Knowledge Tree
Robertson panel
Facts (13)
Sources
How the Pentagon Started Taking U.F.O.s Seriously | The New Yorker newyorker.com Apr 30, 2021 13 facts
accountJ. Allen Hynek founded an independent organization to continue UFO research after the Robertson panel's influence, but he died in 1986 at age seventy-five without significantly altering public opinion.
procedureThe Robertson panel recommended that national security agencies strip U.F.O.s of their special status and aura of mystery, infiltrate and monitor civilian U.F.O. groups, and enlist the media to debunk U.F.O. reports.
accountJ. Allen Hynek, an Ohio State astronomer and former member of the Robertson panel, served as the only in-house scientist for Project Blue Book.
claimThe Robertson panel concluded that the U.S. was being inundated with too many U.F.O. reports, which posed a national security risk because genuine incursions could be lost in the volume of reports.
quoteThe Robertson panel's mission resulted in the end of the 'golden age' of official investigations, congressional hearings, press conferences, independent scientific study, powerful citizen groups, best-selling books, and magazine cover stories.
procedureThe Robertson panel recommended that national security agencies strip U.F.O.s of their special status and aura of mystery, infiltrate and monitor civilian U.F.O. groups, and enlist the media in debunking efforts.
claimThe Robertson panel succeeded in ending the 'golden age' of official U.F.O. investigations, which included congressional hearings, independent scientific studies, and significant media coverage.
accountJ. Allen Hynek, an Ohio State astronomer and former member of the Robertson panel, served as the only continuous in-house scientist for Project Blue Book.
claimThe Robertson panel concluded that the U.S. government was being inundated with too many U.F.O. reports, which posed a national security risk because genuine incursions (such as Soviet spy planes) could be lost in the volume of reports.
procedureThe Robertson panel recommended that national security agencies strip U.F.O.s of their special status and aura of mystery, infiltrate and monitor civilian U.F.O. groups, and enlist the media in debunking efforts.
claimThe Robertson panel determined that the U.S. was being inundated with too many U.F.O. reports, which posed a national security risk because genuine incursions could be lost in a mass of false reports, potentially allowing Soviet spy planes to operate with impunity.
claimThe Robertson panel succeeded in ending the 'golden age' of official UFO investigations, congressional hearings, and independent scientific study.
claimJ. Allen Hynek, an Ohio State astronomer and former member of the Robertson panel, served as the only in-house scientist for Project Blue Book.