PART III
UFOs and
Defense
-
Chapter 10 Strategic Planning
-
Chapter 11 Aeronautical Implications
-
Chapter 12 Scientific and Technical Implications
-
Chapter 13 Political and Religious Implications
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Chapter 14 Media Implications
To date, a UFO has not been the certain cause of any accident or
a
fortiori any hostile act, at least officially; no UFO threat has
materialized in France, although-intimidation maneuvers have
been
confirmed (Chapters 1.1, 2.1, and 2.3).
However, numerous
manifestations observed by reliable witnesses could be the work
of
craft of extraterrestrial origin. In fact, if it were a question
of
terrestrial craft, these could only be American and, despite all
precautions taken to maintain secrecy, this would be known. The
first prototype stealth aircraft flew at the end of 1977; the
existence
of stealth aircraft became known about ten years later, in 1988.
But
credible, confirmed UFO sightings began in 1944.
Certainly, this
subject still sometimes elicits amused skepticism, if not a
certain
mistrust with regard to those who mention it seriously, but in
the
absence of explanations for the phenomena sighted, the
hypothesis of
an extraterrestrial origin can no longer be ruled out. In this
third
part, we set out to study, from a strategic, scientific,
political,
religious, and media standpoint, the consequences of this
hypothesis
based on present scientific knowledge.
Chapter 10
Strategic Planning
The definition of a strategy toward an "adversary" requires that
one know the adversary, understand his intentions, and ascertain
his modes of action. In the case in question, we can only
advance hypotheses formulated on the basis of the facts observed
and their interpretation, while trying to answer three
questions:
10.1 What Extraterrestrials? Who Are They and What Are They
Like?
A relative consistency emerges from the numerous descriptions of
the phenomena: saucer, luminous sphere or cylinder, hovering
followed by accelerations at lightning speed, the absence of
noise, easily supersonic speed with no sonic boom, associated
electromagnetic effects that interfere with the operation of
nearby radio or electrical apparatus.
Obviously, these
extraterrestrials are highly endowed intellectually and are
technologically advanced over us to have been able to achieve
what we do not yet know how to do. But the rest remains a
mystery! Morphology, physical make-up, type of life, manner of
communication and form of society, sense of values. concept of
time, motivations, etc. If they are observing us, it is
necessary to note an apparent contradiction between the interest
that they show in us and their furtiveness.
Rather than observe us, it seems that they want to show themselves to us and to
gradually acclimate us to the idea of their existence.
10.2 What Intentions and What Strategy Can We Deduce from Their
Behavior?
Extrapolation based on a rational analysis of the objectives
that the extraterrestrial civilization or civilizations could be
pursuing should permit us to get an idea of the strategies that
they are implementing and should consequently lead us, in
response, to deduce the broad lines of what our own strategies
might be. UFOs have manifested themselves to a small extent
throughout the world in recent decades, with surprising peaks
between 1952 and 1954, without our being able to deduce a
well-defined course of action.
What are they seeking?
After the observation phase and the phase of demonstrating that
they exist, it would seem logical to us for them to be seeking
to leave their mark and impose their will on the States of the
earth, but at present, nothing allows us to deduce from their
manifestations the existence of a driving desire serving
purposes that we are presently unable to discern. It is
plausible that preferred contacts can be attributed to the
United States. But nothing contradicts the possible
establishment of other contacts with some European countries or
even with Russia, China, or Japan, [or] others perhaps...
However, it seems difficult to imagine that they could be able
to position themselves on earth with the complicity of certain
States. Moreover, the hypotheses of contacts do not enable us to
deduce the existence of some status quo with these visitors. In
fact, the sporadic manifestations of UFOs and even the
occurrence of repeated waves [of sightings] have continued since
1947.
One would have every right to think that these visitors -
fortified by their superiority - are showing their intention to
continue to make themselves known in the most diverse locations
on the planet and to continue to carry out their plans, the aims
and means of which still escape us. It could be that, before
1947 and after, they have had fears for the future of earth, a
future threatened by risks of nuclear war.
Their influences have
been able to be accompanied by appropriate demonstrations:
-
overflights of nuclear missile bases, an example of which is
given in Chapter 3,
-
intimidation maneuvers against aircraft as in Luxeuil and
Tehran (Chapters 1.1 and 2.3),
-
witnesses paralyzed, engines shutting off, lights going out
(San Carlos de Bariloche, Chapter 2.5).
The advances that have been made in the conquest of space and in
the development of nuclear technology could be troubling them.
Wouldn't it be logical to think that these extraterrestrial
civilizations have established stations, even colonies, in the
asteroid belt, and why not relay stations on the moon? Our
forays and projects studied in the United States for modifying
the orbits of asteroids using H bombs in order to bring them
closer to the earth's orbit for mining purposes could be
disturbing them.
For the moment, they do not appear to be
meddling in our affairs, but it is advisable to ask ourselves what they are actually seeking. Do
they want to invade earth? To preserve it from nuclear
self-destruction? To learn about and preserve the patrimony that
our civilizations have created over the span of centuries? In
view of these uncertainties concerning their intentions, we
can't tell what the future holds and, in particular, we cannot
consider that they will continue not to intervene. Some of their
undertakings in regard to us might, therefore, not be innocent
in the long term.
Perhaps they don't have any need for our
sensibilities or the politics of States?
10.3 Repercussions of UFO Manifestations on the Official and
Unofficial Conduct of States
The repercussions have been varied in scope. Based on what can
be learned of the reactions of States, it is permissible under
our hypothesis to classify them as:
-
States that have no knowledge of extraterrestrial phenomena
or are believed to be unconcerned,
-
States that know of extraterrestrial phenomena but have no
means to investigate them.
-
States that know of extraterrestrial phenomena and have the
means to investigate them,
-
States that have entered into contact with one or more
extraterrestrial civilizations and that have established
relations and/or entered into political, scientific, and
technical collaboration.
10.4 Have Contacts Possibly Been Made with One or More States?
Individuals claim to have been contacted for the purpose of
studies or with a view to establishing relations between one
intelligent life form and another. Can we imagine direct and
continuous contacts at the highest level of one or more States,
particularly the United States? It is true that the position of
that country has been among the strangest since the wave [of
sightings] in June 1947, followed by the Roswell affair in July
1947 (cf. Appendix 5).
If the Americans were able on that
occasion or on other occasions to collect at least debris or
entire wreckages of extraterrestrial vessels in fairly good
condition, and even cadavers of humanoids, a certain type of
contact might well have been established.
First statements and reactions are often considered to be more
probative than subsequent affirmations. Thus immediately
following what would later become the Roswell affair, General
Twining was tasked with preparing a secret report on "flying
disks, " the existence of which was not revealed until 22 years
later in the Condon report. It emerges from this that these
objects truly do exist.
But since then the United States has
followed a policy of increasing secrecy (classification above
"top secret" of certain UFO files, according to General Barry
Goldwater) and constant disinformation. The strange conclusions
of the Condon report are just one case in point. Why would, and
how could, such an important secret be kept all the way up to
the present, despite everything? The simplest response would be
that the United States wants to maintain at any cost military
technological superiority over rival countries and, perhaps, a
preferential contact.
This policy of. secrecy .and disinformation could have been
dictated by an understandable concern for not creating panic
reactions or irrational crazes among the public, or the concern
at the time for protecting the country against actions by the
USSR, or else, in a more prosaic and political fashion, not
appearing in the eyes of voters to be incapable of providing
convincing explanations regarding these phenomena.
No doubt it
would not do to undermine the prestige of the armed forces,
which was incapable of interdicting these violations of air
space, and invite attacks against the military budgets on the
part of political opponents. Anything is conceivable, even the
fear of seeing various government agencies accused of having
lied at one time or another.
Whatever the case, it is symptomatic and illustrative to note
that since 1953, the United States has equipped itself with an
impressive repressive arsenal, which is still in force, it
seems. In particular, they enacted two military regulations, AFR
(Air Force Regulation) 200-2 and JANAP (Joint Army Navy Air
Force Publication) 146, the first prohibiting the public
disclosure of information relating to sightings of unidentified
objects and the second making the unauthorized disclosure of a
UFO sighting by the witness an infraction punishable by 10 years
in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The JANAP regulation applies to
military personnel, but also to commercial airline pilots and
captains in the merchant marine.
10.5 What Measures Should We Take From Now On?
Whether or not UFOs are extraterrestrial in origin, the UFO
phenomenon is already with us and. at any rate, requires
critical vigilance on our part. In particular, the phenomenon
involves risks of destabilizing manipulations from a media,
psychological, cultural, and religious standpoint: panic fear,
world wars, psychoses created by sects or lobbies, etc.
These
appreciable risks of cosmic fear. as well as the discovery and
no doubt conquest of the cosmos that is to come, henceforth
justify, on the part of the political, scientific, and
intellectual elite, a certain degree of cosmic vigilance
calculated to prevent any shocking surprise, erroneous
interpretation, and malicious or unhealthy manipulation.
Without a doubt, measures should be contemplated on the national
and international levels. Whatever the givens are with respect
to American political problems, and in the face of a posture of
ongoing secrecy, how can we conceive of harmonious political and
military relations among allies, and particularly within NATO,
which normally must be founded on basic trust, if access to
information of incalculable importance - particularly
technological information - is not shared?
10.5.1 National Structures If France wants to affirm its presence in this domain, it seems
urgent to expand SEPRA, which must:
-
increase its human and material resources so as to be able to
collect information relating to all UFO manifestations, both in
Europe and throughout the world,
-
expand its investigation and analysis capabilities,
-
boost its representation and foreign relations status.
It would likewise be advisable to create a unit at the highest
State level to collaborate with SEPRA that would be tasked with:
-
formulating all prospective hypotheses,
-
promoting scientific and technical research and, as such,
would have a small minimum budget,
-
proposing elements of military strategy,
-
participating in the establishment of sectorial cooperation
agreements with interested European and foreign countries. It
should be noted that many countries already have small bodies
for the collection of UFO sightings within their armed forces or
intelligence services.
10.5.2 European Structures It would be desirable then for the European States and the
European Union Commission to conduct every type of research and
to initiate diplomatic demarches with the United States, exening
useful pressure, to clarify this crucial issue, which must fall
within the scope of political and strategic alliances.
Would it
perhaps be opportune for France to propose to the Commission
that it create within it - so as to no longer be blind, dumb,
and paralyzed - a special expanded coordinating body provided
with the necessary human and material resources?
