Classifying the unclassifiable

 

Dr J Allen Hynek, who founded the Centre for UFO Studies in 1973, devised ufology’s version of the "Richter scale" after sifting through thousands of reported sightings

Nocturnal light

Any light or lights in the nights sky that cannot be explained in terms of aircraft lights astronomical bodies, meteors or any other normal means

Daylight disc

An object seen at a distance in the daytime sky, such "discs" can include cigars, eggs, ovals, and so on

Radar-visual

An unidentified object tracked on radar simultaneously seen the same place by a human eyeball

 

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS

 

The first kind (CEI)

Any unidentified flying object reported within 500 feet of a witness

The second kind (CEII)

A UFO that leaves markings on the ground, causes burns or paralysis, frightens animals, interferes with engines or TV or radio receptions

The third kind (CEIII)

A CE that includes a sighting of the craft’s occupants, as in the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Hynek was satisfied with these three types of close encounters, and wary of any others. Nevertheless, two less "official" Close Encounters are sometimes added…

The fourth kind (CEIV)

A human is abducted, often for intrusive tests. Some psychologists think "abductees" have misinterpreted sleep paralysis

The fifth kind (CEV)

Communication occurs between a human and an alien, as in the film ET, in which a cuddly extra-terrestrial learns to speak