STAR GATE PROJECT: AN OVERVIEW

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: STARGATE
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP96-00789R002800180001-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 29
• Document Creation Date: November 4, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 20, 1998
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: April 30, 1993
• Content Type: REPORT

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SECRET
STAR GATE PROJECT: AN OVERVIEW
SHORT TITLE: DTI-S-1056-SL
Date of Publication
30 April 1993
This document was prepared by the
Directorate for Scientific and Technical Intelligence,
Defense Intelligence Agency.
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(U) PREFACE:
(U) This document provides a broad overview of the three
main activity areas, (foreign assessment, external research, in-
house investigations) of the STAR GATE program. It is intended
to provide background for the upcoming briefing on 5 May 1993 to,
the DEPSECDEF.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) Primary focus of the STAR GATE effort is
on anomalous phenomena, to include parapsychological and related
biophysical interactions (e.g., telepathy, remote viewing,
psychokinesis). Historical material and current activity updates
are included, with back-up details in the appendix. This
material supplements the briefing charts and related documents
that are also supplied for background.
(U) A discussion of terms and definitions useful for review
of this area is in Appendix A.
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PAGE
I
PREFACE .....................................
RECENT DIA DIRECTION ........................
i
1
II
BRIEF HISTORY OF PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH ..
2
III
APPLICATION INVESTIGATIONS ..................
10
IV
FOREIGN ASSESSMENTS .........................
14
APPENDIX
A. TERMINOLOGY ................................. A-1
B. SCIENCE PANEL REPORT ........................ B-1
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UNCLASSIFIED
LIST OF FIGURES
No.
TITLE
PAGE
2.
CLOSE LOCATION - REAL TIME BEACONING.....
5
3.
CLOSE-IN SHIELDED VIEWING
6
4.
LONG DISTANCE-RETROCOGNITIVE ............
7
5.
LONG DISTANCE-PRECOGNITIVE ..............
8
6.
RECENT REVIEWS ..........................
9
7.
PROJECTS WORKED (1986-1989) .............
12
8.
OVERALL DATA CORRELATIONS ...............
13
9.
SPECIAL COUNTERNARCOTICS TEST-1990 ......
15
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STAR GATE PROJECT: AN OVERVIEW
I. (U) RECENT DIA DIRECTION
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) In the FY 1991 Defense Authorization Act,
the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) was identified as executive
agent for initiating a new program to investigate
parapsychological/ anomalous phenomena. A funding level of $2
million was authorized for DIA to undertake specific research and
other activities relative to this activity. Objectives of this
authorization were to enable a systematic and scientifically
sound approach to the R&D effort, to permit wider and more
systematic review of potential intelligence applications, and to
assess foreign developments in this area.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) Consequently, DIA developed a
scientifically rigorous research and investigative program.
Basic and applied research projects were initiated with the
objectives of phenomena understanding and improving application
capabilities for potential operational areas. Collection
requirements were levied and foreign data bases were compiled in
order to assess and better understand foreign achievements and
their potential impact on U.S. security interests. Limited
applied research projects were also conducted. This activity was
formally established as a limited dissemination (LIMDIS) project
early-on and given the official project name, STAR GATE.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) A variety of project reports were
subsequently published that documented key STAR GATE activities,
foreign assessments, research plans and protocols, proficiency
testing procedures and other methodological needs. A
Congressionally requested Long-Range Comprehensive Plan was
prepared. This report identified near- and long-term activities
for optimizing research and application investigation in this
phenomenological area.
(S/NF) A plan for external assistance was also developed and
an external contract for basic and applied research in this area
was negotiated with the Systems Applications International
Corporation (SAIC).
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) The FY 1992 Defense Appropriations Act
provided DIA with an additional $2 million in R&D research funds
to further enhance Project STAR GATE research and other
activities. The Act stressed that DIA develop an even balance
with foreign assessment, research, and operational activities.
Foreign assessments should emphasize Russia, China, and other
country efforts, and operational activity should identify
specific users, to include special operational areas.
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(S/NF) The FY 1992 Act--called for an effort to identify
possible foreign weaponization activity in this area. This is a
new requirement that is receiving high priority, and is
approached from the viewpoint of unconventional or non-lethal
weapons technology.
(S/NF) The FY 1992 Act directed DIA to realign 10 civilian
billets so that project staffing could be continued in order to
satisfy all project objectives. It also called for a 2-year
architecture plan that was subsequently prepared.
