeing UFOs. In 1947, as a response, the [[U.S. Air Force]] began investigating the phenomena under [[Project Blue Book]], which lasted until 1968, and investigated over 12,000 reports. Most of the investigations were concluded as hoaxes or misidentifications, however several hundreds were left unexplained. <ref> (2006) United States Airforce[[http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=188"UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS AND AIR FORCE PROJECT BLUE BOOK"]] Retrieved May 6, 2007 </ref> Since then, despite the number of sightings around the world, most governments and officials turn a blind eye to the phenomenon. However, there still is ample photographic, video, audio, and radar evidence to suggest that something, whatever its origin, is actually going on.
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===Abductions and Contactees===
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The UFO phenomenon took on new dimensions in the later part of the twentieth century, with the development of the highly contraversial [[alien abduction]]s and spiritual connections. The incident in [[New Hampshire]] in 1961, involving [[Betty Hill and Barney Hill|Betty and Barney Hill]] was the first reported abduction of humans by extraterrestrials for the purpose of medical experiments. Since then, thousands of people around the world have made similar claims, stating mutiple abductions, psychological tramua, and even physical injury.
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==UFOs in Pop Culture==
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==Ufology==
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Since the mid twentieth centuries there have been many individuals who have spent their time researching the many different aspects of the UFO phenomenon. Over the years, the term '''Ufology''' has been used as an umbrella term for [[sociology|sociologists]], [[journalism|journalists]], [[physics|physicists]], [[psychology|psychologists]], ametuer investigators and anyone else who spend time investigating physical evidence, talking to eyewitenesses, and evaluating photographs and videotapes claiming to have captured images of UFOs.
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While many ufologists strive for legitimacy, and some are respected scientists in other fields, ufology has never been fully embraced by the scientific community, for a number of reasons. Despite involvement of some respected scientists, the field has seen very little attention from mainstream science. Most critics still consider ufology a [[pseudoscience]] or a [[protoscience]]. Some argue this rejection by mainstream science is part of the problem: anyone can declare themselves a "UFO researcher," and completely bypass the sorts of [[consensus]] building and [[peer review]] that otherwise shape and influence scientific [[paradigm]]s. This has allowed many to stake out territory and disseminate claims, information and analysis of widely varying rigor and quality.
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==Explinations==
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The terms skeptic and believer, which is often used in regaurds to UFOs, is somewhat misleading. Those that would be called believers do not neccesarily agree on what UFOs actual are, but rather agree that people are actually seeing something, as opposed to those classified under skeptics, who range from those who dismiss the idea outright as ridiculous and hoaxes to those who consider sightings to be pyschologically originated. Listed below is some of the most popular theories, from both believers and skeptics.
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===The advanced human aircraft hypothesis===
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This is a theory that all or some UFO sightings are advanced, secret or experimental aircraft of earthly origin. During the 1980s, there were reports of "[[black triangles|black triangle]]" UFOs. Some of these were the secret [[F-117 Nighthawk]], which became known to the public in November 1988. [[Nazi Germany]] is known to have experimented with circular jet planes using the [[Coanda effect]]. At least one of the scientists involved was taken to the USA after [[World War II|WWII]]. Experiments with these designs and their descendants down the years may explain many sightings of circular UFO's. See [[Military flying saucers]].
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There is a theory that the secret groups developing these aircraft in the USA, have been encouraging ufology to follow the "alien spacecraft" line of thought, to cover up for sightings.
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===The Interdimensional Hypothesis (a.k.a. "Cosmic Trickster," "Ultraterrestrial" Hypothesis)===
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The '''Interdimensional Hypothesis''' has two meanings here. See [[Interdimensional hypothesis]]. That some UFO sightings are alien spacecraft who have come from a [[Parallel universe (fiction)|parallel dimension]] or similar. The theory, related to the [[Psychosocial Hypothesis]], that [[angel|angelic]], [[demons|demonic]] and other [[supernatural]] manifestations down the centuries were caused by [[Extraterrestrial life|aliens]] trying to control human destiny, and that or some UFO sightings are part of this process. (This overlaps considerably with the Staging Hypotheis.)
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===Psychosocial Hypothesis===
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[[Carl Jung]], the famous psychologist, also theorized that UFOs might have a primarily spiritual and psychological basis. In his 1959 book "Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen In The Sky," he pointed out that the round shape of most saucers corresponds to a [[mandala]], a type of archetypal shape seen in religious images. Thus the saucers might reflect a projection of the internal desires of viewers to see them. However, he did not out rightly label them a delusion or [[hallucination]]; it was more in the nature of a shared spiritual experience.
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Vallee, a French UFO researcher, has noted an almost exact parallel between UFO and "Alien" visitations and stories from [[folklore]] of [[Fairies]] and similar creatures. This was documented in his 1969 book "Passport to Magonia" and explored further in his later works. The significance of these parallels is disputed between mainstream scientists, who contend that they show both to be fanciful, and between Vallee and others who feel that some underlying, poorly understood, phenomenon is actually interacting with humans to cause both kinds of sightings.
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The hallucination may be a distortion of a real object. Reasons for these wrong perceptions include mental illness, food shortages forcing people to eat [[mold|moldy]] food, where the mold [[fungus]] had made [[Psychedelics, Dissociatives and Deliriants|hallucinogen]]ic chemicals, non-[[alcoholic]] [[delirium tremens]] caused by chronic [[magnesium]] deficiency, the brain being affected by electric effects caused by ball lightning, exposure to [[hallucinogenic]] [[drugs]], [[Dreams]] confused with reality, following the area's general local belief, [[Delirium]] caused by heat and [[dehydration]], false or [[implanted memory]]
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The route followed by these misperceptions can be influenced by the environment that the perceiver was brought up in as a child: [[fairy tale|fairy stories]], or one or other [[religion]], or [[science fiction]], or whatever: for example, one perceiver may see [[fairy|fairies]] where another sees [[Greys]].
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[[Carl G. Jung]], the Swiss analytical psychologist, published a book about UFOs in 1957 (Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen in the Skies). In it, he approached them, without addressing the question of their existence, as objects of the collective unconscious and modern archetypes.
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==FootNotes==
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<References/>
  
