Ufology Handbook 080713/UFO Entities

A small proportion of UFO incidents are associated with claimed observations of unearthly "entities". The question of their validity has always been a matter of great controversy within the UFO community. Whatever their actual reality-status, it is helpful to examine these claims from a historical viewpoint, as prevailing attitudes have always markedly influenced how they are perceived both by ufology and the general public.

The pre-Contactee Era (1947 to 1951):

The early UFO movement did not exist for most of this period. No-one had no clear conception of what piloted the UFOs. Their unearthly high-g manoeuvres suggested to early students of the phenomenon either robotic craft, or beings totally beyond human conception. The comic-book figure of the "little green man" had already existed for some time, inspired by science fiction "pulp" magazines and speculation (dating from the 1890's) concerning the possibility of life on Mars.

The Contactee Era (1951-1960):

In 1953, via the book "Flying Saucers Have Landed", the world first learned of the claims of George Adamski. The second section of this work (the first portion containing a review of historical "UFO" reports authored by Desmond Leslie) gave an account of an alledged meeting in the Californian desert between Adamski and a tall, blond-haired man from Venus during November 1951. As a result his fame spread throughout the world. Throughout the 1950's other individuals claimed meetings with entities from various planets and satellites of our solar system ( Mars, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, the Moon, and - in one claim - a world called Charion, permanently hidden from the earth by our Sun). In almost every instance the entities resembled attractive human beings, hailing from utopian civilizations who had chosen the contactees to be their earthly representatives. The messages supposedly relayed by these aliens were mainly concerned with improving the spiritual development of mankind. The contactees were very much the Ufological "stars" of the 1950's. Numerous books were published detailing their experiences and lecture tours and conventions were held to promote their "message" to whoever would listen.

The UFO study movement (which was just being to coalesce at this time) recoiled in horror at such claims. They largely dismissed the contactees as charlatans who gave the subject a poor, unscientific image in the minds of the general public. Mainly as a result of the contactees, many leading UFO societies (such as NICAP) showed considerable scepticism towards all reports of UFO entities, and thus paid little attention to them.

The CE III Era (1955 to 1982):

However, as the contactee era began to slowly fade during the early 1960's some groups began to review their attitude towards entity reports. However this came too late for many early entity reports, which as a result of ufology's prevalent scepticism were often poorly documented (if at all). However, a few managed to survive this atmosphere of negativism. Some early cases (such as Kelly Hopkinsville (1955) and Flatwoods (1952)) tended to refer to "monstrous" beings, others to "little men" clad in "diving suits". This in itself was a hindrance to their serious treatment (having echoes of the 1950's B-movie "horror-aliens" and the humorous "little green man" of the "funny-pages"). In October 1957 one of the first recorded "abduction" events purportedly occurred in Brazil, involving the supposed capture of Antonio Villas Boas by several entities for breeding purposes.

Villas Boas had a clear recollection of all what supposedly befell him. However, the experience of Betty & Barney Hill in New Hampshire, USA in September 1961 first introduced the concept of missing time; both witnesses being unable to recall two hours of their lives following a UFO encounter. Attempts to determine what occurred during this period resulted in the first use of regression hypnosis in ufology. The Hill's hypnosis-sessions brought forth a tale of enforced boarding of a UFO and a medical examination by telepathic, large-eyed grey-skinned beings; elements which were to appear in numerous other incidents in the future. By the 1970's entity reports had become a largely accepted part of the UFO phenomenon, even taken seriously by figures such as Dr. J. Allan Hynek (who defined them in his famous classification system as "Close Encounters of the third Kind", or CE III's).

However, the majority of CE III's were consciously-recalled events, often claimed fleeting observations of evasive entities with a (very) wide variety of physical appearances. By the late 1960' the use of hypnotic regression in suspected instances of "missing time" was becoming almost routine. In 1976, New York-based sculptor Budd Hopkins became actively involved in ufology, a subject he was going to strongly influence during the next decade.

The "Abduction" Era (1982 and beyond):

As previously stated, pre-1980's CE IIIs were mainly fully consciously-recalled events, not requiring the use of hypnosis. However, this particular type of entity experience began to decline during the early 1980's and beyond. By the mid-1970's the term "Abduction" (covering instances of missing time and later hypnotically-retrieved "memories" of medical examinations by "aliens") had already entered common usage within the UFO community. By the mid-1980's Budd Hopkins had already established himself as a noted authority on abductions. However, the pre-eminence of such experiences began in 1987 with the publication of Communion, a book detailing the entity encounters of the writer Whitley Strieber. This work, the advertising campaign used to promote it (and also a film of Strieber's experiences made several years later) gave widespread public prominence to this aspect of ufology. From the groundswell of interest created by Strieber, the work of Budd Hopkins (and other American abduction researchers) grew in prominence as a result. By the mid-1990's they had become the predominant form of UFO entity encounter.