II. (U) BRIEF HISTORY OF PHENOMENOLOGICAL RESEARCH
(U) In the mid-late 1800's, investigations into anomalous
mental phenomena were initiated by a very limited number of
researches working essentially independent of one another in
various countries. The early investigators were motivated to
examine this area due to evidence suggested by a wide variety of
anecdotal accounts of spontaneous occurrences. Many of these
early investigations focused on case study collection and
analysis; some were aimed at phenomena demonstration under
controlled conditions and were based on the psychological
perspectives of that time-period. Formal research efforts were
initiated by leading physicists, and investigation societies were
established in 1892 (London) and 1896 (New York).
(U) Figure 1 lists the major U.S. research efforts on this
topic and their time-frame of activity. The most well know early
U.S. researcher was Dr. J.B. Rhine at Duke University, Durham,
N.C.; he explored proof-of-principle of extra-sensory perception
(ESP) by use of simple experimental targets (5 symbols) and well-
established statistical methods. His work led to considerable
publicity and to a general acceptance that laboratory experiments
had in fact reasonably demonstrated the existence of "telepathy,
clairvoyance, and psychokinesis". His laboratory eventually
moved to a private foundation (Foundation for Research on the
Nature of Man (FRNM)), in Durham, N.C.
(U) In the 1960's, new U.S. work began in New York, N.Y.,
and San Antonio, TX that examined psychological variables and
psychological states; this new work incorporated a wide variety
of target material in the experimental set-up. Emphasis was on a
"free-response" (not forced choice card guessing) approach that
examined how well a subject could draw concealed pictorial
material. Various psychological conditions (altered states),
such as deep relaxation or sleep, were explored and methodologies
for evaluating results were developed. A different statistical
approach was required, since the target possibilities were no
longer from a small fixed set that could be easily evaluated.
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KEY US RESEARCH EFFORTS
1930-1960
1950-PRESENT
1960-PRESENT
1960-PRESENT
1970-1980
1970-1990
1980-1990
1980-PRESENT
DUKE UNIV, DURHAM, NC
PARAPSYCHOLOGY FOUNDATION, NY, NY
FRNM, DURHAM, NC
MIND SCIENCE FOUNDATION,
SAN ANTONIO, TX
MAIMONIDES MEDICAL CENTER, NY, NY
SRI INTERNATIONAL, MENLO PARK, CA
PSYCHOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LAB,
PRINCETON, NJ
ANOMALIES RESEARCH LAB,
PRINCETON UNIV, PRINCETON, NJ
OTHERS:
SEVERAL UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS
PRIVATE FOUNDATIONS
FIGURE 1
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(U) Results from these efforts were publicized and led to a
greater awareness of some of the psychological factors that are
conducive to enhancing parapsychological effects. The most
productive research team (Miamonides Medical Center) eventually
moved to the Princeton, N.J. area and formed the Psychophysical
Research Laboratory. New work also began in an academic setting
when Dr. Robert Jahn, Dean of the Aerospace Science Department,
established a small parapsychological team at Princeton
University, N.J. His effort continues to this day and explores
psychokinesis, precognition, and remote viewing.
(U) However, none of the early research examined application
potential of this area, and very little of it examined distance
effects of the phenomena.
(U) Some of the early parapsychological effort (i.e., remote
viewing) at SRI International and at Princeton University did,
however, examine the potential for describing geographic targets
at various distances. Figure 2 and Figure 3 are San Francisco
Bay area targets that showed a remote viewer could produce
reasonable overall description of features at near-by geographic
locations. Some experiments showed that a remote viewer could
also describe the interior contents of target facilities. These
descriptions were usually reliable when only shape/form
correlations and not analysis/interpretations were considered.
Figure 4 and Figure 5 are examples of Dr. Jahn's remote viewing
investigations where long distance (thousand of miles) and time
factors (prediction, past event description) were explored.
(U) Research findings in this area are sometimes not readily
accepted, regardless of adequacy of experimental controls or
integrity of the investigators. Consequently, a variety of views
can be found concerning the same data. Some of these have had a
retarding effect of the field and on funding. Part of the
controversy lies in the difficulty of agreement between "proof-
of-principle" and "reasonable demonstration" demands. A listing
of recent publications that illustrate various perspectives on
this research is shown on Figure 6.
(U) The Behavioral and Brain Sciences (1987) publication
presented a balanced view of the research; some of the articles
presented reasonable cases for "anomaly demonstration". A
National Research Council (NRC) report in 1988, however, took a
negative stance in general, even though it reviewed a very
limited aspect of the field. Recent publications (Statistical
Science (1991) and Psychological Bulletin (1993)) provide good
evidence that paranormal/parapsychological effects have in fact
been demonstrated and are replicable.
