UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES E I G H T Y -N I N T H C O N G R E S S SECOND SESSION [Pages of all documents printed in behalf of the activities of the House Committee on Armed Services are numbered cumulatively to permit a comprehensive index at the end of the Con gress. Page numbers lower than those in this document refer to other subjects.] U .S. G O V E R N M E N T P R IN T IN G O F F IC E HOUSE COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES 2d Session, 89th Congress L. M E N D E L R IV E R S , S outh C a rolin a , Chairman P H I L I P J . P H I L B IN , M a ssa ch u setts F . E D W A R D H U B E R T , L ou isia n a M E L V IN P R IC E , Illin ois O. C. F I S H E R , T exa s t P O R T E R H A R D Y , Jr., V irgin ia C H A R L E S E. B E N N E T T , F lo rid a .TAMES A. B Y R N E , P en n sy lv a n ia S A M U E L S. S T R A T T O N , N ew Y ork O T IS G. P IK E , N ew York R IC H A R D ( D I C K ) IC H O R D , M issouri L U C IE N N. N E D Z I, M ich igan A L T O N L E N N O N , N orth C arolin a W I L L I A M J. R A N D A L L , M issouri G. E L L I O T T H A G A N , G eorg ia C H A R L E S H. W IL S O N , C aliforn ia R O B E R T L, L E G G E T T , C a liforn ia D O N A L D J. I R W IN , C on n ecticu t J E D JO H N SO N , Jr., O klahom a F R A N K E. E V A N S , C olora d o R O D N E Y M. L O V E , O h io F L O Y D V . H IC K S , W a sh in g ton H E R V E Y G. M A C H E N , M arylan d S P E E D Y O. LON G, L ou isia n a E . S. J O H N N Y W A L K E R , N ew M ex ico W I L L I A M H. B A T E S , M a s sa ch u setts L E S L I E C. A B E N D S . I llin o is A L V I N E. O K O N S K I, W is co n s in W I L L I A M G. B R A Y , In d ia n a B O B W IL S O N , C a lifo rn ia C H A R L E S S. G U B S E R , C a lifo r n ia C H A R L E S E . C H A M B E R L A IN , M ich ig a n A L E X A N D E R P I R N I E , N ew Y ork D U R W A R D G. H A L L , M issou ri D O N A L D D. C L A N C Y , O h io R O B E R T T . S T A F F O R D , V erm on t R IC H A R D S. S C H W E IK E R , P e n n sy lv a n ia S A N T IA G O P O L A N C O -A B R E U , P u erto R ico, Resident Commissioner P R O F E S S IO N A L S T A F F John R. Blandford, Chief Counsel Philip W. Kelleher, Counsel Frank M. Slatinshek, Counsel William H. Cook, Counsel Earl J. Morgan, Professional Staff Member Ralph Marshall, Professional Staff Member John Ford, Professional Staff Member UNIDENTIFIED FLYING OBJECTS Ho use of Rep r e sen ta t iv es, Co m m ittee on Arm ed Servic es, Washington, D.C., Tuesday, April 5,1966. T h e committee met, pursuant to call, at 1 0 :35 a.m., the H onorable L . M endel R ive rs (chairm an o f the com m ittee), presiding. T h e Ch a ir m a n. L e t the committee come to order. M em bers o f the committee, Secretary B ro w n and General M cC on nell are back this m orning fo r the purpose o f responding to questions. A t the end o f our last hearing I asked that Secretary B row n give us some inform ation w ith respect to unidentified flying objects. I under stand th at he is prepared to do that this m orning and I also understand th at he has w ith him D r. J . A llen H ynek, consultant to P roject B lue Book, w hich is the group charged w ith responsibility w ith respect to U F O s. A lso present this m orning is M aj. H ector Q uintanilla, Jr ., U F O project officer. I think it w ould be w ell to get the U F O business out o f the w ay first. So I w ill ask D r. B ro w n to give us his report at this time. M r. Secretary, see if you can shed some ligh t on these h igh ly illum i nated objects. W e cant just w rite them off. There are too m any responsible people who are concerned. M r. F o rd has come out, he has a pretty good size stature in the C on gress, and so tell me w h at you know, M r. Secretary, and lets see if we can have some answers. G o ahead, M r. Secretary. Secretary Bro w n. M r. Chairm an, I have a letter here which is ad dressed to you, and I signed it. L e t me run through it quickly, because it sum m arizes pretty w ell w h at our view s are on unidentified flying Fo llo w in g that, if there are some questions, I can try to answer them, or the C h ief, or D r. H yn ek, or M ajor Q uintanilla. T h e Ch a ir m a n. W h y dont we have the doctor come up to the table now, because when w e start asking questions we w ill have him there, and we w ill ju st go all over the board. S it at the end o f the table, Doctor. G o ahead, sir. STATEMENT OF HON. HAROLD BROWN, SECRETARY OF AIR FORCE Secretary Bro w n. T h is is in response o f your recent request fo r