The typical CE III event:

The stereotypical CE III usually involves a single witness (but occasionally two or more people) who accidentally observe an unusual entity near (or within) a UFO whilst going about their everyday business. These beings are variously described as either simply observing its surroundings, operating "machinery" or taking samples from its environment. It is common for little substantial contact to occur between both parties (but communication may be alleged in some instances). The entities may either move normally or "float" some distance from the ground. CE III events usually occur within areas of low population, often around the evening/early morning hours and have a duration of around 10 minutes.

Of course (as with all stereotypes) the above description of a "typical" CE III event is a gross generalization; each case differing in many ways from this norm.

Common types of UFO Entities:

With a diverse variety of supposed UFO entity forms having been recorded to date, the expression "common type" can (at best) be considered a misnomer. Thus, this section simply aims to give a general overview of the morphology of supposed "UFO occupants".

The "Grey" is a very consistently described entity-class, commonly appearing in both abduction narratives and "conventional" CE III's since (at least) the 1960's. They are so termed due to their purported grey/greyish-blue skin coloration. Grey's are often estimated to be around 1 metre in height, with a "spindly" humanoid stature and very long, thin fingers. Their heads are always described as being large, (usually) bald and pear shaped, with big (often opaque) oval "wraparound" eyes and a slit-like mouth and nose.

Human-like entities have also been reported. Standing around 5ft or more in height, the majority are very man-like in appearance, but a few possess abnormal features; a large bald head, oval eyes, pale skin, antenna, claw-hands, etc. The so-called "Nordic" is a particular class of human-like entity; tall and pale-skinned, with a high forehead, long blond hair and attractive (sometimes androgynous) facial features. They closely resemble the entity purportedly seen by George Adamski in 1951, but sightings of this entity-type are also claimed by many "non-contactees".

Observations of entities standing 7ft or more in height are claimed on rare occasions. These so-called Giants are mostly humanoid in form, but have a tendency towards possessing markedly outlandish body-features (such as glowing, single or trinary eye arrangements, or abnormally proportioned/shaped body-members).

The previous three (general) "classes" of UFO humanoids are reportedly dressed in a wide variety of clothing. Skin-tight "Cover-all", "catsuit" or "jumpsuit" like attire is especially common. Alternatively, entities may be clad in a "diving-outfit", "michelin-man like costume" or "spacesuit". The head may be either be exposed, or enclosed within a "goldfish-bowl" or "motorcyclist"-type "helmet". UFO entities have a marked tendency towards luminosity (often stated to be either "glowing" or illuminated by externally carried lights).

A small proportion of entities (often termed Exotics) cannot be fitted into any of the above-mentioned categories. These include beings resembling mythical creatures (bat-like humanoids, "man-apes", goblins, fairies, dwarves, or trolls) and also the occasional non humanoid, such as those with blob-like, "praying-mantis", oblong, spherical or tubular body- configurations.

The Abduction Experience; an in-depth view:

"Abduction" is the popular (and, among Ufologists highly controversial) definition given to a form of close encounter experience which has almost dominated ufology (and popular conceptions of the subject) in recent times.

The majority of "abduction" claims initially spring from experiences of "missing time", a mysterious "gap" in an individual's recollection of events, covering an interval ranging from 10 minutes up to an hour or more. This may occur in any environment; a bedroom, a car or whilst the participant is outdoors. It may (or may not) be preceded by a consciously-recalled "UFO" sighting or other anomalous event. Shortly afterwards, not previously-noticed scars may be discovered and anomalous nosebleeds may occur. Vivid dreams with a notable UFO content are also experienced (at least portions of which resemble any subsequently "recovered" abduction memories).

Sometimes, instead of an instance of "missing time", a strange (often incompletely recalled) event may be reported (who's recalled duration may not equal the actual amount of time elapsed). Some UFO researchers term this phenomenon Screen memory as (following one or more hypnosis sessions) an abduction narrative is often recalled in place of the previously reported anomalous experience.

In an attempt to discover what happened during an interval of "missing time", some individuals undergo a procedure called regression hypnosis. This involves a qualified hypnotherapist placing the person concerned into state of deep, sleepy relaxation (via the use of repetitive but gentle suggestion). The hope is that this artificially-induced altered state of consciousness will break down any "barriers" hindering remembrance of the time in question.