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==Sources==
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* [[Sergey Litsak]], Explanatory UFO Dictionary with Equivalents in Russian, English and German. [[ETS Publishing House]] and [[Polyglossum]], Inc; ISBN 5-86455-063-9. Dictionary contains 853 articles.
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*Roth, Christopher F., "Ufology as Anthropology: Race, Extraterrestrials, and the Occult." In ''E.T. Culture: Anthropology in Outerspaces,'' ed. by Debbora Battaglia. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2005.
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*Peter A. Sturrock; The UFO Enigma: A New Review of the Physical Evidence; Warner Books, 1999; ISBN 0-446-52565-0
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* [[Jerome Eden]]; "The Desert Makers," Careywood, Idaho, PPCC, 1981, available from [http://www.flatlandbooks.com Flatlandbooks].
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* [[Jerome Eden]]; "Scavengers From Space," Careywood, Idaho, PPCC, 1989, at present time out of print.
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==References==
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====General====
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*[[Thomas E. Bullard]], “UFOs: Lost in the Myths,” pages 141-191 in “UFOs, the Military, and the Early Cold War Era,” pages 82-121 in “UFOs and Abductions: Challenging the Borders of Knowledge” David M. Jacobs, editor; 2000, University Press of Kansas, ISBN 0-7006-1032-4
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*[[Jerome Clark]], ''The UFO Book: Encyclopedia of the Extraterrestrial'', 1998, Visible Ink Press, ISBN 1-57859-029-9. Many classic cases and UFO history provided in great detail; highly documented.
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*{{cite journal
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| author=J. Deardorff, B. Haisch, B. Maccabee, [[Harold E. Puthoff]]
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| title=Inflation-Theory Implications for Extraterrestrial Visitation
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| journal=[[Journal of the British Interplanetary Society]]
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| year=2005 | volume=58 | pages=43–50
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| url= http://www.ufoskeptic.org/JBIS.pdf
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}} (''links to pdf file'')
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*Douglas Curran, ''In Advance of the Landing: Folk Concepts of Outer Space'', 2001 (revised edition), Abbeville Press, ISBN 0-7892-0708-7. Non-sensational but fair treament of contemporary UFO legend and lore in N. America, including the so-called “contactee cults.” The author traveled the United States with his camera and tape recorder and directly interviewed many individuals.
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*[[Richard H. Hall]], editor, ''The UFO Evidence: Volume 1'', 1964, [[NICAP]], reissued 1997, Barnes & Noble Books, ISBN 0-7607-0627-1. Well-organized, exhaustive summary and analysis of 746 unexplained NICAP cases out of 5000 total cases — a classic.
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*Richard H. Hall, ''The UFO Evidence: A Thirty-Year Report'', 2001, Scarecrow Press, ISBN 0-8108-3881-8. Another exhaustive case study, more recent UFO reports.
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*Alan Hendry, ''The UFO Handbook: A Guide to Investigating, Evaluating, and Reporting UFO Sightings'', 1979, Doubleday & Co., ISBN 0-385-14348-6. Skeptical but balanced analysis of 1300 [[CUFOS]] UFO cases.
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*[[J. Allen Hynek]], ''The UFO Experience: A scientific inquiry'', 1972, Henry Regnery Co.
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*J. Allen Hynek, ''The Hynek UFO Report'', 1997 (new edition), Barnes & Noble Books, ISBN 0-7607-0429-5. Analysis of 640 high-quality cases through 1969 by UFO legend Hynek.
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*[[Carl Sagan]] & Thornton Page, editors, ''UFO's: A Scientific Debate'', 1972, Cornell University Press, 1996, Barnes & Noble Books, ISBN 0-7607-0192-2. Pro and con articles by scientists, mostly to the skeptical side.
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*[[Peter A. Sturrock]] (1999). ''The UFO Enigma: A New Review of the Physical Evidence.'' New York: Warner Books. ISBN 0-446-52565-0
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====Debunkery====
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*[[Philip Plait]] (2002). ''Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing “Hoax”''. [[John Wiley & Sons]], ISBN 0-471-40976-6. (Chapter 20: ''Misidentified Flying Objects: UFOs and Illusions of the Mind and Eye.)
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* [[Michael A. Seeds]]. (1995). ''Horizons: Exploring the Universe'', [[Wadsworth Publishing]], ISBN 0-534-24889-6 and ISBN 0-534-24890-X. (Appendix A)