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CLOSE LOCATION - REAL TIME BEACONING
VIEWER'S DESCRIPTION
9
"SOME KIND OF DIAGONAL TROUGH
UP IN THE AIR"
WALKWAY
"BUILDING IS AN AEREATOR"
SYLVANIA FACILITY
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CLOSE-IN SHIELDED
VIEWING
VIEWERS DESCRIPTIC:
"THIS IS AN ENERGY EXPANDER. IT HUMS.
irs SOME VERY STRONG ELECTRICAL ENERGY
GOING AROUND THERE .... PURE ENERGY
CIRCULATING."
BERKELEY BEVATRON
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FIGURE 3
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LONG DISTANCE - RETROCOGNITIVE (14 HRS)
V:EWER'S DESCRIPTION
" . , ROCKS ... UNEVEN HOLES.. .9 ON
MOUNTAIN OVER WATER ....A LIGHTHOUSE?...
TALL STRUCTURE WITH CONICAL ROOF....
SIMILAR TO A CASTLE i .. MUSTY .. .
HIGH LARGE CAVERNOUS HALL...
A CASTLE."
TARGET PHOTO
URQUARDT CASTLE,
LOCH NESS,
SCOTLAND
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LONG DISTANCE - PRECOGNITIVE (24 HRS)
VIEWER'S DESCRIPTION
" .. (BEACON) IS SOMEWHERE NEAR WATER . .
.. MAY BE BOATS... SEVERAL VERTICAL LINES,
LIKE NARROW POLES... A LARGE ROUND THING,
LIKE A DISC ... WITH HEIGHT ... BUILDINGS ON
ONE SIDE ... LIKE A BOARDWALK ... VERTICAL
LINES ALONG THE WALKWAY
TARGET PHOTO
DANUBE RIVER AREA,
BRATISLAVA,
CZECHOSLOVAKIA
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RECENT REVIEWS
? '"THE ANOMALY CALLED PSI: RECENT RESEARCH
AND CRITICISM'; BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN
SCIENCES, NOVEMBER 1987
? 'ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE', NATIONAL
RESEARCH COUNCIL; 1988
? 'REPLICATION AND META-ANALYSIS IN
PARAPSYCHOLOGY'; STATISTICAL SCIENCE;
VOL 6, No. 4; 1991
? "DOES PSI EXIST? REPLICABLE EVIDENCE
FOR AN ANOMALOUS PROCESS OF INFORMATION
TRANSFER'; PSYCHOLOGY BULLETIN (PENDING)
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(S/NF) Several important basic and application-related
findings resulted from the later SRI investigations. These were:
(1) distance/shielding do not effect results; (2) some people
have an innate capability to perform well; (3) goal orientation
is more important then psychological factors/states or the nature
of the target; and (4) a potential'correlation between remote
viewing capability and certain brain area activity may exist.
These findings were based on research procedures and techniques
that received critical review by an expert nine-person scientific
Oversight Committee. The research approach and procedures were
judged scientifically sound. Some of the procedural problems
associated with early work in this field had been resolved and
corrected.
(U) Appendix B contains specific comments from a research
panel that reviewed some of this work in the 1983-1984 time-
frame. This Science Panel review led to later research efforts
that included a variety of basic and applied research objectives.
(S/NF) The effort at SRI was discontinued in 1990. However,
as a result of Congressional direction in FY 1991 for DIA, new
research in this area was established with the Systems
Applications International Corporation (SAIC), in Menlo Park, CA.