inform ation concerning A ir F o rce activities in the area o f reported unidentified flyin g objects. W ith in the D epartm ent o f D efense the A ir Fo rce has the respon sibility o f investigating reports on unidentified flyin g objects and of evaluating any possible threat to our national security that such ob jects m ight pose. In carryin g out this responsibility let me assure you that the A ir Fo rce is both objective and thorough in its treat m ent o f all reports o f unusual aerial objects over the U nited States. U nder the name P roject B lue Book, the A ir Fo rce carries out a three-phase program . W e ( 1) make an initial investigation o f each report received; (2) make a more detailed analysis o f reports not explained; and (3) disseminate inform ation on sightings, findings, and statistics. In order to evaluate this subject as thoroughly as possible, the capabilities o f the A ir Force Scientific A d viso ry B o ard have recently been focused upon the subject o f U F O s. T h is B oard has just com pleted a detailed review o f this subject and concluded that the U F O phenomena presents no threat to the security o f the U nited States, and that the present A ir Force program dealing with U F O sightings has been well organized. Recommendations by the B oard are pre sently under study and are expected to lead to even stronger em phasis on the scientific aspects o f investigating the sightings that w arran t extensive analysis. Based upon 10 ,14 7 reported sightings from 19 47 through 19 6 5, a sum m ary o f which is attached, I believe it significant that the A ir Force has succeeded in identifying 9,501 o f these objects. V irtu ally all o f these sightings were derived from subjective human observations and interpretations. Th e most common o f these were astronomical sigh t ings th at included such things as bright stars and planets, comets and meteors, and fireballs and auroral streamers. O ther m ajor sources o f reported sightings include such objects as satellites, m irages, and spurious radar indications. T h e rem aining 646 reported sightings are those in which the inform ation available does not provide an adequate basis for analysis, or fo r w hich the in form ation suggests an hypothesis but the object or phenomenon ex plaining it cannot be proven to have been here or taken place at that In evaluating these sightings, the A ir Fo rce has used carefu lly selected and highly qualified scientists, engineers, technicians, and consultants. These personnel have utilized the finest A ir Fo rce labo ratories, test centers, scientific instrum entation, and technical equip ment fo r this purpose. A lthough the past 18 years of investigating unidentified flyin g ob jects have not identified any threat to our national security, or evidence that the unidentified objects represent developm ents or principles beyond present-day scientific knowledge, or any evidence o f extra terrestrial vehicles, the A ir Force w ill continue to investigate such phenomena w ith an open mind and w ith the finest technical equip ment available. . . . I am attaching a special report of the U S A F Scientific A d viso ry B oard A d H oc Com m ittee T o R eview Project B lu e Book, the latest edition of Project B lu e Book, dated Feb ru ary 1, 1966, and an A ir Force statement regarding the U F O sightings at D exter, M ich., on I trust that the above inform ation w ill be o f assistance to you. I f I can help you further in any w ay, please do not hesitate to let me know. (The information referred to is as follows:) S ig h tin g s o f u n id e n tifie d fly in g o b je c ts UnidentifiedYearTotal Unidentified Air Force Statement Regarding the UFO Sightings at Dexter, Mich., on March 20, 1966, and Hillsdale, Mich., on March 21, 1966 The investigation of these two sightings was conducted by Dr. J. Allen Hynek, scientific consultant to Project Blue Book: personnel from Selfridge Air Force Base, Mich.; and personnel from the Project Blue Book office at Wright-Patter- son Air Force Base, Ohio. In addition to these two specific cases, there has been a flood of reports from this area both before and after March 20 and 21. The investigating personnel have not had the time to investigate all of these. It has been determined, how ever, that in Hillsdale, over and above the sincere and honest reporting by the young ladies at Hillsdale College, certain young men have played pranks with llares. It has also been determined that the photographs released yesterday through the press was taken on March 17 just before