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* {{cite web | url = http://www.larryhatch.net/DISCRED.html | title = A Short List of DISCREDITED UFO SIGHTINGS | date = June 2006 | work = *U* UFO DATABASE | accessdate = 2006-08-19 }}
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====Psychology====
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*[[Carl G. Jung]], “Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen in the Skies” (translated by R.F.C. Hull); 1979, Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01822-7
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====Histories====
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*[[Richard M. Dolan]], ''UFOs and the National Security State: An Unclassified History, Volume One: 1941-1973'', 2000, Keyhole Publishing, ISBN 0-9666885-0-3. Dolan is a professional historian.
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*Downes, Jonathan ''Rising of the Moon''. 2nd ed. Bangor: Xiphos, 2005.
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*Lawrence Fawcett & Barry J. Greenwood, ''The UFO Cover-Up'' (Originally ''Clear Intent''), 1992, Fireside Books (Simon & Schuster), ISBN 0-671-76555-8. Many UFO documents.
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*[[Timothy Good]], ''Above Top Secret'', 1988, William Morrow & Co., ISBN 0-688-09202-0. Many UFO documents.
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*[[Kevin Randle]], ''Project Blue Book Exposed'', 1997, Marlowe & Company, ISBN 1-56924-746-3
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*[[Edward J. Ruppelt]], ''The Report On Unidentified Flying Objects'', 1956, Doubleday & Co. [http://www.nicap.org/rufo/contents.htm online]. A UFO classic by insider Ruppelt, the first head of the USAF [[Project Blue Book]]
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====Technology====
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*[[Paul R. Hill]], ''Unconventional Flying Objects: a scientific analysis'', 1995, Hampton Roads Publishing Co., ISBN 1-57174-027-9. Analysis of UFO technology by pioneering [[NACA]]/[[NASA]] aerospace engineer.
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*James M. McCampbell, ''Ufology: A Major Breakthrough in the Scientific Understanding of Unidentified Flying Objects'', 1973, 1976, Celestial Arts, ISBN 0-89087-144-2 [http://www.nicap.dabsol.co.uk/ufology.htm online]. Another analysis by former NASA and nuclear engineer.
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==External links==  
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*[http://narcap.org/ National Aviation Reporting Center on anomalous phenomena]
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*[http://www.mufon.com/ Mutual UFO Network homepage] - [[Mufon]]'s website
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*[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5594744703753734741&q=out+of+the+blue Out Of The Blue] video documentary of the UFO Phenomenon (2003), 1.5hr 353MB (GoogleVideo)
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*The Disclosure Project Witness Testimony video (2hrs), *[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6552475158249898710&q=disclosure+project part 1 of 2] (59min 230MB) and *[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4694075066240662837&q=disclosure+project part 2 of 2] (1hr 240MB).
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*[http://www.ufo-movies.com/ UFO-Movies.com] - Documentations and short movies about UFOs
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*[http://www.actualaliens.com/ Actual Aliens] - Current news about UFO sightings
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*[http://www.ncas.org/condon/ [[Condon Report]], Dr. Edward U. Condon, Scientific Director, Daniel Gilmor, Editor (1968)
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*[http://www.scientificexploration.org/jse/articles/ufo_reports/sturrock/toc.html Claimed physical evidence related to UFO reports], [[Journal of Scientific Exploration]], Workshop Proceedings, New York, Oct-1997
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*[http://www.sacred-texts.com/ufo/fsar/index.htm Flying saucers are real] Full-text of Major [[Donald Keyhoe]]'s 1953 book
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*[http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6550923926784564779&q=ufo+navy Lt Col Wendelle C Stevens, US Air Force (Ret) video interview] (7min, 18MB) about USAF monitoring operations of UFOs over the Arctic in 1947 (very poor video quality). Earlier [http://www.galactic2.net/video/ufo31.avi video interview] by the same.
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*[http://www.nicap.org/babylon/missile_incidents.htm UFO sightings at ICBM sites and nuclear weapons storage areas] by R. Hastings, [[NICAP]]