III. (U) APPLICATION INVESTIGATIONS
(S/NF) In the early 1970's, U.S. researchers at SRI-
International, Menlo Park, CA, also initiated research into
phenomena understanding and application pursuits. This work,
centering on "remote viewing (RV)" came to the attention of the
CIA. CIA then provided funding to SRI for continuing RV
research. Then funding was discontinued in 1975; subsequent
funding for RV investigation at SRI was provided by DIA and some
of DIA's service support elements with occasional support from
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various R&D organizations. DIA's interest in funding this area
was primarily from a threat assessment point-of-view in order to
help understand the Soviet work.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) The successful long distance SRI remote
viewing experiments from the 1970's generated interest in
operational pursuits with in-house government personnel. In the
late 1970's, HQDA/INSCOM established a small unit for
"development
of
a community capability' in RV. This unit was
transferred
to
DIA in 1986 when 12 billets were authorized in the
GDIP budget
for
this activity. A Special Access Program (SAP),
SUN STREAK,
was
established in order to protect identity of the
individuals
and
due to the nature of some of the projects
examined.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) A variety of potential operational projects
were investigated over the next few years; in 1989 the Military
Intelligence Board (MIB) agreed to examine the utility of the
project under field conditions involving counternarcotics
projects. The MIB reviewed results of this test period in
September, 1990. Subsequently, STAR GATE was established to
expand on earlier efforts and to permit systematic and
scientifically sound investigations to continue. All STAR GATE
activities are conducted in accordance with appropriate
scientific procedures and methodologies.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) Over-all, STAR GATE activity is based on
both a concurrent research and application philosophy. It is
recognized that formal scientific proof of this phenomena may yet
be available, even though "anomaly demonstration" may be granted
in some academic areas. Although formal scientific acceptance
could be helpful, the history of application investigations in
this field demonstrates that at least some level of application
reliability can be achieved for some types of projects. The
issue is how to improve overall data quality/reliability so that
wider use can be made of this potential capability.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) In addition to recent research reviews
(Figure 6), formal reviews of operational potential or activity
have also been conducted. One review examined a four-year
investigation period and was summarized in a briefing given to
the Military Intelligence Board (MIB) in 1989. Overall findings
are shown as figure 7 and Figure 8. Key points from this review
were:
- Potential applications exist for certain projects types:
-- Counternarcotics (CN)
-- Counterterrorism (CT)
-- Counterintelligence (CI)
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m
1i
i
?
EM PARTIALLY KNOWN
NOT KNOWN
CONTENTS
PROJECT TYPE
PROJECTS WORKED
1986-1989 TOTAL PROJECTS = 192
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u =1;1:4 WN I Lei
i s PRECONTENTS
PROJECT TYPE
SMALLSCALE.
(TEST FACILITY, AIRFIELD) (LASER TEST, ANTENNA DISH)
NOFORN
MUM
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- Limited potential exists for detailed data:
-- S/T parameters
-- Precise locations
- Low potential exists for predictive tasks
- Individuals' performance:
-- Correlates with project tasks
-- Can improve with high demands/needs and strong goal
orientation.
(S/NF/SG/LIMDIS) Another review occurred in 1990. This
followed from an earlier MIB recommendation that operational
investigations focus on counternarcotics projects. Figure 9
shows results of this effort. Overall, about one third of all
projects were judged to have provided data of good quality. This
was based on evaluation of 32 projects. Although 104 projects
were conducted, weather/operational constraints prevented follow-
up for ground truth on the majority of those projects.
IV. (U) FOREIGN ASSESSMENTS
A. (U) INTRODUCTION
(S/NF) The FY 1991 Defense Authorization Act identified
DIA as executive agent of a new program for examining
parapsychological phenomena. As part of this program, DIA was
directed to develop an integrated foreign data base on
parapsychological activities
SG1A
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SPECIAL U.S. ARMY
COU NTERNARCOTICS
TEST- 1990
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ON-SITE SUPPORT:~TO JOINT TASK FORCE
(JTF)
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FIGURE 9
 SG1A
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APPENDIX A
TERMINOLOGY
(U) The investigations described in this report involve a
class of human capabilities generally referred to as
parapsychological or paranormal phenomena. There are two general
types, informational and energetic.
(U) Informational aspects include the ability to describe
remote or concealed data without the use of known sensory
systems. This aspect is generally referred to as remote viewing
(RV) or extrasensory perception (ESP). Another term, anomalous
cognition (AC), is also currently used by researchers in this
field. The ability to predict future events is usually referred
to as precognition.
(U) The energetic aspect refers to the mental ability to
influence material or biological systems via unknown mechanisms.
This aspect is sometimes referred to as psychokinesis (PK).
(U) Soviet researchers generally use the term
"psychoenergetics" to identify this research area. Chinese
researchers prefer the terms "extraordinary human body functions"
or "somatic science" for similar functions.
(U) A variety of other terms have, and probably will, be
used to describe specific aspects of the basic phenomena.
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SEI c RI, 71!j
SCIENCE PANEL REPORT
SRI STUDIES IN REMOTE VIEWING:
A PROGRAM REVIEW
1 MARCH 1984
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SRI STUDIES IN REMOTE VIEWING: A PROGRAM REVIEW
For the past eleven years, a small group headed by Dr. H. Puthoff has
sought evidence that would support the case for extrasensory perception. In
recent years, the focus of these studies has centered on "remote viewing" by
subjects claiming to visualize the scene at a point beyond the field of vision,
and in many cases, in a remote part of the world, typically not known to them
by actual experience. The implication of success in remote viewing, if it
exists, are revolutionary; since as described to the review team, it is mani-
festly incompatible with currently accepted scientific principles. Remote view-
ing of future events--"precognition"--evidently violates causality; real time
remote viewing clearly requires a transmission mechanism other than any known
process: electromagnetic, gravitational, etc.
