FOIA: Report on UFO research by USSR

CIA_UFO_Document_1968.pdf
Unidentified flying object
Review of a Russian magazine article on USSR knowledge of UFOs
Document date: 1968-00-00
Department: CIA
Author: Zigel, F
Document type: Report
pages: 2


Archivist's Notes: Mostly clearly readable. Translation of russian magazine article and summary of contents. Good information on Russia's secret UFO program and personnel.

reply to post by AboveTopSecret.com


-Authored by F. Zigel, Doctor of technical sciences - 1968

- Makes note that the general impression that flying saucers are fantasies is beginning to change.

-Makes reference to an upcoming book on the subject titled "Populated Outer Space".

-In May 1967, a sponsoring group of scientists met to form an unofficial body whose purpose would be to conduct preliminary scientific investigation of UFOs. The name of this body is the UFO Section of the All-Union Cosmonautics Committee and it is headquartered at the Central House of Aviation and Cosmonautics in Moscow. Air Force Major General Porfiri Stolyarov elected chairman.

-Hypothesis that UFOs originate in other worlds, that they are flying craft from planets other than Earth, "merists the most serious examanation"

-Observations show that UFOs behave "sensibly". Given as examples are: Their group formation flight maintaining a pattern, they are most often spotted over airfields, atomic stations and other new engineering installations and that they always maneuver to avoid direct contact with other aircraft.

-The impression is that UFOs are investigating and recounoitering.

-Very interesting comment is made. "Curiously enough, the number of UFO observations increases as Mars approaches the Earth. Is this pure coincidence?"

-Makes note that UFO sightings are not merely recent happenings. Makes note of a report of a "large saucer" in 1882 and a "procession of bolides" in 1913.

-Makes reference to Tunguska Incident (or the "Tungusky meteorite"). States that, in recent years, Soviet scientists have establish that "Tungusky explosion" had every parameter of an atmospheric nuclear blast. Sites a report published by the Joint Institute of Nuclear Research and authored by Vladimir Nekhedov which concludes that the Tunguska blast left considerable residual radioactivity.

-Notes that the Tunguska body described in the atmosphere a tremendous arc of about 375 miles and carried out a maneuver.

-"All these new results warrant the conclusion that the Tungusky body seems to have been an artificial flying craft from some other planet."

-At time of publishing, above had not yet been finally confirmed.

-Documents raises questions as to what the purpose may be of other creatures from space monitoring us. Also asks why they seem to be so "studiously avoiding any direct contact." Ponders if they could be so highly advanced as to only be looking down on us as we would ants.

-Concludes that the most important thing is to discard any preconceived notions about UFOs and to organize, on a global scale, a calm, sensation-free and strictly scientific study on the strange phenomenon."It goes without saying that international cooperation is vital.


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This is the most interesting of the documents that I have read thusfar.



Jasn

I agree SimiusDei, this document is a diamond in the rough. Just the premise of the article is that the UFO phenomenon is real and just now being taken seriously. The article in Soviet Life would be the equivalent to the Smith Memo here in the US.

Another amazing aspect is that this has got to be the earliest account that the Tunguska explosion was from a UFO. Even to this day, no meteor or comet fragments have been found to prove the explosion was a natural occurrence.

This is a must read.

Related ATS Discussion:
Crater From 1908 Russian Space Impact Found, Team Says -- Tunguska Explained?
Tunguska

Related Link:
Wikipedia article: Tunguska Event

[edit on 11/18/2007 by Hal9000]

Soviet Life seems to have been a magazine published in the United States by the Soviet authorities as part of a cultural exchange agreement established in October 1956 by the two governments. In exchange the US was allowed to publish a similar magazine in the former USSR, athough circulation was limited to approx. 30,000 copies in each country.

Soviet Life

It's very unlikely that this article was published by Soviet Life without the agreement, if not encouragement, of the Soviet authorities. Their message seems to be that the UFO phenomenon is not limited to the USA, that the Soviets "don't blame the USA" & that the Soviets have launched their own investigations into UFO's too.

Some of the document has been redacted under (b)(3). Wonder what (b)(3) refers to and why the document has been censored ?

Also the document name implies it was produced by the CIA. But I can't see any reference to the CIA in the document itself. How do we know it's a CIA document ?

Greetings.
You can go here:
CIA FOIA Search Page
and enter: Zigel, F as the search term. fourth document under Zigel, F is this very same document.

Enjoy the Confirmation.

Note: After doing some searching the author is:
DR. FELIX Y. ZIGEL
Professor of Mathematics and Astronomy
Moscow Aviation Institute
"Unidentified Flying Objects,"
Soviet Life, February 1968


[edit on 20-11-2007 by WhiteWash]

[edit on 20-11-2007 by WhiteWash]