When the participant is placed under a hypnotic trance, the period of missing time is often "resolved" into an alarming, prolonged encounter with strange non-human (but usually humanoid) entities. This "experience" often begins with the participant being "escorted" into a "UFO" (usually against his or her will). If the person "recalls" initially being in a room (or other enclosed space), both themselves and any accompanying "entities" are often stated to pass, in a ghostly fashion, directly through any intervening windows or walls! Whatever the situation, the participant is often reported to "float" as if weightless, either when being inducted into an airborne UFO or at other times during the "encounter".

Following this period of transition, the participant is then taken to a room, where something akin to a medical examination purportedly takes place. This area is usually stated to be sparsely furnished, containing only those items "used" during the encounter. The participant is placed (sometimes even "secured") onto what is variously described as a "table", a "bed" or a "chair". An examination (often exclusively focused on the head and/or lower abdominal regions) then occurs, utilizing "devices" often compared to a "scanner" or a "probe". During the examination, the entities may allegedly take samples of blood, hair, skin and genetic material; the enactment of these procedures often associated with notable sensations of fear or pain. In some instances, a participant may report that the entities' insert a small "implant" into his or her body (usually up his or her nose).

The extent of communication between a participant and entities during abduction experiences varies considerably. Sometimes the entities are said to ask questions about mankind and life on earth, responding to the witnesses in a surprisingly humanlike way. They are often stated to "talk without speaking", using a form of mental communication comparable to telepathy. In other accounts, the entities are uncommunicative and impassive, treating the participant much like a biologist examining a living animal specimen. An entity may (at some stage during the experience) stare intently at the "abductee" for a prolonged period, allegedly "probing" his or her thoughts via a "telepathic mindscan". The "witness" may also be shown (on a "monitor" or "screen") images of stars, the earth, other alien worlds and other (more cryptic and often gloomy) scenes.

"Abduction" accounts are often very surreal in their content; the entities often make cryptic statements, act in a very outlandish manner, or the recalled memories of the encounter may inexplicably "jump" to other unconnected events. The witness may recall (when regressed) that the entities enacted a procedure to make him or her forget the encounter. The "experience" then ends with the witness being "returned" to his or her initial location (or a short distance elsewhere). In the aftermath, the participant's may develop a more spiritual, "new age" attitude to life, even develop supposed "psychic" abilities. It is also not unknown for "memories" to surface of previous abductions (even of instances during the witnesses' childhood).

It is not unknown for "abduction" claims to involve more than one person (either at the initial stages or, less often, to be uncovered during its investigation). More than several accounts detail the "abductee" being taken before other people....who appear to be "frozen" in time and are thus unable to recall anything happening.

Despite there popularity, abduction claims have been extensively criticized on a number of counts. Despite common belief to the contrary, regression hypnosis is neither an infallible recover of authentic memories nor a "truth serum". An experiment in 1977 conducted by Dr. William McCall and Alvin Lawson created (via the use of mild leading questioning) detailed - but false - "abduction" narratives in various hypnotic regression subjects. The fact that an altered state of consciousness has to be relied upon to "recover" details of many abduction throws their reality open to considerable doubt. Furthermore (due to their very nature) abductions are often very difficult to authenticate; with the "aliens" being able to fabricate false memories, to freeze everyone in time except the abductees and use "implants" which turn out (on examination) to be fairly terrestrial in nature. There are also some noticeable "flaws" with the "technology" attributed to abduction "aliens"; who, although supposedly able to pass through walls, have to physically cut and probe witnesses to acquire biological samples!

Attempts to discover differences between abductees and non-abductees have met with mixed results. It is generally agreed that the majority of abductees are psychologically normal. Possible links with the "fantasy-prone personality syndrome" have so-far proved inconclusive. Some have detected a slight tendency in close encounter witnesses towards creativity and a greater-than-normal level of "traumatic" life-experiences.

A number of conditions and mental effects have been proposed to account for abductions. A condition called Temporal Lobe epilepsy has the potential to explain at least some "borderline" cases. There also appears to be a link with sleep paralysis and Hypnagogic/Hypnopompic illusions (hallucinations occurring on the verge of sleeping and waking). Some experiments have shown that basic neurological sensations can be triggered by exposing a subject's brain to mild electrical stimulation. The extent to which these concepts will explain or some (or all) "abduction" events is currently uncertain, requiring further - and extensive - research.