Those with an interest in determining what has been learned by the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
about UFOs will in most cases be presented with the following press
release:
No branch of the United
States Government is currently involved with or responsible for
investigations into the possibility of advanced alien civilizations
on other planets or for investigating Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO's).
The US Air Force (USAF) and the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA) have had intermittent,
independent investigations of the possibility of alien life on other
planets; however, none of these has produced factual evidence that
life exists on other planets, nor that UFO's are related to aliens.
From 1947 to 1969, the Air Force investigated UFO's; then in 1977,
NASA was asked to examine the possibility of resuming
UFO investigations. After studying all of the facts available, it
was determined that nothing would be gained by further
investigation, since there was an absence of tangible evidence.
In October 1992, NASA
was directed by Congress to begin a detailed search for artificial
radio signals from other civilizations under the NASA
Towards Other Planetary Systems (TOPS) / High
Resolution Microwave Survey (HRMS) program (also
known as the
Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence project).
Congress directed NASA to end this project in October
1993, citing pressures on the US Federal budget. The HRMS
did not detect any confirmed signal before it was stopped. However,
similar work continued through efforts of private groups and through
academic institutions. The Search for Extraterrestrial
Intelligence Institute (SETI Institute) in
Mountain View, CA, effectively replaced the Government project,
borrowing the signal processing system from NASA. The
SETI
Institute is a nonprofit corporation conducting research in a number
of fields including all science and technology aspects of astronomy
and planetary sciences, chemical evolution, the origin of life,
biological evolution, and cultural evolution.
During several space missions, NASA astronauts have
reported phenomena not immediately explainable; however, in every
instance
NASA determined that the observations could not be termed
"abnormal" in the space environment.
The 1947 to 1969 USAF
investigations studied UFO's under Project Blue Book.
The project, headquartered at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio,
was terminated December 17, 1969. Of the total of 12,618 sightings
reported to Project Blue Book, 701 remain "unidentified."
The decision to discontinue UFO investigations was based
on an evaluation of a report prepared by the University of Colorado
entitled, "Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects;" a
review of the University of Colorado's report by the National
Academy of Sciences; previous UFO studies; and Air Force experience
investigating UFO reports during the 1940's, '50's and '60's. As a
result of experience, investigations, and studies since 1948, the
conclusions of
Project Blue Book were:
(1) no UFO
reported, investigated, and evaluated by the Air Force was ever a
threat to our national security;
(2) there was no
evidence submitted to, or discovered by, the Air Force that
sightings categorized as "unidentified" represented technological
developments or principles beyond the range of modern scientific
knowledge; and
(3) there was no
evidence indicating that sightings categorized as "unidentified"
were extraterrestrial vehicles.
With the termination of
Project Blue Book, the USAF regulation
establishing and controlling the program for investigating and
analyzing UFO's was rescinded. Documentation regarding the former
Project Blue Book investigation was permanently transferred to the
Modern Military Branch, National Archives and Records Service, in
Washington, DC 20408, and is available for public review and
analysis.
Since the termination of Project Blue Book, nothing has
occurred that would support a resumption of UFO
investigations
by the U.S. government. Since neither NASA nor
the
Air Force is engaged in day-to-day UFO research,
neither one reviews UFO-related articles intended for publication,
evaluates UFO-type spacecraft drawings, or accepts accounts of UFO
sightings or applications for employment in the field of aerial
phenomena investigation.
It should be noted that there are very few indications of deep
involvement in the Majestic projects on the part of NASA personnel; therefore, that NASA should
take a stance very much like that of Project Blue Book
is not surprising.
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