10.6 What Situations Should We Prepare For?
What strategies could we map out in the following situations:
-
appearance of UFO and extraterrestrial desire to establish an
official and peaceful contact
-
chance or intentional discovery of a microbase or base at some
location in France or in Europe: position to adopt toward a
friendly or hostile power
-
invasion (hardly likely given the fact that an invasion could
have been carried out before the discovery of the atom) and
targeted or massive attacks on strategic or nonstrategic
locations
-
deliberate manipulation or disinformation with a view to
destabilizing other States
In the case of the first situation cited, we are not precluded
from suggesting that the States that are equipped with
sophisticated research and analysis tools will perhaps have more
chances than others of being chosen as preferred negotiators,
but at what risks and advantages?
Chapter 11
Aeronautical Implications
11.1 Why Aeronautical Implications?
It is not intellectually possible to remain indifferent in light
of an unexplained aeronautical phenomenon which numerous
civilian and military pilots have come face to face with.
Of the
several hundred confirmed aeronautical cases, there are
primarily five types of implications:
-
simple sighting of a phenomenon by the crew, passengers, or
ground personnel,
-
detection of a track on a radar screen, which occurs in one
out of five aeronautical cases, sometimes culminating in the
recording of a track,
-
was the case on January 28, 1994, at
the Cinq-Mars-la-Pile Control and Detection Center (CDC) (cf.
Chapter 1),
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interferences with ground (San Carlos de Bariloche) or onboard
(Tehran) electrical or electronic equipment,
-
shadowing of aircraft (San Carlos de Bariloche, RB-47, etc.),
-
apparently aggressive conduct (Mirage IV, student pilot at
Tours, the Tehran incident, etc.).
The number of testimonies and the quality of the witnesses keep
[the issue of] the phenomenon from being dodged, and aeronautic personnel, and more especially
defense personnel, must be sensitized and prepared to deal with
the situation. In fact, how can one try to ignore a phenomenon
that is manifested by the regular crossing of our air space by
moving objects the behavior of which suggests that they are
piloted by an intelligent [being]?
Can one claim, because this
appears to exceed our technical knowledge, that it does not fall
within our purview? If we do nothing, the very principle of defense and air intelligence would be called into
question.
The first sightings made by aviators date back to the beginning
of the 40s. Since then, the number of unexplained sightings
(after an expert's appraisal: UAP Ds) reported by pilots or [air
traffic] controllers has risen to over 500. It should be
reiterated that in France this figure is three or four since
1951.
It is the responsibility of the Air Force to take into
account these phenomena which, until proven otherwise, occur
primarily in air space.
11.2 Who is Involved?
11.2.1 Flight Crew The flight crew is naturally involved, particularly the pilots,
because whether they are civilian or military, they are in a
more advantageous position for making sightings and would be the
first affected in the event of an incident (risk of collision,
in particular). This is especially true for a combat pilot,
because he is trained to constantly monitor the sky and he now
has more and more advanced weapons systems capable of detecting
faster and faster and smaller and smaller targets at greater and
greater distances.
The pilot/weapons system pair is now more
than ever an excellent sighting instrument and would be our
first means of intervention if, by chance, this were to prove
necessary. The concerns of a commercial airline pilot are
different because, in addition to the fact that he does not have
the same equipment, his priority is obviously the safety of his
passengers. Although he remains a primary partner in the quest
for information, he would be totally powerless in the face of an
aggressive stance by a UFO.
11.2.2 [Air Traffic] Controllers The [air traffic] controller is, of course, involved, but
depending on whether he is civilian or military, the control
equipment at his disposal offer him different options. In both
cases, since he is in radio contact with the pilot, it is he who
is the first to receive the sighting report from the crew. He
must be prepared to note and supplement the sightings
transmitted with the clear-headedness that the distance of his
position gives him. In regard to radar detection, only the
military controller has adequate equipment to detect a flying
object that does not follow general air traffic rules.
In fact,
military air defense radars permit a visual display of the
primary detection, as well as a synthetic display used by
civilian [air traffic] controllers, to appear on the military
controller's radar scope (see Appendix 1). In addition, they are
the only ones who are able to obtain an image of craft moving at
the supposed speeds of UFOs. Finally, the means to record and
reconstruct radar situations on site at the Control and
Detection Centers (CDC) enable supplemental investigations to be
conducted, if necessary.
11.2.3 Meteorologists Unusual phenomena are often explained by meteorological
phenomena. Questions can easily be explained if the specialized
departments are informed of the importance of their
observations. All military and civilian personnel specializing
in meteorology must therefore be able to meet this expectation.
11.2.4 CNES Engineers CNES engineers are the French space specialists. They cannot
remain indifferent to UFO phenomena. Knowledge of our universe,
observation of the sky, and surveillance of anything that is
deployed into the sky naturally makes them just the right people
to head up the study of extraterrestrial phenomena. We have
described their work above.
11.2.5 Engineers in the Aeronautics Sector Engineers in the aeronautic sector are naturally involved. Their
work is presented in the next chapter on scientific and
technical implications.
11.3 How Do We Involve Aeronautics [Personnel]?
In order for aeronautics personnel, along with their resources,
to be involved, we need to know how to interest them and, in
order to do this, how to inform them of the phenomenon, to
specify what is expected of them, and to define what their
reflex responses should be and what course of action they should
take.
11.3.1 Informing Personnel Informing amounts, first and foremost, to getting someone to
accept the possibility of the presence of extraterrestrial craft
in our sky. It is necessary to overcome the fear of ridicule and
to admit that, failing certainty, there are strong presumptions
based on a list of examples selected from among the testimonies
from the aeronautics world. Moreover, it is necessary to reach
all generations.
Informational conferences can be easily
scheduled at aeronautics schools for the young generations (Ecole
de l'Air, Ecole Rationale de F Aviation Civile [National Civil
Aviation School] (ENAC. Sup'Aero, etc.), and for the
not-so-young, in continuing education courses and, obviously, at
the College Interarmees de Defense [Interarmy Defense College]
(CID) and IHEDN. SEPRA is already holding conferences at ENAC
within the framework of civilian [air traffic] controller
training.
This practice just needs to be extended to all flight
crew training schools, regardless of the specialty being taught.
For the generations already on the job, these conferences can
easily be offered at the Control and Detection Centers and
flight units for military personnel, and, at least for civilian
[air traffic] controllers, at the Regional Air Navigation
Centers (CNRA). As for commercial flight crews, the airline
companies - Air France, in particular - have set up a systematic
information sheet for crews that is periodically updated.
This information must furthermore be updated on a regular basis
in the knowledge that the intended objective is to permit a
future witness, whether he plays an active role or is merely an
observer, to be fully aware of what course of action to take in
the face of the phenomenon sighted. If we want personnel to get
involved, it is necessary that they know how to react in real
time and what to communicate and to whom, how to take the
measures corresponding to the present situation, etc.
For this
reason, it is advisable to define with them what their reflex
responses should be and what course of action they should take.
11.3.2 Reflex Responses In fact, it is necessary to instill in personnel who are brought
face to face with the phenomenon what their reflex responses
should be, in the knowledge that they may merely be simple
observers or, in some cases, have to take concrete measures (for
example, at San Carlos de Bariloche, the surprise of the landing strip lights going out in the middle of
the UFO incident).
It is quite certain that it would be better
to be prepared in order to be fully aware of what course of
action to take in the face of such an unforeseen and poorly
understood event. These reflex responses differ in type
depending on whether it is a matter of sighting, recording a
testimony, transmitting information collected, or reacting in
real time in order to take ad hoc measures in response to the
phenomenon.
11.3.3 Course of Action to Take The course of action to take seems to us to be summarized as
follows: observe, note the maximum amount of details, take
photographs if possible, make a report, allowing the visitors
the initiative of possibly making contact, and avoid premature
publicity in the media.
11.3 3.1 Objective Observation In the face of an unknown situation, one must be on guard
against any instinctive self-defense reaction that could be
easily interpreted as a provocation. One must just observe and
avoid any initiative aimed at seeking contact.
11.3.3.2 Reporting Once a phenomenon has been sighted, it is advisable to report it
in order to alert the other crews, on the one hand, which is
what is currently done, and the authorities, on the other hand,
through the air [traffic] control chain of command in civilian
cases and the air defense chain of command in military cases.
11.3.3.3 Remaining Discrete Vis-a-Vis the Public As a witness to a phenomenon of this type, one must know how to
adopt a certain level of discretion vis-a-vis the press. It is
essential to allow scientists [time] to make use of the
information before letting the media trigger the curiosity of
the general public, which could result in the disappearance of
important evidence.
Chapter 12
Scientific and Technical Implications
The significance of the UFO phenomenon to defense in the broad
sense leads to different proposals.
12.1 Stepping Up the Collection and Analysis of Data
It is, of course, advisable to continue and, if possible, expand
geographically the collection. initial analysis, and
classification of data and testimonies performed successively by
GEPAN and then by SEPRA, which was described in Chapters 5 and
6.
12.2 Establishing a Watch and Initiate Work Upstream
From the studies presented in Chapter 8, it can be concluded
that at least a passive, and
preferably an active, techno-watch is required in the fields of
leading-edge propulsion such as. for example,
magneto-hydrodynamics. It is truly essential to know what the
other nations are doing in this area. In other high-tech fields,
the study of the various testimonies could be combined with
appropriate scientific experiments to enable significant
progress.
A typical example is that of particle beams or
microwaves, together with their effects: tools, weapons, etc.
All of these subjects are, on the whole, more advanced than the
technical problems presently under study by DGA or the public
research institutions.
Therefore they will not be dealt with
unless a decision is made at the highest State level.
12.3 Encouraging Thought in Order to Place the Phenomena in a
Global Context
The work mentioned above will enable progress in the partial
models of the phenomena sighted, along with considerable
spill-over for defense and industry. But the global
interpretation of well-documented but inexplicable phenomena
will require other research.
The principal areas of research
relate to the extraterrestrial hypothesis; we will list, for
reference, the current research on the detection of extrasolar
planets, which will take a new direction when the VLT (Very
Large Telescope) of the ESO (European Southern Observatory) in
Chile enables them to be observed directly. Each discovery of a
planet, which is presently made indirectly via the disturbances
that the planet causes in its star, has met with a favorable
response in the media.
Less spectacular, albeit fascinating to a cultured public, is
the research on the origin of life that is being conducted
internationally at a very satisfying rate. It forms the basis of
exobiology, the science of extraterrestrial life (see Appendix
3). Studies on evolution and its mechanisms are currently
handicapped by school disputes. They are important to our
subject: How might life evolve elsewhere? Underdeveloped but
still important are the studies on the genesis and future of
civilizations. The latter are normally extended by long-term,
forward-looking scenarios for our planet and, of course, for
others.
