SCIENTIFIC PANEL SAYS UFO EVIDENCE DESERVES STUDY

On June 29, 1998, the Society for Scientific Exploration (SSE), headquartered
at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, announced publication of a
lengthy report which declares that some UFO evidence is worthy of scientific
study. The announcement was quickly picked up by numerous news services,
including the Associated Press, Reuters and CNN, and stories about the report
have been found in major newspapers across the United States. The full text of
the report, running some 50 pages, appears in the current issue of the Journal
of Scientific Exploration and is also posted on the web at
http://www.jse.com/ufo_reports/Sturrock/toc.html

Some commentators noted that the report, while welcome, was perhaps stating
the obvious. The question remains whether any of the called-for scientific
research will occur as a result.

Among the more interesting press responses forwarded to CNI News was an
editorial in the newspaper Florida Today, dated June 30. Excerpts follow:

"In a report published Monday, Stanford University physicist [Peter Sturrock]
and several distinguished colleagues concluded that UFO sightings warrant
further serious investigation.

"Well, duh.

"In the wake of last year's mega-sighting near Phoenix, when an aircraft-
carrier-sized UFO scared the bejeesus out of thousands of sober and upstanding
Arizonans, you would think that would be a no-brainer...

"Now the National Science Foundation needs to follow up with a nice, fat grant
program for academics not averse to chasing swamp gas at midnight.

"To paraphrase Spooky Mulder, the data is out there..."

The complete text of the press release issued by the Society for Scientific
Exploration on June 29 reads as follows:

In the first independent review of UFO phenomena since 1970, a panel of
scientists has concluded that some sightings are accompanied by physical
evidence that deserves scientific study. But the panel was not convinced that
any of this evidence points to a violation of known natural laws or the
involvement of an extraterrestrial intelligence.

The review was organized and directed by Peter Sturrock, professor of applied
physics at Stanford University, and supported administratively by the Society
for Scientific Exploration, which provides a forum for research into
unexplained phenomena. The international review panel of nine physical
scientists responded to presentations by eight investigators of UFO reports,
who were asked to present their strongest data. Von R. Eshleman, professor
emeritus of electrical engineering at Stanford, co-chaired the panel.

Although UFO reports date back 50 years, the information gathered does not
prove that either unknown physical processes or alien technologies are
implicated. But it does include a sufficient number of intriguing and
inexplicable observations, the panel concluded. "It may be valuable to
carefully evaluate UFO reports to extract information about unusual phenomena
currently unknown to science," [the report said]. To be credible to the
scientific community, "such evaluations must take place with a spirit of
objectivity and a willingness to evaluate rival hypotheses" that has so far
been lacking, it added.

This conclusion differs from that reached by Dr. Edward U. Condon, director of
the Colorado Project, in his 1968 UFO report. He concluded that "further
extensive study of UFOs probably cannot be justified in the expectation that
science will be advanced thereby." It is very similar, however, to the
conclusion reached by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics'
Kuettner Report issued two years later, which advocated "a continuing,
moderate-level [research] effort with emphasis on improved data collection by
objective means and on high-quality scientific analysis."

In the current study, the scientific panel focused on incidents involving some
form of physical evidence, including photographic evidence, radar evidence,
vehicle interference, interference with aircraft equipment, apparent
gravitational or inertial effects, ground traces, injuries to vegetation,
physiological effects on witnesses, and debris. Of particular concern are
reports that UFO encounters may be hazardous to people's health. Some
witnesses have reportedly suffered radiation-type injuries. These reports led
the panel to draw the attention of the medical community to the possible
health risks involved.

The scientists found that some of the reported incidents may have been caused
by rare natural phenomena, such as electrical activity high above
thunderstorms or radar ducting (the trapping and conducting of radar waves by
atmospheric channels). However, the panel found that some of the phenomena
related to UFOs are not easy to explain in this fashion.

Further analysis of the evidence presented to the panel is unlikely to shed
added light on the causes underlying the reports, the scientists said. Most
current UFO investigations lack the level of rigor required by the scientific
community, despite the initiative and dedication of the investigators
involved. But new data, scientifically acquired and analyzed, could yield
useful information and advance our understanding of the UFO problem, the panel
said.

The reviewers also made the following observations:

-- The UFO problem is not a simple one, and it is unlikely that there is any
simple, universal answer.

-- Whenever there are unexplained observations, there is the possibility that
scientists will learn something new by studying them.

-- Studies should concentrate on cases that include as much independent
physical evidence as possible.

-- Continuing contact between the UFO community and physical scientists could
be productive.

-- Institutional support for research in this area is desirable.

The review panel consisted of Von Eshleman; Thomas Holzer, High Altitude
Observatory in Boulder, Colorado; Randy Jokipii, professor of planetary
science, University of Arizona-Tucson; Francois Louange, managing director of
Fleximage, Paris, France; H.J. Melosh, professor of planetary science,
University of Arizona-Tucson; James J. Papike, professor of earth and
planetary sciences, University of New Mexico-Albuquerque; Guenther Reitz,
German Aerospace Center, Institute for Aerospace Medicine, Cologne, Germany;
Charles Tolbert, professor of astronomy, University of Virginia; and Bernard
Veyret, Bioelectromagnetics Laboratory, University of Bordeaux, France.
Eshleman and Holzer served as co-chairs of the panel.

The UFO investigators who presented evidence were Richard Haines, Los Altos,
California; Illobrand von Ludwiger, Germany; Mark Rodeghier, Center for UFO
Studies, Chicago; John Schuessler, Houston; Erling Strand, Ostfold College,
Skjeberg, Norway; Michael Swords, professor of natural science, Western
Michigan University, Kalamazoo; Jacques Vallee, San Francisco; and Jean-
Jacques Velasco, CNES, Toulouse, France.

The study was initiated by Laurance S. Rockefeller and supported financially
by the LSR Fund.