Given what we know about the vast expanses of space and the energy and time needed to traverse even relatively near-by star systems, the likelihood of extra terrestrials popping down to earth is pretty slim.
But that hasn’t stopped all manner of blurry shots of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) crop up over the decades. Some may have been fakes, but there are others that have yet to be proven to be real or otherwise.
And while reports of such photographs are enough to raise an eyebrow on even the most diehard sci-fi fan, it turns out the CIA has actually issued guidelines during the 20th century directing people on the best way to photograph UFOs.
The now declassified document titled ‘Guidance to UFO Photographs’ surfaced last year but is now attracting more attention after the CIA’s Twitter account drew attention to it.
“We dug up some long lost tips on how to take photographs of UFOs,” the CIA tweeted, raising questions as to whether the CIA actually investigated UFOs and reports of alien visitors.
Turns out it actually did investigate the sightings, though we doubt they escalated in quite the same way as the investigations of the X-Files FBI agents Mulder and Scully FBI.
Trying to Photograph a UFO?https://t.co/h2O1TjlEWA pic.twitter.com/f2tqFy0e8u
— CIA (@CIA) December 28, 2017
Presumably to help aid future CIA investigations, the guidelines offered all manner of tips to ensure that any UFO images can be proven to be real, such as encouraging extra-terrestrial hunters to keep negatives and try and shoot the object of their attention at different angles, as well as keep a record of the photos such as when and where they were taken.
It’s worth noting that during the latter part of the 20th century the Cold War was in full effect and there was a lot of paranoia between the US and then Soviet Union over the spying, aeronautical and weapons testing both nations may have been carrying out.
So the investigations by the CIA could have been more a probe into whether UFO photos had snapped a new Russian spy plane rather than a space ship from beyond our solar system. Either way, the truth is out there.
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Have you ever seen a UFO? If so, let us know on Facebook or tweet @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