Interstellar travel, as visualized in Appendix 4 - entitled
"Colonization of Space" - must be the object of at least passive
monitoring. This subject is currently being dealt with in the
United States, where numerous NASA or Pentagon study contracts
concern propulsion using antimatter in solar or interstellar
space. It was also in the United States where the astronomer
Papagiannis won a NASA study contract a few years ago to detect
possible space cities in the asteroid belt located between the
planets Mars and Jupiter. In carrying out the study, he examined
the photos taken in 1983 by the IRAS [Infrared Astronomical
Satellite] satellite and looked for possible abnormal infrared
emissions coming from objects in this belt.
It would seem that
NASA did not renew Papagiannis' contract, which apparently did
not yield any results.
12.4 Special Studies
Some studies do not come under the "hard" sciences and
technologies: for interstellar voyages, the stability of the
societies involved requires study. What, in particular, is their
minimum size? The different attempts at disinformation made by
certain foreign governments should be analyzed discretely, but
in depth. The concern of these governments over appropriating
for themselves alone any possible futuristic technologies
relating to military aircraft and weapons might help explain
these attempts (see Appendices 5 and 7).
It would be advisable
to already be anticipating the measures to be taken and the
decisions to be made should events such as indubitable physical
or radio contacts with an outside civilization take place.
Chapter 13
Political and Religious Implications
An assessment of the impact that the formal confirmation of the
existence of UFOs and extraterrestrial civilizations would have
on the political and religious situation of the countries on
earth could be a bit of a challenge. However, the task is less
arduous when we try to put ourselves in the shoes of
extraterrestrials who supposedly have chosen earth as a field of
observation and/or intervention.
We will use this method. It is
appropriate, of course, to postulate that the technical and
human difficulties have been resolved, permitting us to exceed
the limits of our solar system, and even our galaxy:
-
Either in secular voyages aboard a "ship-world," in which
thousands of volunteers who have embarked would see their
generations replaced. It is necessary to keep in mind that these
craft will not be able to one day return to earth, at least that
is what we are assuming, which would confer -de facto - a
political autonomy and freedom of decision to the onboard
government independent of orders and programs established prior
to departing earth {cf. Appendix 4: "Colonization of Space").
-
Or, in [voyages of) several months or years - based on totally
revolutionary scientific concepts and techniques that can only
be imagined - using aircraft or probes piloted by classic crews
or by bionic androids, which would follow the instructions
received from a parent station or from earth.
During the course of these explorations, we might discover one
or more celestial bodies populated with beings that have evolved
more or less similarly to us, "humans," humanoid, or even
stranger creatures. They may have created civilizations that are
comparable to or more advanced than our present civilization, or
they may be endowed with only rudimentary aptitudes for
civilization, unless they still remain only at the elementary
survival stage.
(Nota Bene: in this chapter, the numbers in parentheses refer to
the references, pp. 8" to 89)
13.1 Phase One: Observation From a Distance
It seems reasonable to think that our earth ling explorers have
received a mission to peacefully observe these worlds and/or
conquer, purely and simply, these new territories in order to
establish a line of descendants there (cf. 13.4 below).
The
state of advancement of the local populations will likely
dictate the manner of obtaining, as well as the nature and
duration, of these observations, and the initial observations
will, of course, be for analyzing:
-
the living organisms, the manners in which they think and
live, their languages, their religions and beliefs, their arts,
sciences and weapons techniques, their political institutions,
their social organizations, and their histories in general,
-
the environments in which these populations live, [and]
animals, plants, minerals, etc.
This first phase, which does not include any physical or
material contact, would be that of scientific, in vivo
laboratory observation; electronic surveillance, remote sensing,
recording, decrypting of languages, analyses, evaluations, etc.
It is important to emphasize that this period could last one
year, ten years, a century, [or] a thousand years, and why not?
In fact, what better scientific experiment - lato sensu - than
that of having more or less civilized, stagnant or evolving
populations, either at peace or at war, organized in a hundred
different manners, no doubt having languages that are foreign to
one another, considering each one with respect to the way it
organizes its terrestrial and celestial cities.
In a word, we
would be in the situation of observing ourselves!
13.2
Phase Two: In situ Sampling and Furtive Appearances
The interpretation of the data collected can only be complete
when a second phase has been implemented, during which sampling
and analyses of mineral, plant, and animal elements, and perhaps
even elements from evolved beings, are performed.
Consequently,
the question is raised as to the types of contacts that would be
appropriate to establish and the political, psychological, and
religious implications for the local populations that might
result from these contacts: furtive and covert contacts, visible
and overt contacts, continuous or intermittent contacts. If the
furtive and covert mode of operation is selected, it
nevertheless could not - at least based on the present state of
our technology - go completely unnoticed by the indigenous
populations.
It is permissible to consider that the
psychological and religious impacts may vary according to the
different types of political organizations and the levels of
moral and scientific development encountered on the same world.
13.2.1 Impacts on Preindustrial-Age Civilizations Individuals or masses from preindustrial-age civilizations might
note the passage and/or landing of our ships or our
remote-controlled craft. They might collectively view them
equally as natural, divine, extraordinary, supernatural,
aberrant, or diabolical phenomena (frescoes in the Yugoslavian
monastery at Detchani, spheres in Nuremberg and Basel in 1561
and 1566 - cf. Appendix 6).
Furthermore, the collective memories
of these peoples and their imagination in general could be more
or less sharply marked by such manifestations if they are
accompanied, in particular, by the sighting of our astronauts,
whether dressed in their coveralls or their space suits or not,
or robots, androids, or any artifacts that we may deem
appropriate to disembark or represent.
Such appearances, if the
local authorities note and publicly certify their reality, would
undoubtedly have a creative impact capable of modifying the
indigenous political and religious conceptions for some time.
13.2.1.1 Impacts on Local Religions Since terrestrial and celestial orders are closely interlinked
in people's minds, the appearances of spaceships or
remote-controlled craft, and, moreover, the appearances of
astronauts or bionic robots, would be capable of creating a
lasting impression in minds, reorienting religions, inspiring
news, or originating founding myths.
The flying machines that
Ezekiel described at length (1), the air war of the Ramayana,
the Epic of Gilgamesh (2), the Elohim of Genesis (3), and the
Watchmen of the Sky, mixing with the daughters of men and
begetting giants, whom Enoch also speaks of (4), and more
generally, the Immortals, the Sons or the Kings of the Sky of
the Orient and China (5), Japan, the "Land of Gods" (6), the
Viracochas of South America, the Incas, or the great gods of
Ancient Egypt, the Gods, the Titans, the Giants, the Children of
the Gods, and the Heros of western and oriental Antiquity (7),
etc., come to mind.
Both supernatural and extraordinary phenomena were part of the
natural order of things in the past. Would religions founded on
the existence of a God or a creative order be shattered by such
apparitions? Nothing is less certain. Once the shock, terror,
and curiosity have passed, a new appreciation of the cosmic
order could replace the old religious conceptions, without
necessarily destroying the divine principle itself.
To say the
least, these religious conceptions could be reoriented or even
sublimated. God does not travel around in a spaceship. Besides,
the great religions of earth do not condemn the idea of the
existence of other inhabited worlds in the universe. Must we
recall that certain collective memories experience aberrations,
despite the
tangible proof subsequently furnished to the catechumen (the
cult of the cargo plane in New Hebrides) (8)? Bonaparte's
military and scientific expedition to Egypt left no trace in the
local annals, which recorded only an interruption of the
pilgrimage to Mecca (9).
Closer to home, many people did not
believe that men had walked on the moon, believing it to be a
publicity stunt or disinformation. It would be appropriate,
however, to qualify this impact, insofar as all ancient
civilizations conceived of pantheons, the gods of which were
associated with terrifying manifestations of the sea, wind,
volcanoes, earthquakes, or lightening. It is therefore difficult
to say whether they were the avatars of extraterrestrial
influences or, more simply, the product of the invention of
mythologies explaining the world.
13.2.1.2 Political Impacts With respect to the political impacts, these should be much more
ephemeral, at least in appearance. In fact, once the moments of
astonishment have passed, the political organization of States
does not seem to have to be affected in a lasting manner, since
contingencies quickly regain the upper hand.
However, that
monarch or chief of state could proclaim himself the exclusive
and privileged interpreter of these extraordinary
manifestations. Would he not be tempted to consecrate himself a
god-king or a king-god in the eyes of his subjects?
Once again without being able to distinguish what is the product
of the natural and spontaneous search for the legitimacy of
power from what could actually only be the result of inveigling
by the privileged, we are forced to note that history abounds in
god-kings or king-gods (pharaohs; Assyrian kings; Hellenic
epiphanic kings; Roman, Chinese, or Japanese emperors; sons of
the Sun of Central or South America, etc.).
13.2.2 Impacts on Industrial-Age Civilizations Industrial-age civilizations are more skeptical than they
formerly were and have more difficulty envisioning what is not a
product of the immediately explainable or the simply measurable.
However, it is certain that the furnishing of irrefutable proof
of the existence of extraterrestrials would leave a profound
mark on populations such as ours today.
This issue is at the
heart of our report.
13.3 Phase Three: Influences on Local Civilizations The third phase would be that of the influences that we would
consider appropriate to exert on the environment and the
civilizations encountered with a view to causing them to evolve
in our fashion.
It goes without saying that the advantages and
risks would have to be studied carefully.
13.3.1 Influences on Preindustrial-Age Civilizations We might consider it necessary, in certain cases, to influence
the environment in a specific manner and the evolution of local
civilizations in a subtle way. It might seem necessary to us,
upon completion of our observations and our analyses, to modify,
bit by bit, the natural environment and the ecosystem by, for
example, seeding or introducing select plants and organisms that
are lacking.
Likewise, the course of indigenous civilizations could be
gradually modified by influencing, either from a distance or
directly, the qualities or defects of select individuals,
accentuating their intellectual and moral tendencies and their scientific
knowledge, or by causing genetic mutations by different
processes that are yet to be invented. In this case, it would be
a matter of playing the roie that these populations would have
willingly reserved for gods, who, by providing sacred texts.
would reorient, for example, their sense of morals, their
religiosity, and perhaps their laws and their political
institutions. The use of elements likely to terrify and impress
could be appropriate in some cases.
And, with all due reverence,
nothing would prevent one from thinking of different episodes in
the Old Testament, the conditions under which the laws of Manu
were instituted (10) or even the Koran given. The influences
relate back to a certain number of enigmas in history,
including. perhaps, the concomitant appearance of the great
civilizations of the Indus, Mesopotamia, and Egypt (cities,
architecture, writing, calendar, astronomy, etc.). They also
call to mind the extraordinary map of the Antarctic, which was
drawn almost free of ice by the Frenchman Oronce Fine in 1583,
nearly three centuries prior to the discovery of this continent
in 1820 (11).