sunrise near Milan, Mich., and have nothing to do with the cases in question. The photograph clearly shows trails made as a result of a time exposure of the rising crescent moon and the planet Venus. The majority of observers in both the Dexter and Hillsdale cases have reported only silent glowing lights near the ground red, yellow, and blue-green. They have not described an object. The only two observers who did describe an object have stated that they were no closer than 500 yards better than a quarter of a mile away a distance which does not allow details to be determined. Witnesses have described glowing lights lights that seem to move but never far from a definite place or lights which suddenly disappeared and popped up at another place. The locale in both cases was a swamp. In both cases, the location of the glow was pinpointed in Dexter it was seen between two distant groups of people and at Hillsdale it was seen in a swampy depression between the girls and the distant trees. It was in both cases a very localized phenomena. The swampy location is most significant. A swamp is a place of rotting vegetation and decomposition. Swamps are not a province of astronomers. Yet, the famous Dutch astronomer, Minnaert, in his book, Light and Colour in the Open Air," describes lights that have been seen in swamps by the astronomer, Bessel, and other excellent observers. The lights resemble tiny flames sometimes seen right on the ground and sometimes rising and floating above it. The flames go out in one place and suddenly appear in another, giving the illusion of motion. The colors are sometimes yellow, some times red, and sometimes blue-green. No heat is felt, and the lights do not bum or char the ground. They can appear for hours at a stretch and sometimes for a whole night. Generally, there is no smell and no sound except for the popping sound of little explosions such as when a gas burner ignites. The rotting vegetation produces marsh gas which can be trapped during the winter by ice. When the spring thaw occurs, the gas may be released in some quantity. The flame, Minnaert says, is a form of chemical luminescence, and its low temperature is one of its peculiar features. Exactly how it occurs is not known and could well be the subject of further investigation. The glowing lights over the swamps near Dexter and Hillsdale were observed for 2 or 3 hours, and they were red, green, and yellow. They appeared to move sideways and to rise a short distance. No sound was heard except a popping It seems entirely likely that as the present spring thaw came, the trapped gases, CH4, H2S, and PHa, resulting from decomposition of organic material, were released. The chemistry book by Sienko and Plane has this to say: In air, Phosphine PH, usually bursts into flame apparently because it is ignited by a spontaneous oxidation of the impure P=H(. The will-of-the-wisp, sometimes observed in marshes, may be due to spontaneous ignition of impure PH, which might be formed by reduction of naturally occurring phosporus compound. It has been pointed out to the investigating personnel by other scientists in this area that in swamps the formation of H-S and CH, from rotting vegetation is common. These could be ignited by the spontaneous burning of PH,. The association of the sightings with swamps in this particular instance is more than coincidence. No group of witnesses observed any craft coming to or going away from the swamp. The glow was localized, and Deputy Fitzpatrick described the glow from beyond a rise adjacent to the swamp as visible through the trees. He stated that the light brightened and dimmed such as stage do smoothly and slowly and this description exactly fits the Hillsdale sighting also. The brightening and dimming could have been due to the release of vari able quantities of marsh gas. The disappearance of the lights when people got close with flashlights or car- lights would indicate that the glow seemed bright to dark-adapted eyes. The night was dark and there was no moon. The Hillsdale girls kept their rooms dark in order to see the swamp lights. It appears very likely thatt the combination of the conditions of this particular winter (an unusually mild one in that area) and the particular weather condi tions of that night it was clear and there was little wind at either location were such as to have produced this unusual and puzzling display. Special Report of the USAF Scientific Advisory Board Ad Hoc Committee To Review Project Blue Book i. introduction As requested in a memorandum from