Ufology is the study of Unidentified flying object (UFO) reports, sightings, and other related phenomena. UFO can mean: Unidentified flying object United Future Organization, a Japanese-Brazilian electronic jazz band UFO, the rock band that previously featured Michael Schenker UFO, the Gerry Anderson TV series United Farmers of Ontario, a political party that formed the government in Ontario from 1919 to 1923 U.F.O...

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. One cannot obtain a ufology degree from any college or university, though there have been a few college or university courses on the subject, often from a folklore persepctive. Many ufologists are amateurs (or worse, individuals in search of fame and fortune), and however well intentioned, are often unfamiliar with generally accepted research standards, thus often rendering their own research useless even to sympathetic mainstream experts. Many amateur ufologists have been criticised for accepting as true stories or tales without demanding supporting evidence or conducting even cursory research. A college (Latin collegium) can be the name of any group of colleagues; originally it meant a group of people living together under a common set of rules (con-, together + leg-, law). As a consequence members of colleges were originally styled fellows and still are in some places. ... A professor giving a lecture at the Helsinki University of Technology A university is an institution of higher education and of research, which grants academic degrees. ... For the Nelly Furtado album, see Folklore (album). ...

Some ufologists consider the general attitude of mainstream academics as arrogant and dismissive, or bound to a rigid World view that disallows any evidence contrary to previously held notions. Astronomer J. Allen Hynek's famous comment regarding this subject is, "Ridicule is not part of the scientific method and people should not be taught that it is." Another comment by Hynek regarding the frequent dismissal of UFO reports by astronomers was, "Close questioning revealed they knew nothing of the actual sightings... and therefore cannot be taken seriously. This is characteristic of scientists in general when speaking about subjects which are not in their own immediate field of concern." A world view, (or worldview) is a term calqued from the German word Weltanschauung meaning look onto the world. It implies a concept fundamental to German philosophy and epistemology and refers to a wide world perception. ... In ancient Greece and other early civilizations, astronomy consisted largely of astrometry, measuring positions of stars and planets in the sky. ... Dr. J. Allen Hynek. ... The characterization phase can require extended and extensive study, even centuries. ...

Ufologists embrace a wide spectrum of approaches, beliefs, and attitudes, from those regarded by some as quacks (e.g. David Icke); to respected mainstream scientists like Peter Sturrock, James E. McDonald, or Auguste Meessen, some of whom argue that UFO reports are as worthy of study as any topic, and deserve case-by-case analysis using the scientific method. Study of UFO sightings this way has yielded very interesting and important results, such as in weather phenomena (see Hessdalen) and in human perception, such as the study lead by the SOBEPS for the Belgian flap in 1989-'90 or the interesting studies of the GEPAN/SEPRA in France. Quackery is the practice of fraudulent medicine, usually in order to make money or for ego gratification and power. ... David Icke David Icke (born April 29, 1952) is a former professional football player, reporter, BBC television sports commentator, and British Green Party national spokesperson. ... Dr. James E. McDonald (1920-1971) was senior physicist at the Institute for Atmospheric Physics and professor in the Department of Meteorology, University of Arizona, Tucson. ... The characterization phase can require extended and extensive study, even centuries. ... Hessdalen is a valley in Norway, approximately 50 kilometres south of Trondheim. ...

For more on applications of science to UFO phenomena, see "Science and UFOs" in Unidentified Flying Objects. Despite involvement of some respected scientists in investigating UFOs, most critics still consider ufology at worst a pseudoscience, or at best a protoscience. UFO redirects here. ... Phrenology is seen today as a classic example of pseudoscience. ... In philosophy of science, a protoscience is any new area of scientific endeavor in the process of becoming established. ...

For a list of major UFO sightings and related reports, see List of major UFO sightings. This is a list of UFO sighting flaps and well-known individual sightings. ...

Broadly, there are these schools of thought to explain UFO sightings:

The extraterrestrial hypothesis

This is a theory that some UFO sightings are alien spacecraft. See Extraterrestrial hypothesis. Aliens are foreigners to their surroundings. ... Ariane 5 lifts off with the Rosetta probe on 2nd of March, 2004. ... The Extraterrestrial Hypothesis (sometimes shortened to ETH) is the hypothesis that UFO reports are best explained as creatures from other planets, occupying physical extraterrestrial spacecraft visiting Earth. ...

The interdimensional hypothesis

"Interdimensional" has two meanings here. See Interdimensional hypothesis. The Interdimensional Hypothesis of unidentified flying objects and related events, championed by astrophysicist Jacques Vallee, attempts to explain the phenomena as a modern manifestation of elements, particularly demons, which have appeared throughout recorded history and possibly since earliest humans walked the earth. ...

• That some UFO sightings are alien spaceaft who have come from a parallel dimension or similar.
• That 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.