13.3.2 Influences on Industrial-Age Civilizations The nature of these influences will vary according to the type
of civilization, its technological development, and its
psychological acclimatization or lack thereof to the existence
of extraterrestrial civilizations. It would be advisable
beforehand to accustom the mind of these populations to the idea
of the probable existence of extraterrestrial civilizations
(science-fiction novels, films, cartoon strips, video games,
advertisements, a favorable psychological climate, [and] why not
suitable sects?, etc.).
New and essential technological knowledge could be provided via
different avenues or by means of chance or provoked accidents
with one of our spacecraft. The contemporary Roswell case thus
comes to mind. In order for the craft to be retained in full (or
disposed of), it would still have been necessary for the U.S.
government to in fact have wanted to show, communicate and have
analyzed, without beating around the bush, all of the elements
that it actually recovered on that occasion.
13.4 Phase Four: Direct Contacts
A fourth phase would be that of establishing direct contact with
the locals or with entire populations, whether or not a vanguard
of bionic robots were used. Once again, the goals sought must be
precisely determined. The benefit and true utility of
establishing such contacts must be weighed with care in order to
calculate the risks and consequences. A specific program could
plan for these.
However, a serious technical accident affecting
one of our spacecraft could be the start of an unofficial
contact, a necessary settlement, or a colonization, or even, if
necessary, an information-disinformation campaign. It is also
advisable to envision the sedition of some of our crews whom it
might be necessary to disembark or who might decide on their own
authority to live on one of the worlds discovered and,
ultimately, mix with the indigenous populations, going against
orders received, whether willingly or against their will, not to
intervene or interfere in local affairs.
These contacts
presuppose that the worlds discovered are populated with human
beings or hominids whose complexion is identical or close to oors. But under the hypothesis of contacts and planned long-term
settlements of members of our crews, should mixes be prohibited,
as prophylaxis, by imposing a major ban on them (12) or, on the
contrary, should they be tolerated and even encouraged?
Bear in
mind that direct or prolonged contacts would inevitably lead the
indigenous populations to believe, in fine, that we are not so
different from them. It would be prudent, however, to send
remote-controlled androids in advance in order to assess the
reactions that such an intrusion would arouse, or to acclimate
the populations to the idea through furtive, episodic
appearances.
What would happen if we encountered populations composed of
beings that were deformed or monstrous in our eyes?
The visual
effect would certainly be startling and a choice subject for
their media and ours, but the types of contact would
consequently be different, or at least we can assume so.
13.4.1 Direct Contacts with Preindustrial-Age Civilizations It is certain that such contacts would immediately cause the
local populations to imagine that they are in the presence of
gods. Historical parallels naturally come to mind: the arrival
of the Spaniards in Central America in armor and on horseback,
or, more generally, the arrival of the Europeans at the time of
the discovery and exploration of the globe.
The impact on
populations that had never seen horses, armor that shone
brightly in the sun, or white men, particularly with blond or
red hair, had to be felt strongly. However, the shock of these
apparitions would be quickly lessened with the multiplication of
relations, and even more so if our crews were to take an eminent
place in the local political and military orders.
This, of
course, relates back to the different epics of the discovery of
the world, European colonization, and also the end of the
western empires.
13.4.2 Direct Contacts with Industrial-Age Civilizations The day would come when we believed that these civilizations,
gradually brought to our level through our efforts, are able to
participate in our world. With the ground prepared in advance,
contacts could, for example, be established discretely with
select individuals or at the highest level of the States, or of
some of them, and, if possible, be kept secret.
Although leaks
should not be ruled out, the leaders selected would then have to
conduct information, disinformation, and counter-information
campaigns to maintain the privileged nature of these relations
and, who knows, to benefit, from our side, from novel
scientific, technical, and political information, giving them an
edge over their rivals. The selection of States, rulers, key
figures, or mere individuals would, of course, be of paramount
importance.
Before or after the implementation of an influencing program,
why not imagine having bionic robots that look like humans or
resemble the living beings there appear in order not to risk the
lives of members of our expeditions? Finally, why not purely and
simply present ourselves openly and publicly?
It is easy to
imagine the huge sensation that this would cause in all
psychological, political, military, strategic, and religious
spheres, to say nothing of the media, [as well as the] multiple
meetings and international colloquiums, uninterrupted sessions
of organizations such as the UN, calls for "world unity, "
international consultations, the creation of welcoming
committees, etc. [that it would prompt]. The rivalry of the
States would be interesting to observe.
It goes without saying that our intentions must be perceived as
peaceful. If this were not our policy, there would, of course,
be no need to take special precautions to show consideration for
the sentiments of the local populations. In all of these
scenarios, we should encounter idolaters, sycophants, Herodians,
who, out of a millenalist conviction, gullibility, pragmatism,
or interest, would welcome us with enthusiasm as saviors,
capable of solving all of their problems and bringing them peace
and prosperity, preferably without having to exert much effort.
These would be our first allies. Zealots, skeptics, and those
who have withdrawn into the venerable secular conceptions of
their world, which has been turned upside-down, would cast doubt
on or deny our existence.
If they were to admit it, they would
consider us as so many invaders, whose intentions would be
perceived as all the more suspect since they would be peaceful.
There is but one logical step to take between that and imagining the creation of defense movements and
resistance movements against the invader. The strength of these
movements would depend, in part, on our skill in squashing them.
convincing them, in the hope of attaching them to us.
But how then do we avoid the pitfall of good intentions and good
sentiments that everyone knows the road to hell is paved with?
(13) Should we admit how long we have been observing them? Would
they reproach us for not having intervened to prevent a world
war of this type, or would they blame us for it, or, more
generally, would they hold it against us that we changed the
course of civilizations? Very severe and lasting psychological
disturbances should be envisioned in these cases. Would they be
disappointed to learn that we are not immortal? Later, economic
and technological exchanges and financial ties should be
established with these populations.
Would it be a wise policy to
involve ourselves in local affairs? And in one manner or
another, could we escape the requests to become arbitrators of
political disagreements, peace, war, and economic crises?
Whatever the case, one day or another we would have to pay the
price for all of the unsolved problems. Would they not go so far
as to reproach us for the contributions of our very advanced
civilization, or at least for what we thought would be of
benefit to them? Changes of opinion and attitude toward us could
occur over time. Wouldn't groups of people be one day tempted to
consider themselves our equals, because we were not able to
remain inaccessible?
Protest movements would consequently arise
and revolutionary cycles would no doubt be set in motion, as a
result of which we, as well as our Herodian allies, would
suffer. Our global policy would then be compromised and we would
have to consider making our contacts less frequent and,
ultimately, withdrawing onto our ships and retreating. We would
then have the time necessary to review our policies, based on
the still unknown techniques of our catechumens.
The discovery of new worlds could enable us to enter into
contact with civilizations just as developed as our own and even
far more advanced. Nothing allows us to rule out the possibility
that, ultimately, we would encounter explorers from other more
distant worlds. Under these hypothetical conditions, it is
permissible to imagine that we might have been discovered in
space first. It would be our turn then to experience - at least
in part - the psychological effects and the political and
religious implications that we have described.
What would be the
policy of local governments toward us? Would they welcome us
peacefully or would they prudently keep us at a distance? Should
we fear seeing ourselves aim nuclear space weapons or other
weapons against, for example, the bases that we had attempted to
establish or had succeeded in establishing in the asteroid belt
close to one of their worlds?
What would be the results of such encounters? What relations
could we establish and what influences would we exert on these
different types of civilizations?
Anything is conceivable.
Having come full circle, we thus return to our concerns and our
current questions.
Chapter 14
Media Implications
As was stressed earlier, it may seem extravagant that sensible
people, scientists moreover, are interested in unexplained - and
for the time being still inexplicable - phenomena at the risk of
appearing ridiculous. But, as this report tries to demonstrate,
there are enough questions regarding tangible evidence to
justify the scientific interest generated by these issues.
What
separates our approach from the media's approach is the
researcher's curiosity with respect to the research to be
conducted in order to solve the enigmas posed to his sagacity
even if science has not reached an adequate state to answer them fully, as opposed to
the curiosity of the press regarding a subject with sudden new
developments that are likely to produce marvelous scoops, which
generally are not characterized by scientific precision.
It is not a question of putting the press on trial; its aid is
often most valuable. But these fleeting events are supported in
part by human testimonies, which are all the more flimsy since
they come from people who are affected by their encounter with
"the unknown" and since they elude the usual benchmarks.
The
press has a tendency sometimes to either ridicule the facts
reported or to make itself look ridiculous because of the excess
of information extrapolated from the elements described by the
witnesses.
14.1 What Can a Government Fear From the Curiosity of the Media?
-
Panic: the media broadcast terrifying information liable to
sow panic among the population. The famous example of Orson Welles's fictional program taken literally by radio listeners in
1938, wreaking tremendous havoc in one region of the United
States, may have influenced the reaction of U.S. military
personnel vis-a-vis the Roswell incident in 1947. The
disinformation campaign was skillfully conducted, since it has
muzzled the media for 30 years. Panic, which is accompanied by
considerable human chaos (suicides, people fleeing on the roads,
riots, and vandalism, etc.) would cause any government for which
peace alone is a wealth and stability factor to shrink back.
-
Mistrust: the fear of seeing accurate information divulged and
repeated with obvious irony is also a deterrent to openly
mentioning UFO questions. This posture is at the core of the
disinformation and confusion in which public opinion is steeped
with regard to what is true and what is false. It can only be
dreaded by decision-makers.
-
Fear of ridicule: although ridicule has no longer killed for
some time, it is nonetheless often difficult to overcome.
-
Manipulation: the media can be manipulated by lobbies or
pressure groups for sectorial purposes (for example, push
politicians to create an anti-UFO SDI [Strategic Defense
Initiative]) and could thus become the unwitting spokesmen of a
disinformation campaign or a destabilization attempt.
14.2 What Attitudes do the Media Adopt?
-
For the tabloids, anything is good if it sells. The public's
curiosity is great and its demand generates enticing and often
phony articles. Although they become the relayer of incredible
theories, it is, on the other hand, thanks to the tabloids that
the latest revelations concerning Roswell made by old witnesses
have begun to become known.
-
For the major newspapers, irony or aggressiveness are most
often a manner of broaching a taboo subject that no one has a
handle on. But the press can also spread the news about an
extraordinary phenomenon when, as in the case of San Carlos de Bariloche, dozens of people were witnesses to it. It sometimes
also makes a good presentation of the UFO case.