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*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3707057.stm BBC article on Mexican Air-force videotape]
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*[http://www.bluebookarchive.org Project Blue Book Archive] Online version of USAF Project Blue
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*[http://www.artilife.no/ufo/index.php UFO Pictures Database]
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*[http://nanoworld.org.ru/forum/viewtopic.php?id=3&p=126 Inertial Engine]
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*[https://www.cia.gov/csi/studies/97unclass/ufo.html CIA educational summary on UFO]
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*[http://www.csicop.org Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal] ([[CSICOP]])
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*[http://www.cufos.org/ Center for UFO Studies] ([[CUFOS]])
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*[http://www.earthfiles.com www.earthfiles.com] - [[Linda Moulton Howe]]'s website
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*[http://www.freedomofinfo.org/ The Coalition for Freedom of Information]
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*[http://www.niac.usra.edu/ NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts]
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*[http://www.nidsci.org National Institute for Discovery Science]
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*[http://www.ufocasebook.com Homepage] of [[UFO Casebook]]
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*[http://www.unknowncountry.com www.unknowncountry.com] - [[Whitley Strieber]]'s website.
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*[http://www.ufoskeptic.org ufoskeptic.org] — a non-commercial website directed to scientists, hosted by an astronomer.
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*[http://www.mysteries-megasite.com UFO websites]
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*[http://www.breakingufonews.com www.breakingufonews.com Latest UFO related news]
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*[http://www.alienadvice.com www.alienadvice.com: Advisory and support group for those claiming a UFO/Alien experience]
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*[http://www.artilife.no/ufo/index.php UFO Pictures Database]
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*[http://www.ets.ru/udict-ufo-e.htm Free on-line Explanatory UFOlogy Dictionary With Equivalents inRussian, English and German]
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*[http://www.ufopsi.com/articles/ufomethodology.html How to investigate UFO cases]
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*[http://www.flamelcollege.org/paranormal.htm#UFO%20Investigator%20Certification UFO Investigator Certification] from [[Flamel College]]
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*[http://www.projetoportal.org.br Projeto Portal - Ufology and Paranormality]
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*[http://ufologie.net/htm/stupid.htm UFO stupidities]
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*[http://www.pararesearchers.org/Alien_Abduction/aa_4/aa_4.html The Political Sociology of Alien Encounters] by [[Eric Ouellet]], [[Ph.D.]]
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*[http://ufologie.net/books/ruppeltbook.htm The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects]
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*[http://www.ufo.no/ UFO Norge official webpage]
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*[http://www.forteantimes.com/forum/viewforum.php?f=8 Ufology forum at forteantimes.com]
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*Diana Palmer Hoyt, "UFOCRITIQUE: UFO's, Social Intelligence and the Condon Committee"; Master's Thesis, [[Virginia Polytechnic Institute]], 2000 [http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-05082000-09580026/unrestricted/UFOCRITIQUE.pdf read it online]
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*Peter Robbins: [http://video.google.de/videoplay?docid=7602609578301856050 Google Video]: an illustrated lecture from Ufocongress, he does not only talk about UFOs but all of [[Wilhelm Reich]]'s life. (1 h 17 min, '''approx. 300 MB''', DSL or Cable Connection is recommended)
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*[http://www.conspiracyarchive.com/UFOs/UFOs_Aliens_Contactees.htm UFOs & the Cult of ET: The Phantasmagorical Manipulation] *[http://www.michaelsheiser.com Michael S. Heiser, Presbyterian Semitic scholar and author of ''The Facade'']
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*[http://www.echoesofenoch.com Christian ministry dealing with UFO's, abductions, Paperclip and the Roswell incident, Based in Roswell, NM.]
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{{Credit3|Unidentified_flying_object|79466358|Ufology|77393785|Paranormal_and_occult_hypotheses_about_UFOs|72284575|}}

