Key figures
The Harvard astronomer who explained UFOs as natural and optical effects. 6 events, newest first.
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Open Donald Menzel as a timeline
Media1977
Doubleday published The UFO Enigma by astronomer Donald Menzel and Ernest Taves, with an introduction by Fred Whipple. Appearing after Menzel's death in late 1976, it was his final book offering conventional explanations for UFO reports.
Photo: Fdavis99 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
MediaDec 1976
Astronomer Donald Menzel, a leading skeptic who explained UFO reports as natural and atmospheric effects, died in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Physics Today ran an obituary by Owen Gingerich in May 1977; his last UFO book appeared after his death.
Photo: Fdavis99 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Media1963
Harvard astronomer Donald Menzel and Lyle Boyd published 'The World of Flying Saucers' with Doubleday, Menzel's second skeptical UFO book. It argued that reports from Kenneth Arnold onward could be explained by natural phenomena, misperception and atmospheric effects.
Photo: Fdavis99 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Media1958
French writer Aime Michel's 1958 book, published in English as Flying Saucers and the Straight-Line Mystery, argued that same-day sightings in the 1954 French wave fell on straight lines. Astronomer Donald Menzel later argued the alignments matched chance.
Media1953
Harvard astrophysicist Donald Menzel published Flying Saucers through Harvard University Press, arguing that most reports were mirages and other optical effects. The Condon Report later called it an excellent book while noting its reputation as a debunking one.
Photo: Babette Whipple, CC BY-SA 3.0
Military24 Apr 1949
A Navy-led crew readying a Skyhook balloon at White Sands Proving Ground said they followed a whitish, elliptical object through a theodolite for about a minute and later worked out an extreme altitude and speed. Astronomer Donald Menzel argued they saw a refracted image of their own balloon.
Photo: Office of Naval Research, Public domain