-
For television and movies, the subject is in vogue because it
can be dealt with as fiction, and there nothing checks the
imagination of the producers. The bizarre fashion adopted by
Channel + (a French television station] for its "Nuit des
Extraterrestres [Extraterrestrials Night]" does not prompt one
to take this subject seriously. However, tribute should be paid
to several serious and well-documented broadcasts, like that of
Arte in March 1996.
14.3 What Should Be Done?
The future of our planet lies in space. Whether it be
overpopulation, a spirit of adventure, the
search for other raw materials, a liking for conquest and
colonization, or other, more or less altruistic, motivations,
everything is pushing toward expansion far from humanity.
Will
we one day be extraterrestrials on other planets? When our
probes orbit around more and more distant worlds and film them,
what might hypothetical inhabitants think of them? We must prepare ourselves for this prospect, and the media can
help educate the masses.
A strengthened SEPRA could usefully dedicate its efforts to the
training of journalists and could create a documentary site on
the Internet.
Back to Contents
Conclusions and Recommendations
The UFO problem cannot be eliminated by mere caustic and offhand
witticisms. Since the publication of the first report by the
Association des Anciens Auditeurs of IHEDN 20 years ago. CNES
has conducted serious studies in close collaboration with the
Gendarmerie National and the Air Force primarily, as well as
with other State agencies (Civil Aviation, Weather Service,
etc.).
These studies tally with other research conducted more or
less discretely abroad, mainly in the United States.
They demonstrate the almost certain physical reality of
completely unknown flying objects with remarkable flight
performances and noiselessness, apparently operated by
intelligent [beings]. With their maneuvers, these flying objects
considerably impress civilian and military pilots, who hesitate
to speak [about them]. The fear of appearing ridiculous,
alienated, or simply gullible is the principal reason for this
reserve. Secret craft definitely of earthly origin (drones,
stealth aircraft, etc.) can only explain a minority of cases. If
we go back far enough in time, we clearly perceive the limits of
this explanation.
Thus we are forced to resort to other hypotheses. Some can
neither be confirmed nor invalidated. They are therefore not
scientific, and, certainly, it is very difficult to
scientifically study rare, elusive, and chance phenomena, when
science is based above all on experiments and their
reproducibility. However, the example of meteorites shows that
this type of phenomenon can nevertheless end up being accepted
by the scientific community after centuries of doubt and
rejection.
A single hypothesis sufficiently takes into account the facts
and, for the most part, only calls for present-day science. It
is the hypothesis of extraterrestrial visitors. Advanced as of
1947 by certain U.S. military personnel, today it is popular
worldwide. It is discredited by a certain elite, but is
plausible. Scientists (astronomers, physicists, engineers,
futurologists, etc.) have elaborated on it enough for it to be
receivable - as a hypothesis - by their peers.
Different
plausible variants concerning the voyage of one or more
civilizations from a remote solar system to ours have been
developed. A model of magneto-hydrodynamic technology, which
could be employed to propel the UFOs in the atmosphere, has been
well developed. Other manifestations of these objects have begun
to receive a physical explanation (automobile breakdowns,
truncated beams [of light], etc.).
The purposes of these possible visitors remain unknown, but they
must be the subject of indispensable speculations and the
development of prospective scenarios.
The extraterrestrial hypothesis is far from the best scientific
hypothesis. It certainly has not been categorically proven, but
strong presumptions exist in its favor and if it is correct, it
is loaded with consequences.
Based on this prudent but solid assessment, we can make several
recommendations:
-
Inform the political, military, and administrative
decision-makers, as well as the aircraft and helicopter pilots.
A gradual information campaign could target:
-
ENA [National Public Management College] and IHEDN,
-
[Ministry of] Defense schools: Air, Naval, Saint-Cyr,
Gendarmerie, (officers and lower-level gendarmes), Sante des
Armees [Military Health College], Polytechnique [Polytechnical
College], ENSTA [National College of Advanced Technologies],
ENSAE [National College of Statistics and Financial Management],
CID. CHEAR [Center for Advanced Weapons Studies], CHEM [Center
for Advanced Military Studies], etc.,
-
civilian schools and their alumni: Ecole Nationale Superieure
de Police [National Police College], Ecole des Officiers de
Police [Police Officers Academy], journalism schools, Ecole
Nationale de 1'Aviation Civile. At the latter school, numerous
conferences have allowed air [traffic] controllers to be taught
the proper reactions in the event an aircraft encounters a UFO,
-
agencies that support or conduct research for military
purposes: DGA. ONERA, CEA/DAM [Directorate of Military
Applications], etc.,
-
special civilian and military departments, as well as the
Direction de la Communication de la Defense [Defense
Communications Directorate] (DICOD, former central SIRPA [Armed
Forces Information and Public Relations Department]), calling
their attention to disinformation processes.
-
Boost SEPRA's human and material resources so that it can:
-
develop its investigation and analysis possibilities,
-
collect information relating to all UFO manifestations, both
in Europe and throughout the world,
-
maintain and develop databases on different aspects of these
manifestations,
-
boost its representation and foreign relations status.
-
Have considered the detection of UFOs by civilian and
military space surveillance systems, which it is necessary to
develop for other reasons (prevention of collisions between
satellites and space debris, etc.).
-
Create a unit at the highest State level to collaborate with SEPRA, that would be tasked with:
-
formulating all prospective hypotheses,
-
promoting scientific and technical efforts and, as such, have
an annual budget of a few million francs,
-
participating in the establishment of sectorial cooperation
agreements with other countries.
-
Initiate diplomatic demarches to the United States, with the
support of other States and even the European Union, to urge the
superpower to collaborate and, if necessary, exert useful
pressure to clarify this crucial issue that can only come within
the framework of political and strategic alliances.
-
As speculative as these possibilities are, reflect, at the
level of public authorities and with the aid of the unit
mentioned in item 4), on the measures to take in the event of a
spectacular and indisputable manifestation of a UFO:
-
overt attempt to make contact,
-
landing before numerous witnesses,
-
other substantial actions.
These reflections would be carried out methodically, while
maintaining, obviously, a minimum distance.
Back to Contents
Appendices
-
Appendix 1 - Radar Detection in France
-
Appendix 2 - Astronomers' Sightings
-
Appendix 3 - Life in the Universe
-
Appendix 4 - Colonization of Space
-
Appendix 5 - The Roswell Affair - Disinformation
-
Appendix 6 - The Long History of the UFO
Phenomenon - Elements of a Chronology
-
Appendix 7 - Reflections
on Various Psychological, Sociological
APPENDIX 1
Radar Detection in France
Radar detection in France is carried out by two radar station
networks, the military network equipped with both primary and
secondary radars and the civilian network equipped almost
entirely with secondary radars. Primary radar permits one to
detect and visualize on a screen (or scope) the geographic
position and the altitude (three-dimensional radar) of all
moving objects via the reflection of radar waves off of the body
of the moving object.
Conversely, secondary radar permits the detection and display on
the screen only of moving objects equipped with a "transponder"
that is able to respond to the coded signals that it emits. Thus
any moving object not equipped with a "transponder" could not be
detected by secondary radar.
This detail is extremely important in the case in question,
because only the primary radars installed at military Control
and Detection Centers (CDC) and radar detection aircraft, the
Air Force AWACS and soon the Navy Hawkeyes, are able to detect a
UFO, provided that the latter is not a "stealth" craft.
Finally, it is necessary to know that all radar information
detected by the totality of radar stations in the territory,
airborne warning aircraft, and the radar stations of neighboring
countries are being collected and processed in the STRIDA (Systeme
de Traitement des Informations de Defense Aerienne [Air Defense
Information Processing Center]) network, thus permitting
detection coverage over a square more than 4500 km per side.
APPENDIX 2
Astronomers' Sightings
by Jean-Claude Ribes
The following argument has often been raised against the
testimonies concerning UFOs: astronomers, who should have a
ringside seat, do not relate any such sightings.
The first response is that in actual fact, professional
astronomers concentrate on a very small field of the sky, which
is observed through an instrument in a dome. Thus they have less
chances than a "tourist" of sighting a relatively rare luminous
phenomenon. Amateur astronomers, who spend a lot of time looking
at the sky, generally in the open air, are much better
positioned to sight an unusual phenomenon without confusing it
with an astronomical object. But we can expect them to be
extremely reticent to relate such a sighting out of fear of
ridicule, because amateurs are generally desirous of
"professional" recognition. At any rate, no specific
investigation has been conducted, to my knowledge, in this
particular population.
The results of two independent studies conducted by professional
astronomers with their colleagues are quite different: in the
50s, Hynek informally questioned some forty astronomers, a
little more than 10% of whom had actually sighted unexplained
phenomena. Among the latter, Josef Allen Hynek cites Professor
Lincoln La Paz.
Director of the Institute of Meteoritics at the
University of New Mexico, and Clyde Tombaugh, the discoverer of
the planet Pluto, who died in 1997. In the 70s this time, Peter
A. Sturrock sent a detailed questionnaire to 2611 members of the
American Astronomical Association, guaranteeing them anonymity.
Half responded, and sixty sightings were encountered.
No systematic study of this type has been conducted in France,
but a sighting by Marseilles astronomers Georges Courtes and
Maurice Viton is frequently cited. One of my colleagues also
related to me a sighting that he had made in his youth of an
object with an apparent diameter of the moon (which, moreover,
was visible), moving slowly from north to south. He was not yet
a professional at the time but rather a well-informed amateur, and
he does not see any explanation for his sighting, which he has
never mentioned publicly.
Thus it appears that the percentage of sightings by astronomers
is comparable to that noted in the overall population, although
there is a definite reticence among a vast majority to mention
them without being assured of anonymity. In addition, the
general opinion of astronomers on the subject is much less
negative than they say sometimes, and the least that you could
say is that there is no consensus, with many wanting an
objective study of the phenomenon without any preconceived
ideas.
The private conversations that I have been able to have
with French colleagues confirm Sturrock's conclusion: many would
refuse to broach the question with a journalist, but when I
speak with them about a serious scientific study, they state
that they are in agreement.
APPENDIX 3
Life in the Universe
The question of extraterrestrial life left the domain of belief
barely a few decades ago and entered the domain of scientific
research, and the advances in this domain have been very rapid
for several years.
Beyond earth, the solar system proves to be
currently unsuited to life, but the "Viking" probes have shown
that some three-and-a-half billion years ago, the planet Mars
must have offered much more favorable conditions than at
present, namely with the existence of liquid water. Thus it is
not ruled out that an elementary life form (bacteria) could have
existed there, as was then the case on earth.
