The Aerial Phenomena Research Organization (APRO) was a

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO) is an object or phenomenon seen in the sky but not yet identified or explained. The term was coined when United States Air Force (USAF) investigations into flying saucers found too broad a range of shapes ...

research group started in January 1952 by Jim and Coral Lorenzen, of

Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin Sturgeon Bay is a city in Door County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 9,646 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located at the bay of Sturgeon Bay for which it is named, it is the most populous city o ...

. The group was based in

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

after 1960. APRO had many state branches, remaining active until late 1988. APRO stressed scientific field investigations and had a large staff of consulting Ph.D. scientists. A notable example was

James E. McDonald James Edward McDonald (May 7, 1920 – June 13, 1971) was an American atmospheric physicist and meteorologist. He is known for his scientific research in weather modification through cloud seeding, while working as an associate director at the I ...

of the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

, a well-known atmospheric physicist and perhaps the leading scientific UFO researcher of his time. Another was James Harder of the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, a civil and hydraulic engineering professor, who acted as director of research from 1969 to 1982. McDonald and Harder were among six scientists who testified about UFOs before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Science and Astronautics on July 29, 1968, when they sponsored a ''one-day'' symposium on the subject. Astronomer

J. Allen Hynek Josef Allen Hynek (May 1, 1910 – April 27, 1986) was an American astronomer, professor, and ufologist. He is perhaps best remembered for his UFO research. Hynek acted as scientific advisor to UFO studies undertaken by the U.S. Air Force un ...

cited APRO and

National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena The National Investigations Committee On Aerial Phenomena (NICAP) is an unidentified flying object (UFO) research organization active in the United States from 1956 to 1980. Though NICAP no longer operates in its original form, it remains active ...

(NICAP) as the two best civilian UFO groups of their time, consisting largely of sober, serious-minded people capable of valuable contributions to the subject. In 1969, a sizable portion of APRO's membership elected to form a new group named the "Midwest UFO Network"; this soon expanded and became the

Mutual UFO Network The Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) is a US-based non-profit organization composed of civilian volunteers who study reported UFO sightings. It is one of the oldest and largest organizations of its kind, claiming more than 4,000 members worldwide ...

(MUFON), still active today. After almost 35 years of being in storage, the APRO case file collection was finally transitioned to the National UFO Historical Records Center
www.nufohrc.org
in

Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), also known as ABQ, Burque, the Duke City, and in the past 'the Q', is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, Bernal ...

on November 25, 2023.Toby Martinez and Maximo Veron. "The National UFO Historical Records Center acquires archives of Aerial Phenomena Research Organization." ''Roswell Daily Record'', December 17, 2023

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References

External links

History of the APRO
{{UFOs 1952 establishments in Wisconsin 1988 disestablishments in Arizona Defunct organizations based in Arizona Organizations based in Tucson, Arizona Organizations disestablished in 1988 Organizations established in 1952 Research organizations in the United States UFO organizations UFO culture in the United States