J. Allen Hynek began as an Air Force consultant and skeptic, then built the “close encounter” scale, founded CUFOS, and became a central bridge between academia and UFO research. Encyclopedia BritannicaWikipedia
Quick Take
- Northwestern astronomer and Air Force consultant on Projects Sign, Grudge, and Blue Book
- Created the “close encounter” classification in The UFO Experience (1972)
- Founded the Center for UFO Studies in 1973 to keep scientific analysis going after Blue Book
- His 1966 “swamp gas” remark in Michigan became a flashpoint in public debate
- Served as advisor on Close Encounters of the Third Kind and made a brief cameo
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