The study of
fossils is, besides, one of the reasons for future Martian
expeditions, automated first, then with humans aboard. The
discovery of fossils in a meteorite originally from Mars, as
announced by NASA, is still the subject of a debate in the
scientific community. But the very existence of this debate
increases the interest in going to take a look on site.
Outside the solar system, astronomers have long thought that,
very generally, the stars should be surrounded by planetary
systems, but it has only been in very recent years that
experience has confirmed this theory: we now know of a half
dozen stars each accompanied by at least one planet. Biologists,
for their part, are making rapid advances in understanding the
chemical mechanisms that give rise to life, and this appears
more and more to be a necessity rather than a coincidence.
Twenty years' experience has shown, from Siberia to the ocean
depths, that life adapts itself to sharp variations in
temperature or to extreme temperatures where it was previously
considered to be impossible.
For 35 years, radioastronomers have carried out different
programs searching for an intelligent radio signal coming from
space (SET1: Search for ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence). No
signals have been detected yet, which is not surprising given
the immensity of the spatial and frequency domain to be
explored. A major NASA program, which was canceled by the U.S.
Congress, was revived using private funds and should improve the
sensitivity of the search by several orders of magnitude.
The
French radiotelescope at Nancay, where several SETI studies have
already taken place, will perhaps be included in this program.
APPENDIX 4
Colonization of Space
The second half of the 20th century will have been the half
century of the exploration of the solar system: man on the moon,
probes placed on Mars and Venus, others in the immediate
vicinity of the other planets (except Pluto), comets, and
asteroids.
The 21st century might be the century of the
colonization of our system, with permanent human settlements and
preparation for voyages to other planetary systems.
The coming years will see the positioning of the permanent
orbital station Alpha, the
international follow-up to the Russian Mir program. Next, the
Americans plan, in principle, to establish a permanent base on
the moon, a minimal station like the Antarctic base. Beyond
that, it would be necessary to recreate an ecosystem where the
essential raw material needs (including air. water, and food)
could be extracted on site or recycled. Actually, we cannot
consider applying the current method on a large scale, where
almost everything must be brought from earth via costly
launches.
Ecosystems of this type were studied by the Russians first (the
first experiment was in 1961) and by the Americans, namely with
Biosphere 2, a greenhouse 1.3 ha in surface area, planned to
maintain in closed circuit (with an outside power supply) a set
of plants and animals, including the presence of eight people.
This experiment, which was carried out using private funds, was
unjustly criticized by the press and a portion of the scientific
community.
In fact, despite certain "amateur" sides, it has
already contributed a great deal: during an initial two-year
experiment from 1991 to 1993, four men and four women lived
almost entirely self-sufficiently, demonstrating the validity of
the principle. The recycling of water was total, while the
recycling of air was imperfect (it was necessary to add oxygen
after fifteen months of total isolation), and the production of
food slightly inadequate (the inhabitants of the biosphere left
thinner, having started in on the reserves).
After another six-month experiment, the structure was taken over
by the University of Columbia, which seems interested especially
in the ecological aspect, to the detriment of the space
application. However, it is a descendent of Biosphere 2 who
could represent the future autonomous moon base of the middle of
the next century.
A human settlement on the moon is first of all
a scientific necessity, namely for astronomers. It is also a
springboard into space. Almost all the materials necessary for
the construction of stations and spaceships can be found on the
moon. So many resources [exist there], the exploitation of which
will be much more economical than on earth because the reduced
gravity and the absence of atmosphere on our satellite enable an
easy and sure launch into orbit.
Human expeditions will necessarily follow automated missions to
Mars, if for no other reason than to verify the past existence
of traces of life. As for the development of permanent Martian
colonies, this can be envisioned, but one can also imagine
skipping this step, by creating artificial planets. The idea was
conceived by American physicist O'Neill, who studied in detail
cylindrical structures 30 km in length by 6 km in diameter, in
rotation to create an artificial gravity and able to shelter
millions of people in an earth-type biosphere.
These artificial planets could be constructed in the asteroid
belt, between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, where we find an
abundance of materials that are easy to exploit, which will be
able to provide numerous chemical bodies, including oxygen and
water.
In the very long term, and when the industrial-scale
manufacture, storage, and use of antimatter is mastered, smaller
models of these same craft will be able to leave the solar
system. They will be able to reach the vicinity of another star,
after a voyage of several centuries, during which generations
will succeed one another in these "ship-worlds" (unless we have
mastered human hibernation by then).
These migrations probably will not take place until after
reconnaissance [missions] conducted by automatic probes [have
been completed]. The preferred destinations would obviously be
systems where a planet supposedly shelters evolved life.
Imagine that a human expedition settles in the asteroid belt of
a system where a civilization exists that is quite probably at a
lower stage of technical development than ours (if the reverse
is true, it is likely that the contact was made via
telecommunications, or else that the most advanced civilizations
made the voyage before us): for ethical reasons, but also in the
interest of a serious scientific study, it would not be a matter
of intervening openly, at the risk of inducing a fatal culture
shock.
The study should therefore be discrete, using high-speed
and silent craft to move through the planet's atmosphere (MHD
propulsion offers interesting prospects in this respect), and
non-lethal weapons to avoid the consequences of an untimely
encounter (the paralyzing effect of pulsed microwaves is under study in several countries).
When the civilization visited has reached the stage of space
voyages, it will become necessary to make it aware of the
existence of visitors. One way to do this, without causing
trauma, would be to commit "calculated indiscretions" that would
accustom the population, little by little, to the idea that
there could indeed be extraplanetary visits.
APPENDIX 5
The Roswell Affair - Disinformation
-
Roswell: indisputable facts
Note, the parenthetical annotation (video) indicates that video
testimonies are available
-
Summer 1947 - The Roswell (New Mexico) base houses the only
nuclear-armed bombers in the world. The bombers still have
propellers.
-
June 24 - Sighting of nine UFOs by American Kenneth Arnold. The
news is broadcast throughout the world.
-
July 8 (morning), Roswell - The base provides the local radio
stations with information that would circle the globe: a flying
disk had crashed on a ranch and the military personnel from the
base recovered the debris (video).
-
July 8 (afternoon), Fort Worth (Texas) - General Ramey,
Commander of the 8th Air Force, who commands the base, announces
to journalists that after examination of the debris, [it was
determined that] they were from a weather balloon. He shows them
some of the debris, which the journalists photograph. The affair
was buried for over thirty years.
-
1978 - Lieutenant Colonel Marcel (ER), an intelligence officer
on the base in 1947 who recovered the debris, declares on
television that the debris is definitely of extraterrestrial
origin (video). The debris that General Ramey had shown the
journalists was not the debris that Marcel had brought him from
Roswell.
American ufologists conduct numerous investigations and collect
affidavits (sworn and notarized written statements) and filmed
testimonies. Many witnesses state that in July 1947, military
personnel had threatened them with death if they talked (video).
According to some testimonies, at some distance from the field
of debris, the Army had found the frame of a sort of space
glider and cadavers of small humanoids (video).
-
1991 -General du Bose [sic] (CR), who was General Ramey's chief
of staff in 1947, confirms by affidavit that the latter had
substituted the debris from a weather balloon, which he had
shown the journalists, for the debris sent by the Roswell base.
-
Beginning of 1994 - U.S. Representative Schiff (New Mexico) asks
the Department of Defense (DoD) for explanations regarding the
affair. Not obtaining any, he requests that the General
Accounting Office (GAO) conduct an inquiry into the manner in
which the Air Force, primarily, had handled the documents
relating to the Roswell crash.
-
September 1994 - The Office of the Secretary of the Air Force
publishes a report on Roswell: the debris found on the ranch
cannot be from an aircraft or a missile. They are probably
debris from a series of balloons from the secret Mogul project.
To protect the secret, General Ramey leads everyone to believe
it is a weather-balloon, the materials of which (essentially the
shell and radar reflector) are the same. The report shortens the
affidavits of certain witnesses so that the debris that they
describe appears to be debris from a Mogul balloon. It does not
mention the frame and attributes the "bona fide testimonies "
regarding humanoids to "foggy weather. "
-
July 1995 - The GAO report mentions the new Air Force version,
and states:
-
page 1, "The debate on what actually happened at Roswell
continues. "
-
page 2, "All of the base's administrative documents for the
March 1945-December 1949 period were destroyed, and all radio
messages sent by the base from October 1946 to February 1949
were destroyed. The destruction report does not mention when, by
whom, and on whose orders this destruction was carried out. "
-
The GAO inquiry provided him with practically no documents of
interest concerning the Roswell incident, despite his requests
to numerous organizations (CIA, FBI, DoD, DoE. NSC. etc.)
-
Summer and fall of 1995 -A film of the autopsy of an alleged
"humanoid cadaver " in 1947 is aired by about thirty television
stations around the world. Its authenticity is questionable,
but. above all, nothing in the film proves that the cadaver has
even the slightest connection with the Roswell incident. The
hodgepodge is, however, made up in large part from written and
televised press, thus making the Roswell affair look ridiculous.
The conclusions of the GAO and the videos of the principal
witnesses presented by TFI [a French television channel] go
unnoticed, lost in the middle of the film of the autopsy.
-
1996 - The film Independence Day and the [television] series
X-Files make numerous references to Roswell.
-
Opinions on Roswell
-
Very consistent interviews, affidavits, and video testimonies
describe the discovery of material that no one knows how to make in our time: a thin sheet
that looks like metal with very great resistance and that is so elastic that after it has been
crumpled up into a ball, it spontaneously returns to its initial shape without the least sign of a
residual fold.
-
It does seem that the crash occurred on July 4, Independence
Day, at around 2330 hours. The y date and time symbolize American power, whence the following
question [arises]: if the crash was in fact that of an extraterrestrial vessel, was it truly an
accident or a was it a deliberate crash constituting a message
and/or the authenticator?
-
Roswell and disinformation
The disappearances of files and the Air Force's clumsy attempts
at explaining [the incident] show that U.S. military personnel
are hiding something important that occurred at Roswell in July
1947, just as they concealed their experiments on the effects of
plutonium. The hypothesis of an extraterrestrial vessel that is
supported by quality testimonies cannot be dismissed.
To protect the secret, two main types of disinformation,
simplified and enhanced, were used in the Roswell affair. It is
advisable to note, however, that the dissemination of
information and contradictory analyses - by ufologists, for
example - may be a spill-over effect of this.
Simplified disinformation is apparent in the Air Force report:
testimonies on the debris have been cut down so as to give
credence to the Mogul balloon hypothesis. It is also found, more
subtly, in Roswell in Perspective, a book by "ufologist" Karl
Pflock, a former CIA and DoD employee: affidavits mentioning the
tear-proof and crease-resistant material are given in full in an
appendix, but they are ignored or cited only in shortened form
in the text. In France, sociologist Pierre Lagrange appears to be a victim of
this simplified disinformation.