The lack of a physical model should not be taken to preclude the existence
of the capability to view a remote location. However, this circumstance has
thus far limited application of the classic methods of scientific investiga-
tion to less cogent issues, such as controls for inadvertent cueing, statistical
evaluation of the incidence of positive findings, estimation of false-positive
and false-negative responses, and in particular, the design of experiments that
would limit as far as possible intrusion of extraneous factors relating to
personal interaction and observer biases.
The evidence shown to us is too impressive to dismiss as mere coincidence.
Certain similarities between the SRI and Princeton results, obtained in very
different circumstances by unrelated investigators, are particularly compelling.
The Princeton work is somewhat more quantitative than that at SRI and leads to
an estimate by Dr. R. Jahn that the phenomena he has observed could be
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explained by a transfer of information above noise at a level of about one bit
per thousand. This of course raises the question of how much information is
required to construct the impressions gained by remote viewing, a question
which the investigators cannot presently answer. Therefore, the review team
feels that remote viewing is either real or due to some sort of experimental
interference from one or some of the participants; something one might describe
as "inadvertent cueing." Although, on the basis of our brief exposure to the
SRI program, we found no obvious evidence of cueing or collusion between the
viewer and the experiment monitors.
The briefings strongly emphasized the investigator's ability to train
others in their techniques. This training program has developed over the past
five years through the dedicated participation of Mr. Ingo Swann. His diverse
talents have been devoted to self-training which he now feels competent to
impart to others. Approximately a dozen trainees have completed instruction to
various levels of claimed competence. An important aspect of Swann's contribu-
tions relates to his dissection of separate elements in the perceptual process.
Under his guidance, the technique centers around the use of a coordinate method
to describe the remote location, expressed in degrees of latitude and longitude.
It is here that any attempt at a rational understanding of the perceptual
process is lost. Since the significance of the coordinates so expressed is
unknown to the viewer in most instances, it is impossible to understand why
such a method should be translated in the viewing process into a precise delin-
eation of geographic characteristics of the target site. The arbitrariness of
this approach has not escaped the investigators, but repeated attempts to
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elicit a rational basis for this procedure, or to secure definitive informa-
tion about possible success or failures with other methods that they may have
tried, were uniformly unsuccessful. The investigators' attitude was that since
they had found the coordinate method to work, they were not disposed to query
the mechanistic basis of its applications, nor to seek an appraisal of other
potentially successful methods.
Mr. Swann has distinguished three phases in his subjective interpretation
of his viewing capabilities. The initial percept appears very rapidly with a
latency stated to be as short as 1/50 of a second. Thereafter, for a period
that may persist for several minutes, increasing detail may be added. There-
after, and only after as much material has been added to the initial percept as
possible, is the subject encouraged to examine his subjective image in a crit-
ical way, or to make syntheses or judgments about the significance of the
perceived material. Swann pointed out that intrusion of a judgmental or inter-
pretive attitude too early in the building of the percept was generally
destructive, and to be discouraged in the course of training others.
A considerable variety of material was presented with photographic backup
in support of the validity of the perceptual method. Much of this was highly
impressive. The data showed the effects of training on the success rate,
which typically reached a sustained plateau at a level higher than prior to
training, both for groups of subjects as well as for individual trainees.
What then may be anticipated if the program is continued? In the absence
of a physical model for the perceptual process, no predictions are possible
about higher success rates in larger groups of viewers concentrating on the
same target, nor about the effect on success rates to be expected if the
qsi- u; twig
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technique were extended to those with special intellectual abilities or
professional backgrounds.
Exploration of the phenomenon should not be restricted to specific
applications. Rather, remote viewing should be studied as a scientific
research program aimed at establishing the existence or non-existence of the
phenomenon. In this way, a comprehensive and credible evaluation of the
phenomenon should be available from continuing effort over the next five
to ten years. The potential impact of this phenomenon is clearly profound.
Therefore, a mandatory requirement would be the existence of independent but
related programs conducted by others, with the free exchange of techniques
and results. Only through independent reproducibility can a phenomenon so
unconventional ever become accepted.
It is our conclusion that Dr. Puthoff's team warrants cautious continued
fiscal support, and that the research should be conducted as much as possible
in an open unclassified mode so that its reproducibility and accuracy can be
independently verified by others.
W. ROSS ADEY
DONALD M. KER / %
_7
F. ZACHARIASEN
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