It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with parallel universe. ... In folklore, mythology, and religion, a demon or demoness is a supernatural being that is generally described as a malevolent spirit, but is also depicted as a force that may be conjured and insecurely controlled. ... The supernatural (Latin:super- exceeding+nature) comprises forces and phenomena that cannot be perceived by natural or empirical senses, and whose understanding may be said to lie with religious, magical, or otherwise mysterious explanation —yet remains firmly outside of the realm of science. ... Medical Meaning The symptoms or observable conditions which are seen as a result of some disease. ... Aliens in the plural may refer to more than one of several types of aliens, such as extraterrestrial beings or those foreign to a place The Aliens was the name of Roky Ericksons backing band Aliens is a 1986 film starring Sigourney Weaver and the sequel to Alien Aliens...

The natural explanation hypothesis

This is a theory that some UFO sightings are misunderstood natural phenomena such as ball lightning. See Psychosocial Hypothesis and UFO#Identified Flying Objects (IFOs). See the next paragraph for reasons for such misunderstandings. Ball Lightning Ball lightning is a natural phenomenon associated with thunderstorms and takes the form of a long-lived, glowing, floating object, as opposed to the short-lived arcing between two points seen in common lightning. ... In ufology, the psychosocial hypothesis argues that UFO reports are best explained by psychological or social means, such as through Communal reinforcement and other cognitive biases. ... UFO can mean: Unidentified flying object United Future Organization, a Japanese-Brazilian electronic jazz band UFO, the rock band that previously featured Michael Schenker UFO, the Gerry Anderson TV series United Farmers of Ontario, a political party that formed the government in Ontario from 1919 to 1923 U.F.O...

The psychopathological hypothesis

This is a theory that some UFO sightings are hallucinations and are caused by the same mechanism as various occult, paranormal, supernatural. or religious experiences (compare alleged sightings of the Blessed Virgin Mary). The hallucination may be a distortion of a real object. (For example, a cow's white face reflected in a pond at night was once misinterpreted as a ghost of a drowned baby.) Reasons for these wrong perceptions include:- A hallucination is a false sensory perception in the absence of an external stimulus, as distinct from an illusion, which is a misperception of an external stimulus. ... The word occult comes from Latin occultus (hidden), referring to the knowledge of the secret or knowledge of the hidden and often meaning knowledge of the supernatural, as opposed to knowledge of the visible or knowledge of the measurable, usually referred to as science. ... Anomalous phenomena are phenomena which are observed and for which there are no suitable explanations in the context of a specific body of scientific knowledge, e. ... The supernatural (Latin:super- exceeding+nature) comprises forces and phenomena that cannot be perceived by natural or empirical senses, and whose understanding may be said to lie with religious, magical, or otherwise mysterious explanation —yet remains firmly outside of the realm of science. ... Fishers of men; Oil on panel by Adriaen van de Venne (1614) Religion—sometimes used interchangeably with faith or belief system—is commonly defined as belief concerning the supernatural, sacred, or divine, and the moral codes, practices, values, and institutions associated with such belief. ... Blessed Virgin Mary A traditional Catholic picture sometimes displayed in homes. ... Look up Cow in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Cow may refer to: Female dairy cattle, other bovines, or other large mammals including elephants and whales. ... Reputed ghost of a monk. ...

• Attempt to explain natural phenomena which have no natural explanation known in that time and area.
• Hallucinations caused by mental illness.
• Hallucinations in former centuries caused by food shortage forcing people to eat mouldy food, where the mould fungus had made hallucinogenic chemicals.
• Hallucinations caused by non-alcoholic delirium tremens caused by chronic magnesium deficiency.
• Hallucinations caused by the brain being affected by electric effects caused by ball lightning.
• Dreams confused with reality.
• Following the area's general local belief.
• Delirium caused by heat and dehydration.
• Inevitably, some UFO reports likely to be hoaxes or lies.

The route followed by these misperceptions can be influenced by the environment that the 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. Divisions Chytridiomycota Zygomycota Glomeromycota Ascomycota Basidiomycota Yellow fungus For the fictional character, see Fungus the Bogeyman. ... Hallucinogenic drug - drugs that can alter sensory perceptions. ... Delirium tremens (colloquially, the DTs) is a condition almost invariably associated with complete alcohol withdrawal in an individual with a reported history of long-term alcohol consumption. ... General Name, Symbol, Number magnesium, Mg, 12 Chemical series alkaline earth metals Group, Period, Block 2, 3, s Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 24. ... Dreaming is the subjective experience of imaginary images, sounds/voices, thoughts or sensations during sleep, usually involuntarily. ... Delirium is a medical term used to describe a mental state. ... Dehydration is the removal of water (hydor in ancient Greek) from an object. ... Science fiction is a form of speculative fiction principally dealing with the impact of imagined science and technology, or both, upon society and persons as individuals. ... by Sophie Anderson A fairy, faerie,fairie or faery, is a creature from stories and mythology. ... The Greys have landed! Alien mannequin at International UFO Museum & Research Center; Roswell, NM, USA Greys (also known as Zetas or Reticulians after the ζ Reticuli star system) are the type of intelligent extraterrestrial life that appears most commonly in modern conspiracy theories, particularly UFO conspiracy theories and other UFO-related...