After having endeavored to put
the Air Force report and the publications of Karl Pflock into
perspective, he concluded:
-
"[I will] close with a bit of psychology. Why do many people not
believe in the Roswell saucer like they believe in Mogul
balloons or the V2s? Because it reminds them too much of popular
science fiction. As Bertrand Meheust emphasizes, the topic of
the Martian craft that had the exquisite courtesy to crash in
the vicinity of a military base comes under the heading of the
technological imagination of the beginning of the century, just
like the detail regarding the ultra-light and ultra-resistant
materials that were used in its construction."
(the journal Ovnipresence, February 1995).
This is, on the whole, the simplistic theory concerning UFOs
stated by French '"socio-psychologists." It can be refuted as
follows: at the beginning of the century, popular science
fiction described light rays capable of killing or healing.
Nonetheless, military or medical lasers exist today.
Enhanced disinformation was manifested when the film on the
autopsy of the "Roswell creature" was aired. In expanding the
Roswell affair with this spectacular, but questionable,
autopsy, some have succeeded in discrediting it and, especially,
in covering up the publication of the GAO report and the
dissemination of video testimonies.
It is tempting to believe in
a well-orchestrated manipulation.
-
Simplified disinformation on UFOs
The Air Force has practiced this from the onset, as has been
revealed by the astronomer Hynek. who was an Air Force
consultant from 1948 to 1966 and who described how he aided in
trivializing numerous cases by giving them unjustified
astronomical interpretations.
The disinformation policy was intensified as a result of the
recommendations of a "scientific" committed assembled by the CIA
in December 1952, the Robertson Committee, which suggested
"stripping the UFO phenomenon of its aura of mystery." The same
committee recommended "monitoring " the ufological movements,
which were infiltrated by the CIA mainly.
Several key figures have tried to nullify numerous important
cases. Philip (Class, then editor of — Aviation Week and Space
Technology, took on, among others, three major aeronautical
cases: Lakenheath in 1956, RB-47 in 1957, Tehran in 1976, which
are described in Chapter 2. He is hardly convincing. In the
Tehran case, for example, he correctly cites the testimonies at
the beginning of his account, but doesn't take certain aspects
into account when he discusses them.
Simplified disinformation is effective on those who do not want
to accept the possibility of the extraterrestrial hypothesis.
Enhanced disinformation is aimed at others.
-
Enhanced disinformation on UFOs
This policy was probably implemented very early on; Adamski's
alleged contacts with a Venusian in 1952 no doubt fall into this
category.
It has become considerably extensive since the resurgence of the
Roswell affair at the end of the 70s. The point of departure is
the Bennewicz case. This ufologist physicist recorded pulsed
microwaves from a testing ground at Kirtland (New Mexico) Air
Force base. He attributed them to UFOs exerting control over
"abductees" (kidnapped humans) furnished with implants!
Fearing.
it seems, the publication of his recordings, the Air Force
Office of Special Investigation (AFOS1) and, namely, its special
agent Doty from the aforementioned air base, as well as,
perhaps, other agencies, induced him to make fantastic
"revelations": there were numerous kidnappings, with the
placement of implants to control the "abductees." Furthermore,
technology transfers were supposedly carried out on bases in New
Mexico and Nevada jointly owned by the U.S. Army and
extraterrestrials baptized EBEs, Extraterrestrial Biological
Entities.
Bennewicz disclosed this information to American saucerists,
much of which was increasingly cut off in this manner from the
common opinion. John Lear, son of the aircraft builder,
contributed on his part details that he had obtained from
friends in the Air Force: the Nevada base is Groom Lake base, in
"area 51" (Groom Lake does in fact exist; it is so secret that
the Air Force does not recognize its existence; nevertheless, it
is mentioned in the June 1996 issue of Jane's Defence Weekly).
Later, a Marine officer from the 2nd Marine Division, Bill
Cooper, "revealed" that the Council for Foreign Relations (CFR),
which, according to him, governs the world through the
Bilderberg [Group] and the Trilateral [Commission], supposedly
does so in close union with the EBEs...
Enhanced disinformation has probably permitted the protection of
research on microwave weapons at Kirtland and on new types of
aircraft at Groom Lake.
It has certainly allowed the weapon of
the ridiculous to be used against certain gullible ufologists.
APPENDIX 6
The Long History of the UFO Phenomenon - Elements of a
Chronology
The UFO phenomenon truly experienced worldwide dissemination as
of Kenneth Arnold's sighting on June 24, 1947, in the area of
Mount Rainier in the northwest United States. In reality. air
phenomena that are still unexplained today are much older.
Before going further, it is interesting to note that between May
and July of this year, 850 different sightings were recorded
across the United States (Blue Book) and that in January an RAF
Mosquito night fighter tried in vain to intercept a very rapid
object detected by radars over the North Sea.
-
In 1946, phantom missiles overfly Sweden
From February to December 1946, many witnesses sighted generally
fusiform objects (occasionally resembling spheres or disks)
flying horizontally in Swedish skies, in some cases leaving a
luminous trail, but also capable of very suddenly ascending or
descending.
Called "ghost rockets," these apparitions (close to a thousand
were detected) considerably worried Scandinavian, British, and
U.S. military authorities, who conducted investigations.
Although no debris was ever found (officially), it was long
thought that it could have been a case of Soviet tests conducted
with craft recovered in German factories. This hypothesis has
since been completely ruled out.
-
During World War II, the "foo fighters"
From 1940 to 1945, numerous aviators sighted either swarms of
red or green luminous balls several dozen centimeters in
diameter or groups of small metal-looking disks that followed
the aircraft or flew around them, giving the impression of
intelligent behavior. Most often not detected by the radars of
the time, they did not seem "material" in nature. In fact, some
observers saw them touch the wings or the tail assemblies of the
aircraft without causing any visible damage to them.
First called "Kraut fireballs," then "foo fighters" (probably in
reference to a comic strip), they were reported in all theaters
of operation as of the start of the war. They began to appear in
number during the first major day bombings over Germany. They
were also observed from the ground and were the subject of
numerous reports as of June 1944.
These sightings were the cause of much concern to the Allied
authorities, who believed them to be a secret German process in
the beginning. It became clearly apparent at the end of the war
that it was nothing of the sort.
It seems that, for their part, the German pilots had been
persuaded that it was a case of a secret U.S. weapon. A board of
inquiry reportedly was even created in Berlin to study the
matter.
The current explanation of electrical phenomena such as the
Saint Elmo's fires is not convincing because it does not take
into account the diverse characteristics observed. The files
relating to the "foo fighters" seem to have been subject to
military secrecy at least until 1949.
Many other sightings concerning larger, cigar-shaped,
disk-shaped, or sphere-shaped objects were recorded in both
camps.
-
From 1880 to 1900, "airships" over the United States and Great
Britain During these years, tens of thousands of witnesses sighted
flying machines resembling modern dirigibles, which were not
produced by factories until twenty years later. In most cases,
it was a matter of fairly voluminous, fusiform, vessels equipped
with powerful searchlights, often emitting engine sounds, and,
in some cases, even seeming to have propellers.
In the United States, the majority of the sightings occurred
between 1896 and 1897. Other cases were reported, particularly in Spain, Germany, Sweden, and
Russia. A second wave [of sightings] occurred at the turn of the
century in Great Britain.
The explanation that comes immediately to mind is that of true
dirigibles (and right away we think of the craft of German
origin). However, it has a hard time holding up to a thorough
examination.
In actuality, in 1880, the technology of these craft was still
in its infancy. It is true that Colonel Giffard did conduct an
initial test in 1852 with an elongated balloon equipped with a
very low-power steam engine. Then in 1885, Renard traveled
several kilometers for the first time, overflying Paris with a
dirigible equipped with an internal combustion engine, but it
was still extremely slow and not very easy to fly.
In fact, the first truly efficient aircraft were subsequent to
1910; however, even the zeppelins built during World War I far
from possessed the characteristics observed by the witnesses to
these phenomena.
-
From Greco-Latin antiquity to the beginning of the industrial
age Human beings in all ages have sighted phenomena in the sky that
they considered, rightly or wrongly, to be abnormal. It is true
that our epoch naturally has a tendency to doubt the accuracy of
ancient testimonies, and especially so the further back into the
past we go.
During the first three quarters of the 19th century, chroniclers
related several dozen sightings of spheres and luminous wheels
resembling present-day UFOs. The 18th century was marked by one
strange case. Goethe recounts, in fact, that in his youth, in
1768, during a trip between Frankfort and Leipzig, he and two
other witnesses saw a type of large luminous tube positioned on
the ground, surrounded by a multitude of small, very bright,
moving flames.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, authors mentioned numerous
sightings, not only in Europe but also in America and Japan.
Among these, a few hold our attention due to their spectacular
appearance and the multitude of witnesses. In the skies of
Nuremberg, in April 1561, a large number of brightly colored
spheres, disks, and "cigars" seemed to wage a sort of battle
that left a profound mark on the population and caused the
authorities great concern. A spectacle of the same kind took
place in August 1566 in Basel.
From the year one thousand to the year 1500, chroniclers
mentioned various sightings of luminous spheres, wheels, lances,
or bars moving more-or-less rapidly in the sky. The monastery at
Detchani, built in Yugoslavia between 1327 and 1335, is
decorated with frescoes that represent angels enclosed in sorts
of vessels flying in the sky.
Even further back in time, during the reign of Charlemagne, it
is reported that Agobard, Bishop of Lyons, succeeded in saving
from the stake three men and one woman who had descended from an
airship, claiming to be returning to earth after having been
kidnapped by celestial beings who allegedly showed them wonders.
Elsewhere, luminous celestial phenomena similar to modern UFOs
seem to have been relatively frequent in China and Japan,
particularly in the Middle Ages.
Several other Latins, Dion Cassius. Pliny the Elder, Titus Livy,
Julius Obsequens, and even Cicero relate the appearance of
lights in the sky, glowing shields, multiple moons and suns,
[and] golden flying spheres.
As for the testimonies reported by the Greek chroniclers, these
are fewer in number. Daimachos recounts that a globe of fire
crossed the sky several times during the 78th Olympiad.
Anaxagoras asserts that he saw celestial lights the size of a
large beam.
Appearances of beams and shields of fire are
described several times, by Homer among others.
APPENDIX 7
Reflections on Various Psychological, Sociological, and
Political Aspects of the UFO Phenomenon
Note: these reflections apply primarily to the United States:
many of them, however, can be transposed to other countries
A large number of Americans are convinced of the physical
reality of UFOs, of their extraterrestrial origin, and of the
fact that the U.S. government is systematically covering up the
truth with lies and disinformation.