Revision as of 21:46, 8 May 2007

{Claimed}}

The acronym UFO, Unidentified Flying Object, refers to any real or apparent flying object which cannot be identified by the observer and which remains unidentified after investigation. If a UFO is identified as a known object (for example an aircraft or weather balloon), it ceases to be a UFO and becomes an identified object. In such cases it is inaccurate to continue to use the acronym UFO to describe the object.

Sightings of unusual aerial phenomena date back to ancient times, but reports of UFO sightings only became fashionable after the first widely publicized U.S. sighting in 1947. Many thousands of such claimed observations have since been reported worldwide. Often UFO's are linked to extraterrestrials, alien's in control of flying saucers being the most popular explination for UFOs. However, many researchers into the phenomena point out that the term UFO's only refers to any object of unknown origin.

File:PurportedNJUFO1952.jpg
This is a 1952 UFO over Passaic, New Jersey. It is derived from an FBI document with no information establishing its authenticity or falsity.

Description

Although there are hundreds of different types of UFOs observed all over the world, a majority of sitings can be grouped into five common categories:

  • Saucer, toy-top, or disk-shaped “craft” without visible or audible propulsion. (day and night)
  • Rapidly-moving lights or lights with apparent ability to rapidly change direction.
  • Large triangular “craft” or triangular light pattern
  • Cigar-shaped “craft” with lighted windows (Meteor fireballs are sometimes reported this way).
  • Other: chevrons, equilateral triangles, spheres, domes, diamonds, shapeless black masses, eggs, and cylinders.

Although different in appearance, these crafts usually share similarly unusual characteristics. UFOs are often said to be able to go from a dead stop to high velocities and manuver in ways that defy the known laws of physics, which is one reason that certain reports are ruled out as manned air craft. Some have reported that UFOs interfere with the local electro-magnetic field, interrupting electrical devices in close contact to the UFO, and are also said to give off heat and possibly radiation. All evidence in support of these claims is at best circumstantial, but are popular in reports.

History

Ancient accounts

Unusual aerial phenomena have been reported throughout history. Some of these strange apparitions may have been astronomical phenomena such as comets or bright meteors, or atmospheric optical phenomena such as parhelia. These sightings were usually treated as supernatural portents, angels, and other religious omens. Some contemporary investigators believe them to be the ancient equivalent of modern UFO reports. Ancient Chinese and Indian texts talk of flying vehicles that are driven by either deties or people from far off lands. [1] Some researchers even believe that sections of the Bible, such as the pillar of fire that leads the Jewish exodus out of Egypt and the vision of God the prophet Ezekeil, fit the description of modern day UFOs. Such ideas are difficult to verify; while every ancient society does report mysterious phenomena that appears to be concurrent with modern day reports, it must be taken into account that the ancients had a drastically different outlook on life than contemporary times; more often than not, metaphorical and supernatural explinations were given to occurences that contemporary science has explained. Much of the speculation regarding the UFO connection to ancient times comes from Erich Von Daniken's 1968 book, Chariots of the Gods?, in which it was argued that aliens, using UFOs as their transportation, had been visiting and influencing the evolution of Earth for centuries. However, it has been proven that much of Von Daniken's work was inaccurate and too broad.

