Josef Allen Hynek

Josef Allen Hynek (1910 - 1986) was a astronomer and American ufologist. He is famous to have been to advise scientist of the Projet Blue Book between 1951 and 1969.

Life and career

Josef Hynek was born on May 1st 1910 with Chicago, in the state of the Michigan, with the the United States. His/her parents were originating in Austria-Hungary, of current the Czech Republic. In 1931, it receives its Bachelor off Science, with the Université of Chicago. In 1935, it receives its Ph.D in Astrophysique with the Observatoire Yerkes. The following year, it joined the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the University of State of the Ohio. He becomes specialist in the stellar evolution as well as binary stars.

During the Second world war, it integrates the Johns Hopkins Applied Science Laboratory , where it work on the radars. After the war, it returns to the University of Ohio, where he becomes Professor in 1950. It then leaves to work in the first projects of American satellites, in 1956. In 1960, it becomes titular of a pulpit of astronomy to the Université Northwestern. In 1977, it is consulting technique of Steven Spielberg for its film Rencontres of the third type .

Projects Sign, Grudge and Blue Book

In answer to the very many observations of UFO at the end of the years 1940, the US Air Force creates in 1948 the Projet Sign, to study these cases, which becomes Projet Grudge the following year and finally Projet Blue Book in 1951. As of the Sign project, Hynek becomes consulting scientist of the Air Force, charged to uncover the cases of confusion with known astronomical objects, like meteors, for example.

At the beginning, Hynek was skeptic as for the real existence of the UFO. He thought that all these appearances could be explained by confusions with natural hoaxes and phenomena or with planes. In 1948, it even declared that " this subject whole seems ridiculous " and that it is about a phenomenon of mode which will die out soon.

However, after having examined hundreds of testimonys, of which much emanated from credible witnesses (military astronomers, fighter pilots, police officers, offiers, etc), its belief was exhausted and it started to doubt and revise its opinion. He declared: " As a scientist, I must be conscious of the past; too much often, of the subjects of great scientific importance was neglected because the new phenomenon left the scientific standard of the temps" .

In interview given in 1985, when one asked him what had made him change opinion, he answered: " Two things, in fact. The first was the completely closed attitude of the Air Force. They did not give to the UFOs a chance to exist, even if they flew above a street in full day. All must have an explanation. I started to irritate me, even if, in the beginning, I felt the same thing that they, I knew now that they were not on the right track. You cannot suppose that a thing does not exist if you do not have a proof. Secondly, the quality of the witnesses started to disturb me. Some cases, for example, were reported by military pilots, and I knew that they had been well involved, it is thus there that for the first time, I thought that perhaps, there was something behind all cela."

Another change in the opinion of Hynek came after he questioned his colleagues astronomers (of which Clyde Tombaugh, the discoverer of Pluton). On 44 astronomers, 5 of between-them (i.e. a little more than 11%) had already seen air phenomena which they had not been able to explain with conventional science. The majority had not announced anything by fear of ridiculous and effects on their career. Hynek also noted that this proportion of 11% of not-identified phenomena was more important than in the studies relating to the observations made by the general population. It is thus that, contrary to the belief maintained by the skeptics, the astronomers do not see not less, but more unexplainable UFO. Moreover, the astronomers are normally more informed than the general public on the celestial observation, therefore their observations are all the more credible. Hynek, in addition, was scandalized by the arrogant and pretentious attitude of certain scientists skeptics with regard to the UFOs and of the witnesses.

Edward J. Ruppelt, the first chief of Blue Book, declared in connection with Hynek: " Dr. Hynek was one of the most impressive scientists whom I met while working on the UFO project, and I met a good number of it. It prevented making two things that some of between-them made: you to give the answer before knowing the question; or immediately to start to expose its achievements in the field of the science"

Although, according to Hynek, Ruppelt was a chief who directed the project Blue Book in the right direction, it will direct Blue Book only 2 years, between 1951 and 1953. After the departure of Ruppelt, Hynek foot-note which the quality of Blue Book decreased, and it started to publicly express its dissensions with the US Air Force.

In March 1966, 40 people, including 12 police officers, had seen a group of UFO being posed in marshes close to Ann Arbor, in the Michigan. Hynek could not find any explication ; however, the officers of Blue Book ordered to him to explain to the press which the witnesses had seen an gas emission of the marshes.

In 1969, it is congédié at the end of the Projet Blue Book, and will be devoted to the study of the UFO via associations. It was also as of the years 1960 the mentor and friend of the French ufologist Jacques Vallée. They will study the phenomena UFO together and will coécriront several books in the years 1960 and 1970. Moreover, it was him which will sensitize in 1969 another French scientist with the phenomenon UFO: Claude Poher, future founder and director of GEPAN.

In addition, He invented a method of classification of the cases of UFOs, the classification of Hynek.

Ufologic associations

Hynek was the founder in the years 1960 of the Invisible Collège, an abstract network of scientists interested by a rigorous study of the phenomenon UFO, of which formed part inter alia Jacques Vallée, Claude Poher or Yves Rocard.

In 1973, starting from the Invisible College, it created the Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS).

Opinion on the nature of the UFO

In 1973, Hynek expressed its doubts as for the possibility that the UFO is machines come from another world (extraterrestrial Hypothèse). In 1976, it declared: " There are too many things against. It seems ridiculous which an unspecified intelligence comes from so large distances to make reported things as stupid as to stop cars and to make fear with people. And there is well, well too many signalements"

It leant rather for an immaterial assumption as for the nature of the unexplainable UFO, like Jacques Vallée. In 1978, it pled with UNO for a better study of the phenomenon UFO.

Hynek dies on April 27th 1986, of a brain tumor, to the Hospital Memorial of Scottsdale, in Arizona

See too

Publications

Unusual Aerial Phenomena , Newspaper off the Optical Society off America, April 1953
THE UFO EXPERIMENT: With scientific enquiry (1972)
THE EDGE OFF REALITY: With progress reports one the unidentified flying objects , coécrit with Jacques Vallée (1975)
THE HYNEK UFO CARRYFORWARD (1977)
NIGHT SITS - THE HUDSON VALLEY UFO SIGHTINGS , coécrit with Philip Imbrogno and Bob Pratt (1987)

External bonds

Article of rr0.org
Site of the CUFOS
Interview of Hynek

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