Most of the recent American works that have been published on
the subject end with this conclusion, and almost all of them
close with a demand for a partial or full lifting of the alleged
secrecy. The media frenzy surrounding the Roswell affair (cf.
Appendix 5), which experienced a resurgence at the end of the
70s after a more than thirty-year blackout, and which has not
ceased to go from new development to new development for 15
years, is a typical illustration of this line of thought.
By
admitting that the extraterrestrial hypothesis is the good one,
the secret, say some, would be kept out of fear of panic
reactions; which, they assure, would not fail to occur, as
demonstrated by the unfortunate experience of the radio program
"The War of the Worlds " broadcast by Orson Welles in the United
States in 1938 (only nine years prior to Roswell). This
explanation should not necessarily be rejected; however, it does
seem a bit narrow.
In fact, the roots of the matter probably go
deeper, and the socio-psychological motivations seem to be more
complex.
7.1 The UFO Paradox
While a majority of Americans seem to support the idea of the
existence of intelligent extraterrestrial [beings], a very
strong resistance remains in scientific circles, among leaders,
and in most of the media to the idea that these entities,
whatever they may be, have been able to or continue to visit our
planet and travel our solar system.
The idea is ridiculed by much of the media. At the same time, in
this spirit, most politicians and the vast majority of members
of the intelligentsia state that humanity has better things to
do than to chase such rainbows.
7.2 Why this Resistance?
7.2.1 On the Part of Scientists Given an official attitude of contempt, and in view of the fear
of being likened to the activists from "saucerist" sects and the
"lunatic fringe," the vast majority of scientists, although they
are interested, quite obviously hesitate to tackle such a
heretical problem and naturally do not wish to call their
reputation, career, and the funding of their research into
question (cf. Appendix 2, "Astronomers' Sightings")- This being
the case, there appear, upon analysis, to be other, deeper
reasons.
A general school of thought has existed for close to two
centuries that tends to dismiss the idea that terrestrial
phenomena could be influenced from the outside.
At the start, this was a positive, rational, and creative
reaction to ancient beliefs. Compared with ancient times, modern
science has, in fact, advanced by eliminating the gods. It would
seem counterproductive and incongruous to bring them back in
other forms. The idea prevails in almost all minds that man is master of the
earth and, by extension, of the immediate cosmic vicinity, that
it is the best nature can produce in this small comer of the
galaxy, and that he alone remains the controller of his destiny. Various
American philosophers have termed this concept "anthropocentric
humanism. "
To admit that intelligent [beings], which are not only outside
[our planet] but are also superior due to their scientific and
technological knowledge, could have interfered or might continue
to interfere in our affairs, in our domain, or in proximity to
it, is considered by many to be frightening and unacceptable,
because admitting it would cause the collapse of the framework
of comfortable thoughts of anthropocentric humanism. Moreover, in some disciplines such as physics, the risk run is
to find oneself confronted with a science that is more advanced
by several centuries, milleniums, or even more.
Our own concepts could literally appear infantile, which would
completely demobilize the researchers who employ them.
It is clear that under the hypothesis that the existence of UFOs
of extraterrestrial origin is proven, there is a risk that not
only the position of the intellectual authorities but, quite
simply, the social position of the scientific elite would be
considerably compromised. This is, furthermore, what happened
each time that groups or nations found themselves in contact
with a more developed human civilization, with the notable
exception of Japan in the Meiji period, which it would be
advisable to look into.
We know that advancing knowledge of the UFO phenomenon, at the
risk of succeeding, would not necessarily be a thrilling
prospect for a number of scientists, who thus might not really
want to lend a hand in this effort.
7.2.2 On the Part of Politicians
7.2.2.1 With a few rare exceptions (President Jimmy Carter, Senator
Barry M. Goldwater), the
majority of politicians have almost always displayed a very
skeptical and most often ironic attitude regarding the question.
However, some have had a more positive attitude.
The best known allusions to the possible existence of
extraterrestrials and to the dangers that they might represent
come from General MacArthur and President Ronald Reagan.
While he had already touched on the problem in 1955, in a
conversation with the mayor of Naples, Achille Lauro, General
MacArthur said in an address at West Point Military Academy in
1962:
"You now face a new world, a world of change. The thrust into
outer space... marks a beginning of another epoch in the long
story of mankind... We deal now, not with things of this world
alone, but with the illimitable distances and as yet unfathomed
mysteries of the universe... of ultimate conflict between a
united human race and the sinister force of some other planetary
galaxy. " [French translation of the quote from General MacArthur's
address]
General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev, for his part, revealed
during a private discussion at the 1985 summit conference that
President Reagan had told him that if earth had to confront an
invasion by extraterrestrials, the United States and the Soviet
Union would join forces to repel that invasion.
In addition, at the end of a speech before the 42nd General
Assembly of the United Nations on September 21, 1987, President
Reagan affirmed:
"In our obsession with the antagonisms of the moment, we often
forget how much unites all the members of humanity. Perhaps we
need some outside, universal threat to make us recognize this
common bond. I occasionally think how quickly our differences
worldwide would vanish if we were facing an alien threat from
outside this world. "
[French translation of the quote from President Reagan's speech] [continuation of French translation of quote]
7.2.2.2 However, for political leaders, just as for scientists,
to be officially interested in UFOs and extraterrestrials is
firstly to risk ridicule before commentators and the media, who
regularly use omission, destructive irony, and even lies.
7.2.2.3 But other elements should be taken into consideration.
Although a significant number of U.S. citizens seem to accept
the existence of UFOs of extraterrestrial origin, some political
leaders might hesitate to call for resources to research this
subject, because they might fear they would then be accused of
incurring expenses for one of the most dangerous of subjects.
7.2.2.3.1 Under these circumstances, if we advance the
hypothesis that political leaders at the highest level in the United States possess specific information
attesting to that existence, their situation would be particularly uncomfortable. The armed forces have
officially reiterated for fifty years that this phenomenon does not threaten the security of the
country, which does not mean that the phenomenon does not exist.
However, there have been disturbing sightings such as visits
above secret installations and missile bases, intense
electromagnetic effects, military aircraft shadowed (as in the
RB-47 case) or the object of mock interceptions. In reality,
faced with the impossibility of countering this type of threat,
the authorities have thus far been tempted to affirm that it
does not exist.
In the absence of a direct threat, and although there never
truly was any attack in the past, the potential threat itself
can appear overwhelming in the eyes of the authorities (and
especially the military).
"They" come from the stars, "their" craft watch us and seem to
taunt us, "they" have perhaps been on earth for thousands of
years, and we don't know "their" intentions. "Their" science and
"their" technology, thus "their" power, are incomparably
superior to ours.
Without being completely disarmed, and even taking into account
the enormous resources that we have on the earth and our obvious
ability to learn quickly, we can only feel anxious in the face of
"their" presence.
Bringing this out into the open by calling for the manpower and
funds to conduct the necessary research is hard to visualize
officially for the only superpower in the world.
7.2.2.3.2 This is all the more true since, under the additional
hypothesis that the U.S. armed forces actually already possess formal proof of this threat, for
example, in the form of extraterrestrial ships that have crashed on the ground, intensive research on
foreign technologies should have already commenced a long time ago under the cover of the highest
level of secrecy.
As will be seen in 7.3.3, it would then be completely out of the
question to divulge this type of information.
In fact, revealing a situation as novel as it is upsetting too
quickly would perhaps be running the risk of social upheavals,
accompanied by panic, a demobilization of energies, a
multiplication of millenialist sects, and a massive move of
people to take refuge in religious fundamentalisms.
The loss of trust in the leaders in power could even lead
rapidly to their ousting.
Given such a problem, their normal reactions would obviously be
to gain as much time as possible by continuing their denials,
all the while continuing work in secret and fervently hoping
that their successors will take on the responsibility when the
reality becomes manifest.
7.3 U.S. Leaders and the Politics of Secrecy
7.3.1 The U.S. Army and UFOs The U.S. Army has been directly confronted with the phenomenon
since World War II. It seems to have been the only army to have
officially broached the problem with considerable resources.
7.3.2 The Spill-Over Effect of the Study of UFOs
The U.S. Army has, in actual fact, designed aircraft that
exhibit the characteristics described by the most reliable
witnesses. The spill-overs are potentially considerable in the
areas of propulsion. materials and structures, stealth
technology, and weapons.
7.3.3 Finally, Why the Secrecy? We are currently not aware of the extent of the knowledge that
U.S. military personnel have gleaned from all of the studies
that they have conducted on this subject either based on
sightings or, as has sometimes been written, based on materials
that have allegedly been recovered.
Whatever the case, it is clear that the Pentagon has had, and
probably still has the greatest interest in concealing, as best
as it can, all of this research, which may, over time, cause the
United States to hold a position of great supremacy over
terrestrial adversaries, while giving it a considerable response
capacity against a possible threat coming from space.
Within this context, it is impossible for them to divulge the
sources of this research and the goals pursued, because that
could immediately point any possible rivals down the most
beneficial avenues. Cover-ups and disinformation (both active as
well as passive) still remain, under this hypothesis, an
absolute necessity.
Thus it would appear natural that in the minds of U.S. military
leaders, secrecy must be maintained as long as possible.
Only increasing pressure from public opinion, possibly supported
by the results of independent researchers, by more or less
calculated disclosures, or by a sudden rise in UFO
manifestations, might perhaps induce U.S. leaders and persons of
authority to change their stance. It does not seem that we have arrived at that point yet.
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UFO, Unidentified Flying Object...
Since 1947, the subject has disturbed, fascinated, called out.
Oh how debated, the question has been studied with extreme
meticulousness and from many points of view (scientific,
technical, aeronautical, strategic, political, religious, media)
by a French committee composed of former auditors of the very
serious-minded Institut des Hautes Etudes de Defense Nationale
[French Institute for Advanced National Defense Studies] and
qualified experts from every background, COMETA [Committee for
In-Depth Studies].
For the first time, men, some of whom occupy very high
positions, have agreed to write a report devoted entirely to the
UFO problem in the belief that based on the knowledge that has
been acquired to date, sufficient questions of national interest
are raised for the Chief of State and the Prime Minister to be
provided with this information.
In this report, COMETA studies several unexplained French and
foreign UFO cases.
Very well documented, these sightings are often supported by
traces on the ground or tracks confirmed by radar. Are these
secret terrestrial craft? In some cases, perhaps. Are we in the
presence of craft of non-terrestrial origin? This hypothesis
cannot be ruled out.
If it were to prove correct, it would be
loaded with consequences for Defense.
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Glossary
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