There is however some compeling artistic evidence. Several cave paintings by tribal groups, such as the Native Americans of the United States and the Aborignies of Australia, produced works that seem similar to the popular conception of what grey aliens look like. Several Renaisance paintings, show what appears to be small crafts flying in the background sky, deliberately made by the artist.[2]

UFOs In the Modern Era

Photo of a UFO taken in New Hampshire in 1870

Before the terms “flying saucer” and “UFO” were coined, there were a number of reports of strange, unidentified aerial phenomena. These reports date from the mid-nineteenth to early twentieth century, and range from farmers in Europe, to whole cities in Califorinia, and the entire Northeastern region in the early twentieth century. During World War II, both Axis and Allied airplanes reported strange lights that would trail them during flight. These lights were later given the name Foo Fighters.[3] As widespread, and unsettling as these reports were, there was no widespread context to place them into until 1947.

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, which he calculated as traveling at at least 1200 miles per hour by timing their travel between Rainier and Adams. His sighting subsequently received significant media and public attention. Arnold’s reported descriptions caught the media’s and the public’s fancy and gave rise to the terms flying saucer and flying disk.[4]

The next major event in the UFO phenomenon happened less than a month later in Roswell, New Mexico, in which a farmer discovered fragments of what some claimed to be pieces of a crashed UFO. Once word broke, the attention of the entire world focused on Roswell, only to have the U.S. military claim later that the sensation was mislead; the wreck was that of a weather balloon. The Roswell Incident as it has come to be known, is perhaps the genesis of many aspects of the current beliefs in UFOs. It marks the first direct involvement of the U.S. government and military with UFOs, aliens and is one of the earliest believed cover-ups and conspiracies in U.S. history. It also marks the first time out of literature that UFOs are defined as extraterrestrial space crafts.

While the government may have denied the retrival of a UFO at Roswell, it could not deny what was happening in the U.S. and around the world. Exponentially, on nearly every continent, people were seeing UFOs. In 1947, as a response, the U.S. Air Force began investigating the phenomena under Project Blue Book, which lasted until 1968, and investigated over 12,000 reports. Most of the investigations were concluded as hoaxes or misidentifications, however several hundreds were left unexplained. [5] Since then, despite the number of sightings around the world, most governments and officials turn a blind eye to the phenomenon. However, there still is ample photographic, video, audio, and radar evidence to suggest that something, whatever its origin, is actually going on.

Abductions and Contactees

The UFO phenomenon took on new dimensions in the later part of the twentieth century, with the development of the highly contraversial alien abductions and spiritual connections. The incident in New Hampshire in 1961, involving Betty and Barney Hill was the first reported abduction of humans by extraterrestrials for the purpose of medical experiments. Since then, thousands of people around the world have made similar claims, stating mutiple abductions, psychological tramua, and even physical injury.

UFOs in Pop Culture

Ufology

Since the mid twentieth centuries there have been many individuals who have spent their time researching the many different aspects of the UFO phenomenon. Over the years, the term Ufology has been used as an umbrella term for sociologists, journalists, physicists, psychologists, ametuer investigators and anyone else who spend time investigating physical evidence, talking to eyewitenesses, and evaluating photographs and videotapes claiming to have captured images of UFOs.

While many ufologists strive for legitimacy, and some are respected scientists in other fields, ufology has never been fully embraced by the scientific community, for a number of reasons. Despite involvement of some respected scientists, the field has seen very little attention from mainstream science. Most critics still consider ufology a pseudoscience or a protoscience. Some argue this rejection by mainstream science is part of the problem: anyone can declare themselves a "UFO researcher," and completely bypass the sorts of consensus building and peer review that otherwise shape and influence scientific paradigms. This has allowed many to stake out territory and disseminate claims, information and analysis of widely varying rigor and quality.

Explinations

The terms skeptic and believer, which is often used in regaurds to UFOs, is somewhat misleading. Those that would be called believers do not neccesarily agree on what UFOs actual are, but rather agree that people are actually seeing something, as opposed to those classified under skeptics, who range from those who dismiss the idea outright as ridiculous and hoaxes to those who consider sightings to be pyschologically originated. Listed below is some of the most popular theories, from both believers and skeptics.

The advanced human aircraft hypothesis

This is a theory that all or some UFO sightings are advanced, secret or experimental aircraft of earthly origin. During the 1980s, there were reports of "black triangle" UFOs. Some of these were the secret F-117 Nighthawk, which became known to the public in November 1988. Nazi Germany is known to have experimented with circular jet planes using the Coanda effect. At least one of the scientists involved was taken to the USA after WWII. Experiments with these designs and their descendants down the years may explain many sightings of circular UFO's. See Military flying saucers.

