Black Vault compilation, pp. 91-93

•
'lbe Panel be@ii'n it.s review immediately after the Report became
available on November 15, 1968, by an initial reading of the Report
by each member of the Panel during a two-week period. The Panel convened
on December 2 for a discu.:ssion of members' initial use:ssments, for
consideration or the Panel's charge (scope, methodology, and finding:!
in the Report), and for delineation or further steps in its review.
The latter included the study ~f other documents presenting views and
tindinp ~r technical! y trained persons (e.g., the documents c1 ted above ) ,
further eDmination of the Report's SI,ID!II&ry and findinp, and further
directed study of specialized chapters ot the Report by appropriate
a embers or the Panel. !let ens i w discuss 1 on , both by eo rres pon den ce
and by telefbone, occurred during this period. The Panel met asain
.on January 6, 1969, to conclude its deliberaticms and to p-epare its
t1nc1inp, which are presented below.
I. SOOPE
The study by the University ot' Colorado oo•enoed in October 1966
and continued tor about two years. Case stud1 es ot 59 reports of UFOs
are pre:sented in detail, witb 68 platesi of tbese, ten reports predated
the r:rojeot, but were so well documented that they were included. A
chapter is devoted to UFOs in history, one to UFO study programs in
foreign countries, and one to UFOs reported in the 20 years preceding
the study. Ten chapters are devoted to perceptual pt obleass, processes
of perception and reporting, psychologioal aspects or UFO reports, optics,
radar, sonic 'boom t atmospheric electrioi ty and plasma interpretations,
balloons, instrumentation for UFO searehes, and statistical analyses.
( Twenty-tour appendixes add detaile<:t technical background to the study.
Volume 4 concludes w1 th an index o·r 27 pages.)
In our opinion the scope or the study was adequate to its purpose:
a scientific s t udy of UFO phenomena.
II. HETHODOLOOY
As a rule, field trips were made to investigate UFO reports only
if they were less than a year old. The Report states that nearly all
UFO sighting are of short duration, seldom last an hour and usual! y
tor a rew minutes. Thus most investigations consisted of interview
with persons who made reports. Three tealll!l, usually consisting of two
persons each (a physical scientist and a psychologist, were employed
in field 1nvest1pt1ons where telephonic OOIIII'IZlication with UP'O-s1ght1·ng
1nc1i vi duals pve hOpe of gaining added information. The aim wu to
get a team to the site as quickly as possible after a reported sighting.
( It was found that nearly all cases could be classified in such categories
as pranks, hoaxes, naive interpretations, and various types or misinterpretations.
A rew events, which did not rit these categories, are left tmexplained.)
Materials and conditions amenable to laboratory approaches were _
investigated - e.g., alleged UFO parts by chemical analysis, automobile
1jJlit1on failure by simulation studies' and oro ~otography by photogrammetri r
analyses. (0 ( 35 photographic cases i nvestigated, nine are said to
give evidence of probable fabrication, seven are classified as natural
At tachm.e'nt 2, pg 6