On June 24th, 1947, a private pilot reported numerous dazzling objects rushing through the sky above Mount Rainier in Washington state. It was the start of the current UFO phenomena, one of the country's most perplexing and persistent mysteries. Within a few weeks, hundreds of sightings of flying saucers were reported to news media. Surprising reports of a UFO crash in Roswell, New Mexico further added to the mystery that July. Since then, UFOs have sparked a slew of incredible claims and speculations. This is a sober and honest history of America's first major saucer craze, based on many sources including previously classified government records. The book cuts through decades of mystique and confusion, beginning with the 1947 UFO wave and ending with the launch of Project Blue Book in 1952. Balanced and comprehensive, this history provides background, social context and other tools for reframing perceptions of a controversial subject.

Examining the nature of UFO "evidence", the authors present a primer for scholars, skeptics, and others uneasy about investigating the field of UFOs. The volume also brings together three bestselling authors--David M. Jacobs, Budd Hopkins, and Pulitzer Prize winner John Mack--widely known for their writings on the controversial "alien abduction" phenomenon.

Did flying saucers visit ancient Egypt? Why has there been a rash of unexplained sightings over the last three decades? What is the reason for the official Washington hush-up? This remarkably comprehensive volume supports the conclusion of Paris Flammonde that, "beyond conjecture, beyond argument, beyond a shadow of a doubt, Unidentified Flying Objects are real." Here are firsthand accounts of sightings and the extraordinary deceits that followed . . . unsolved mysteries and official double-talk . . . indisputable facts and hard evidence that UFO EXIST! "Convincingly shows how military and government agencies have suppressed or distorted testimony in many UFO cases." -- Publishers Weekly