There is a theory that the secret groups developing these aircraft in the USA, have been encouraging ufology to follow the "alien spacecraft" line of thought, to cover up for sightings.

The Interdimensional Hypothesis (a.k.a. "Cosmic Trickster," "Ultraterrestrial" Hypothesis)

The Interdimensional Hypothesis has two meanings here. See Interdimensional hypothesis. That some UFO sightings are alien spacecraft who have come from a parallel dimension or similar. The theory, related to the Psychosocial Hypothesis, that angelic, demonic and other supernatural manifestations down the centuries were caused by aliens trying to control human destiny, and that or some UFO sightings are part of this process. (This overlaps considerably with the Staging Hypotheis.)

Psychosocial Hypothesis

Carl Jung, the famous psychologist, also theorized that UFOs might have a primarily spiritual and psychological basis. In his 1959 book "Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen In The Sky," he pointed out that the round shape of most saucers corresponds to a mandala, a type of archetypal shape seen in religious images. Thus the saucers might reflect a projection of the internal desires of viewers to see them. However, he did not out rightly label them a delusion or hallucination; it was more in the nature of a shared spiritual experience.

Vallee, a French UFO researcher, has noted an almost exact parallel between UFO and "Alien" visitations and stories from folklore of Fairies and similar creatures. This was documented in his 1969 book "Passport to Magonia" and explored further in his later works. The significance of these parallels is disputed between mainstream scientists, who contend that they show both to be fanciful, and between Vallee and others who feel that some underlying, poorly understood, phenomenon is actually interacting with humans to cause both kinds of sightings.

The hallucination may be a distortion of a real object. Reasons for these wrong perceptions include mental illness, food shortages forcing people to eat moldy food, where the mold fungus had made hallucinogenic chemicals, non-alcoholic delirium tremens caused by chronic magnesium deficiency, the brain being affected by electric effects caused by ball lightning, exposure to hallucinogenic drugs, Dreams confused with reality, following the area's general local belief, Delirium caused by heat and dehydration, false or implanted memory The route followed by these misperceptions can be influenced by the environment that the perceiver was brought up in as a child: fairy stories, or one or other religion, or science fiction, or whatever: for example, one perceiver may see fairies where another sees Greys.

Carl G. Jung, the Swiss analytical psychologist, published a book about UFOs in 1957 (Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen in the Skies). In it, he approached them, without addressing the question of their existence, as objects of the collective unconscious and modern archetypes.

FootNotes

  1. ↑ (1988) "The UFO Phenomenon" Time-Life Books: Alexandria
  2. ↑ (1988) "The UFO Phenomenon" Time-Life Books: Alexandria
  3. ↑ Ritchie, David (1994) "UFO:The Definitive Guide to Unidentified Flying Objects and Related Phenomena" MJF Books: New York
  4. ↑ (1988) "The UFO Phenomenon" Time-Life Books: Alexandria
  5. ↑ (2006) United States Airforce["UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS AND AIR FORCE PROJECT BLUE BOOK"] Retrieved May 6, 2007


Sources

  • Sergey Litsak, Explanatory UFO Dictionary with Equivalents in Russian, English and German. ETS Publishing House and Polyglossum, Inc; ISBN 5-86455-063-9. Dictionary contains 853 articles.
  • Roth, Christopher F., "Ufology as Anthropology: Race, Extraterrestrials, and the Occult." In E.T. Culture: Anthropology in Outerspaces, ed. by Debbora Battaglia. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2005.
  • Peter A. Sturrock; The UFO Enigma: A New Review of the Physical Evidence; Warner Books, 1999; ISBN 0-446-52565-0
  • Jerome Eden; "The Desert Makers," Careywood, Idaho, PPCC, 1981, available from Flatlandbooks.
  • Jerome Eden; "Scavengers From Space," Careywood, Idaho, PPCC, 1989, at present time out of print.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

