What is ufology and can you trust it

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

The peak of fame came in the 70s, but even now many continue to search for flying saucers.

What is ufology

This is the general name for pseudoscientific teachings that search for and study unidentified flying objects, or UFOs. The name appeared from the English version of this abbreviation (UFO). UFOs refer to UFOs all celestial phenomena similar to aircraft, the origin of which these specialists cannot explain.

The era of mass enthusiasm for flying saucers began immediately after World War II due to the development of aviation and rocketry, as well as the first successes in space exploration.

Perhaps one of the most important cases of alleged contact with flying saucers for ufology occurred in 1947 with businessman Kenneth Arnold. During the flight on his plane, the American saw nine flat disks shining in the sun, which were moving at great speed.

After that, reports of UFO contacts filled newspapers, radio stations and telephone lines of military, information and emergency services. Then there were people specializing in the study of such information.

Ufologists still exist today. Basically, they collect and analyze UFO eyewitness accounts. Moreover, such people can find traces of an extraterrestrial presence anywhere. For example, in acoustic signals from the depths of the sea - the so-called Quakers.

What makes ufology so popular

There are several main reasons.

In the past, the possibility of the existence of aliens was seriously studied by the military

Kenneth Arnold's stories sparked a keen interest in the US military, who saw UFOs as a threat to national security. Since 1948, the United States Air Force and the CIA have conducted several checks on reports of unidentified flying objects. The most famous of these projects, the Blue Book, ran until 1969. A total of 12,618 certificates were collected.

Similar research programs existed not only in the United States, but also in France, Canada, Great Britain, the USSR, Sweden and other countries. But none of the projects has identified real cases of alien appearance. Nevertheless, they were conducted in an atmosphere of the strictest secrecy, in principle characteristic of the Cold War era. This only strengthened the belief in the existence of UFOs and gave rise to rumors that the authorities were hiding the fact of aliens visiting Earth.

Alien stories attract with their mystery

Bright points in the sky, either appearing and disappearing, or moving, seemingly contrary to the laws of physics. Strange flying vehicles, not like terrestrial ones. Sinister aliens who kidnap people for experiments or breeding alien life forms. Stories like these make UFOlogy interesting even for skeptics.

This is actively used by unscrupulous journalists who are chasing sensations and easy popularity. The media circulate stories about how a UFO landed in a city park, established contact with a new contactee, or abducted another victim.

Not all phenomena mistaken for UFOs have been scientifically explained

Some events scientists cannot convincingly interpret. To understand the real nature of a phenomenon, experts often need data that eyewitnesses, as a rule, cannot provide. For example, the exact time and place of observation, the direction relative to the horizon and celestial bodies, the state of the atmosphere, the visibility of the stars and the Moon, the angular size of the object.

As a result, there were always people who considered science incapable of studying UFOs, and the answers of scientists were unsatisfactory. Therefore, the enthusiasts decided to undertake the study of alien visits to Earth themselves and even began to create their own organizations. For example, the United States has established the National Committee for Atmospheric Research, the Atmospheric Research Organization and the UFO Research Center.

Ufology can disguise itself as real science

Without understanding, ufologists consider as their supporters everyone who at least somehow commented on the statements about UFOs. For example, I checked them. This happened with the American astronomer Donald Menzel, who wrote a critical book on ufology. So it turns out that the professors of astronomy are almost the most eminent ufologists. Of course, experts most often deny this status.

To give weight to their research, ufologists often talk not about UFOs, but use other terms: anomalous atmospheric phenomenon (AAP), anomalous aerospace object (AAO), unidentified aerospace phenomenon (NAA).

Why science is skeptical about ufology

Scientists consider UFOlogy to be a pseudoscience.

UFO arguments are based on assumptions

Ufology deviates from traditionally accepted research practice and, in addition to scientific provisions, includes unscientific ones. At the same time, in its belief (namely, belief) in the existence of extraterrestrial beings, this industry is rather similar to religion.

For example, some ufologists' arguments are based on assumptions that cannot be verified. It is difficult even to find common sense in them. For example, that the aliens supposedly made the number of days in the earth year equal to 365 (10² + 11² + 12²) so that people would think about it and become human. Or telepathically forced ufologists to get together.

Eyewitness testimony cannot be trusted

Citing eyewitness accounts as the main evidence, ufologists are extremely frivolous in studying atmospheric phenomena. In fact, it is very difficult to determine their origin with the naked eye due to the physiological characteristics of vision. The fact is that it is not immune to optical illusions. For example, a distance of 400-600 kilometers can be perceived as 100-150 meters. It also happens that a small object (butterfly, bird or poplar fluff) may seem like a huge spaceship.

The same goes for "alien noise" emanating from the depths of the sea. If desired, the sounds of the sea or ocean can be interpreted as you like.

Also, people who report seeing or having contact with aliens are often mentally unstable. Ufologists in response to this brush aside: they say, mental health disorders were just caused by contact with aliens. But extraterrestrial psychiatrists do not issue certificates, and therefore it is impossible to really establish the sequence of events.

There is also a place for absolute fraud. For example, the video, which allegedly captured the autopsy of an alien that crashed in 1947 in the United States, turned out to be a fake. Experts found more than 20 falsifications in the video, and the tape itself was filmed much later than these events.

The phenomena attributed to UFOs can be explained in a simpler manner

Back in the 1950s, the CIA created a commission of experts to verify UFO reports. Experts have come to the conclusion that 90% of the observed phenomena are of an astronomical or meteorological nature. The Moon, bright planets (especially Venus), clouds, auroras, birds, airplanes, balloons, satellites, rockets, meteors, searchlights and other objects were most often mistaken for flying saucers.

In 1977, many residents of Petrozavodsk saw a fiery "jellyfish" flying over the city. It turned out to be the Kosmos-955 rocket launched from the Plesetsk cosmodrome.

So, Venus appears in both the evening and daytime skies and even shines through the clouds. In the latter case, it looks especially impressive. The same Arnold could take secluded cumulus clouds for a UFO. They are symmetrical in shape and often run into chains. And even a small satellite can sparkle very brightly in the sky by reflecting light from a solar panel.

Lenticular cloud. Photo: Mgclape / Wikimedia Commons

Optical illusion - the ship is hovering over the horizon. Photo: Timpaananen / Wikimedia Commons

Other commissions that met later came to similar conclusions: there are no convincing traces of extraterrestrial invasions of Earth. Finally, in 1969, researchers categorically rejected the unearthly nature of flying saucers and recommended an end to the study of this issue.

Descriptions of ufologists are too amateurish

For example, classic flying saucers always have a row of illuminated windows in a circle for observing unsuspecting earthlings. It's just not clear why the aliens need them. Due to such windows, the structural strength and tightness of the alien ship deteriorates, and they are simply not needed on long interstellar travels. It is easier to install small video cameras.

Also, other eyewitnesses tell about some constellation maps hanging on the walls of UFO captains. It is strange that such advanced civilizations use such primitive means of navigation for complex interstellar flights. After all, even the majority of earthlings at any time can see the way home through a smartphone.