Maj. Gen. E. B. LeBailly, Secretary of the Air Force Officer of Information, dated September 28, 1965 (tab A), a Scientific Advisory Board Ad Hoc Committee met on February 3, 1966, to review Project Blue Book. The objectives of the committee are to review the resources and methods of investigation prescribed by Project Blue Book and to advise the Air Force of any improvements that can be made in the program to enhance the Air Forces capability in carrying out its responsibility. In order to bring themselves up to date, the members of the committee initially reviewed the findings of previous scientific panels charged with looking into the UFO problem. Particular attention was given to the report of the Robertson panel which was rendered in January 1953. The committee next heard briefings from the AFSC Foreign Technology Division, which is the cognizant Air Force agency that collates information on UFO sightings and monitors investigations of individual cases. Finally, the committee reviewed selected case histories of UFO sightings with particular emphasis on those that have not been identified. n. DISCUSSION Although about 6 percent (646) of all sightings (10,147) in the years 1947 through 1965 are listed by the Air Force as Unidentified, it appears to the committee that most of the cases so listed are simply those in which the infor mation available does not provide an adequate basis for analysis. In this con nection it is important also to note that no unidentified objects other than those of an astronomical nature have ever been observed during routine astronomical studies, in spite of the large number of observing hours which have been devoted to the sky. As examples of this the Palomar Observatory Sky Atlas contains some 5,000 plates made with large instruments with wide field of view; the Harvard meteor project of 1954-58 provided some 3,300 hours of observation; the Smithsonian visual 'prairie network provided 2,500 observing hours. Not a single unidentified object has been reported as appearing on any of these plates or been sighted visually in all these observations. The committee concluded that in the 19 years since the first UFO was sighted there has been no evidence that unidentified flying objects are a threat to our national security. Having arrived at this conclusion the committee then turned its attention to considering how the Air Force should handle the scientific aspects of the UFO problem. Unavoidably these are also related to Air Force public relations, a subject on which the committee is not expert. Thus the recom mendations which follow are made simply from the scientific point of view. III. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS It is the opinion of the committee that the present Air Force program dealing with UFO sightings has been well organized, although the resources assigned to it (only one officer, a sergeant, and secretary) have been quite limited. In 19 years and more than 10,000 sightings recorded and classified, there appears to be no verified and fully satisfactory evidence of any case that is clearly outside the framework of presently known science and technology. Nevertheless, there is always the possibility that analysis of new sightings may provide some additions to scientific knowledge of value to the Air Force. Moreover, some of the case records which the committee looked that were listed as identified" were sightings where the evidence collected was too meager or too indefinite to permit positive listing in the identified category. Because of this the committee recom mends that the present program be strengthened to provide opportunity for scien tific investigation of selected sightings in more detail and depth than has been possible to date. To accomplish this it is recommended that (a) Contracts be negotiated with a few selected universities to provide scientific teams to investigate promptly and in depth certain selected sight ings of UFOs. Each team should include at least one psychologist, pref erably one interested in clinical psychology, and at least one physical scien tist, preferably an astronomer or geophysicist familiar with atmospheric physics. The universities should be chosen to provide good geographical distribution, and should be within convenient distance of a base of the Air Force Systems Command (AFSC). (b) At each AFSC base an officer skilled in investigation (but not neces sarily with scientific training) should be designated to work with the cor responding university team for that geographical section. The local repr