General

  • Thomas E. Bullard, “UFOs: Lost in the Myths,” pages 141-191 in “UFOs, the Military, and the Early Cold War Era,” pages 82-121 in “UFOs and Abductions: Challenging the Borders of Knowledge” David M. Jacobs, editor; 2000, University Press of Kansas, ISBN 0-7006-1032-4
  • Jerome Clark, The UFO Book: Encyclopedia of the Extraterrestrial, 1998, Visible Ink Press, ISBN 1-57859-029-9. Many classic cases and UFO history provided in great detail; highly documented.
  • J. Deardorff, B. Haisch, B. Maccabee, Harold E. Puthoff (2005). Inflation-Theory Implications for Extraterrestrial Visitation. Journal of the British Interplanetary Society 58: 43–50. (links to pdf file)
  • Douglas Curran, In Advance of the Landing: Folk Concepts of Outer Space, 2001 (revised edition), Abbeville Press, ISBN 0-7892-0708-7. Non-sensational but fair treament of contemporary UFO legend and lore in N. America, including the so-called “contactee cults.” The author traveled the United States with his camera and tape recorder and directly interviewed many individuals.
  • Richard H. Hall, editor, The UFO Evidence: Volume 1, 1964, NICAP, reissued 1997, Barnes & Noble Books, ISBN 0-7607-0627-1. Well-organized, exhaustive summary and analysis of 746 unexplained NICAP cases out of 5000 total cases — a classic.
  • Richard H. Hall, The UFO Evidence: A Thirty-Year Report, 2001, Scarecrow Press, ISBN 0-8108-3881-8. Another exhaustive case study, more recent UFO reports.
  • Alan Hendry, The UFO Handbook: A Guide to Investigating, Evaluating, and Reporting UFO Sightings, 1979, Doubleday & Co., ISBN 0-385-14348-6. Skeptical but balanced analysis of 1300 CUFOS UFO cases.
  • J. Allen Hynek, The UFO Experience: A scientific inquiry, 1972, Henry Regnery Co.
  • J. Allen Hynek, The Hynek UFO Report, 1997 (new edition), Barnes & Noble Books, ISBN 0-7607-0429-5. Analysis of 640 high-quality cases through 1969 by UFO legend Hynek.
  • Carl Sagan & Thornton Page, editors, UFO's: A Scientific Debate, 1972, Cornell University Press, 1996, Barnes & Noble Books, ISBN 0-7607-0192-2. Pro and con articles by scientists, mostly to the skeptical side.
  • Peter A. Sturrock (1999). The UFO Enigma: A New Review of the Physical Evidence. New York: Warner Books. ISBN 0-446-52565-0

Debunkery

  • Philip Plait (2002). Bad Astronomy: Misconceptions and Misuses Revealed, from Astrology to the Moon Landing “Hoax”. John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 0-471-40976-6. (Chapter 20: Misidentified Flying Objects: UFOs and Illusions of the Mind and Eye.)
  • Michael A. Seeds. (1995). Horizons: Exploring the Universe, Wadsworth Publishing, ISBN 0-534-24889-6 and ISBN 0-534-24890-X. (Appendix A)
  • A Short List of DISCREDITED UFO SIGHTINGS. *U* UFO DATABASE (June 2006). Retrieved 2006-08-19.

Psychology

  • Carl G. Jung, “Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen in the Skies” (translated by R.F.C. Hull); 1979, Princeton University Press, ISBN 0-691-01822-7

Histories

  • Richard M. Dolan, UFOs and the National Security State: An Unclassified History, Volume One: 1941-1973, 2000, Keyhole Publishing, ISBN 0-9666885-0-3. Dolan is a professional historian.
  • Downes, Jonathan Rising of the Moon. 2nd ed. Bangor: Xiphos, 2005.
  • Lawrence Fawcett & Barry J. Greenwood, The UFO Cover-Up (Originally Clear Intent), 1992, Fireside Books (Simon & Schuster), ISBN 0-671-76555-8. Many UFO documents.
  • Timothy Good, Above Top Secret, 1988, William Morrow & Co., ISBN 0-688-09202-0. Many UFO documents.
  • Kevin Randle, Project Blue Book Exposed, 1997, Marlowe & Company, ISBN 1-56924-746-3
  • Edward J. Ruppelt, The Report On Unidentified Flying Objects, 1956, Doubleday & Co. online. A UFO classic by insider Ruppelt, the first head of the USAF Project Blue Book

Technology

  • Paul R. Hill, Unconventional Flying Objects: a scientific analysis, 1995, Hampton Roads Publishing Co., ISBN 1-57174-027-9. Analysis of UFO technology by pioneering NACA/NASA aerospace engineer.
  • James M. McCampbell, Ufology: A Major Breakthrough in the Scientific Understanding of Unidentified Flying Objects, 1973, 1976, Celestial Arts, ISBN 0-89087-144-2 online. Another analysis by former NASA and nuclear engineer.

External links

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