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. And see black triangles.
• 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. USAF F-117 Nighthawk during maintenance The United States Air Forces F-117A Nighthawk is the worlds first operational aircraft designed to exploit low-observable stealth technology. ... Black Triangles are a kind of Unidentified Flying Object (UFO) that have been observed in the skies beginning sometime in the 1980s to present day. ... Nazi Germany, or the Third Reich, commonly refers to Germany in the years 1933–1945, when it was under the firm control of the totalitarian and fascist ideology of the Nazi Party, with the Führer Adolf Hitler as dictator. ... The Coanda effect is the tendency of a stream of fluid to stay attached to a convex surface, rather than follow a straight line in its original direction. ... German soldiers at the Battle of Stalingrad World War II was the most extensive and costly armed conflict in the history of the world, involving the great majority of the worlds nations, being fought simultaneously in several major theatres, and costing tens of millions of lives. ... The development of disk shaped aircraft -- or military flying saucers -- apparently dates back to World War II. Since much of the work has been highly classified, many details are uncertain. ...

Ufological Groups

• United States Air Force Project Blue Book: Small, public Air Force UFO investigation, from 1952 until discontinued in 1969. Preceded by Project Sign (1947-1948) and Project Grudge (1948-1952).
• Aerial Phenomena Research Organization (APRO) (1952-1988): Early, national U.S. civilian research organization with many PhD consulting scientists.
• National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena (NICAP)(1956-1980, Early, national U.S. civilian research organization, very large and powerful at one time, with many scientists and military consultants.
• Mutual UFO Network (MUFON): Large, international, U.S. based civilian research organization stressing field investigations and data collection.
• Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS): Founded by Project Blue Book consultant, astronomer J. Allan Hynek; stresses scientific investigations; large archives, including old NICAP files.
• Fund for UFO Research: Funds scientific UFO research; many consulting PhD scientists; does photoanalysis.
• National Institute of Discovery Science (NIDS): Private, somewhat clandestine organization with insider government scientists and military people stressing scientific forensic analysis of UFO and paranormal phenomena.
• Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, (CSICOP), a UFO and paranormal debunkery organization, which classifies ufology as a pseudoscience and claims all UFO reports are ultimately explainable as mundane phenomena or hoaxes.
• UFO Norge, a Norwegian project dedicated to collect all material on observations and physical traces of UFO activity in Norway.
• CUN, first Italian private centre directed by scientists like Dr. Pinotti, active since the 1960s in the whole Italy.
• Erich von Däniken's theories, where he tries to combine what he considers historical proof of extraterrestrial visits with a theory on extraterrestrial help in the evolution of humanity.

Seal of the Air Force. ... Project Blue Book was one of a series of systematic studies of Unidentified flying objects (UFOs) conducted by the United States Air Force. ... Aerial Phenomena Research Organization was an unidentified flying object research groupStarted and run by Jim and Coral Lorenzen which was active from 1952-1988. ... The National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena or NICAP was an unidentified flying object research group. ... The Mutual UFO Network is an unidentified flying object research group. ... The Center for UFO Studies is an unidentified flying object research group. ... The Fund for UFO Research (FUFOR) is a small, Maryland-based, scientifically oriented UFO research group with many Ph. ... The National Institute of Discovery Science (NIDSci) is a small, private, controversial, and somewhat clandestine scientific research group based in Las Vegas. ... The Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal, or CSICOP, is an organization formed to encourage open minded, critical investigation of paranormal and pseudoscientific claims from a responsible, scientific point of view. ... Anomalous phenomena are phenomena which are observed and for which there are no suitable explanations in the context of a specific body of scientific knowledge, e. ... Phrenology is seen today as a classic example of pseudoscience. ... Erich von Däniken (born April 14, 1935 in Zofingen, Switzerland) is a controversial Swiss author who is best known for authoring works about extraterrestrial influence on human culture since prehistoric times. ... Extraterrestrial, as an adjective, refers to something that originates, occurs, or is located outside Earth or its atmosphere. ...

UFO Researchers

• Dr. J. Allen Hynek
• Dr. Jacques Vallee
• Dr. James E. McDonald
• Dr. James Harder
• Dr. Harley Rutledge
• Dr. Bruce Maccabee
• Richard Hall
• Jerry Clark
• Paul Hill
• James McCampbell
• Jean-Jacques Velasco
• Dr. Claude Poher
• Roberto Pinotti
• Alfredo Lissoni
• Wendy Connors
• John Keel
• Dr. Donald Menzel
• Nigel Watson

Dr. J. Allen Hynek. ... Dr. Allen Hynek (back), and Dr. Jacques Vallee (far right, front) at U.N. General Assembly, 1978. ... Dr. James E. McDonald (1920-1971) was senior physicist at the Institute for Atmospheric Physics and professor in the Department of Meteorology, University of Arizona, Tucson. ... Dr. Harley Rutledge. ... John Keel is a ufologist, parapsychologist and writer. ... Donald Howard Menzel (April 11, 1901 – December 14, 1976) was an American astronomer. ... Nigel Watson became interested in UFOs and alien contact in the early 1970s. ...

External links

• How to investigate UFO cases
• UFO stupidities
• The Political Sociology of Alien Encounters by Eric Ouellet, Ph.D
• The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects
• UFO Norge official webpage
• Magonia -interpreting contemporary vision and belief