Case study · CASE-017 · Historical government research program; anomalous cognition
STAR GATE / U.S. Government Remote Viewing Research and UAP-Related Claims
Not assessedWhere United States (SRI; Fort Meade and other facilities)When 1972–1995; subsequent disclosures
Case
- Overview
- CIA, Army and DIA funded and conducted remote-viewing research and intelligence tasking; UAP/lunar claims by some participants are separate from the program's verified existence.
- Investigative phases
- Early SRI/CIA experiments; Army GRILL FLAME; CENTER LANE; DIA SUN STREAK/STAR GATE; 1995 AIR review and program termination
- Reported phenomena
- Reported anomalous cognition; later extraterrestrial/lunar remote-viewing narratives
- Public evidence status
- Declassified program records and evaluation accessible; UAP-targeted session files and independent validations must be checked individually | V99: Further CIA Reading Room records: SRI SCANATE remote-viewing report on Swann's training runs (SRC-V99-054; v98 attributed a Price West Virginia session to it, which the file does not contain), operational evaluation reporting more than 200 taskings 1986–1995 with utility not substantiated (SRC-V99-055), 1995 disposition memo (SRC-V99-056), 1986 Price memo (SRC-V99-057) and SRI nine-experiments report (SRC-V99-058); the last two await detailed checking.
- Alternative explanations / caveats
- Sensory leakage, selective reporting, subjective matching, inadequate blinding and inconsistent operational performance; 1995 review found intelligence utility insufficient | V99: Elizondo's Imminent (2024) says Eugene 'Gene' Lessman trained him in remote viewing as the program wound down, that a small cadre continued informally after 1995, and that he joined four others in an informal Pentagon session aimed at an unidentified detainee. These are Elizondo-only accounts with no logs, names or authorization; they do not make him an operational STAR GATE viewer or establish an authorized post-1995 program. Retrospective success claims (Soviet aircraft in Africa, Dozier 1981–82, Gulf War chemical sites, Price PNUTS, Swann's 1973 Jupiter rings) are unmatched to operational records; Price's alleged underground bases are unverified. SRI is not Stanford University.
- Next research tasks
- Index original dated UAP-related sessions and target feedback; assess blinding, scoring, preregistration, chain of custody and independent replication | V99: Score Price's 1973 SCANATE statements against the documented target; check the 1986 Price memo for original transcripts, negative Soviet-target analysis and the death-year discrepancy; assess the SRI nine-experiments protocols; locate Swann's dated 1973 Jupiter session and compare with 1973 astronomical literature; date Lessman's training and Elizondo's MICECP/Panama transition; seek operational records for Dozier, Soviet aircraft and Gulf War claims; contrast the AIR conclusion with Utts and Hyman.
- Last reviewed
- 2026-11-12
Assessment
Not yet in the Case Assessment Matrix.
Evidence (29)
- Army GRILL FLAME memorandum documents SRI work and named researchers Documented
- CENTER LANE training and participant chronology Documented
- Coordinate Remote Viewing manual Documented
- AIR evaluation: Utts and Hyman disagree on paranormal inference Documented
- Operational evaluation judged reports insufficiently reliable and actionable Documented
- Some participants allege lunar or extraterrestrial remote-viewing targets Alleged
- SCANATE report of Pat Price's West Virginia coordinate session Claim unverified
- Operational evaluation: more than 200 taskings; utility could not be substantiated Documented
- Disposition memo recommending termination; CIA declined to restore the program Documented
- CIA memo on retrieving original Price transcripts, sketches and audio, with contrary analysis of the Soviet PNUTS target Reported
- SRI report on nine Pat Price experiments Reported
- Elizondo's Imminent: Lessman training, informal post-1995 cadre, five-person Pentagon session on a detainee Unverified
- Ingo Swann: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Joseph McMoneagle: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Harold E. Puthoff: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Russell Targ: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Lyn Buchanan: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Pat Price: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Paul H. Smith: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Ed Dames: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Jessica Utts: 1995 AIR evaluation of research and operational utility Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Ray Hyman: 1995 AIR evaluation of research and operational utility Claim unverifiedAnalysis
- Original SCANATE report records Pat Price's response to coordinates for a West Virginia site, including alleged underground features and documents DocumentedFirsthand
- CIA memo reportedly discusses retrieval of original Price session transcripts, sketches and audio, and a contrary analysis of the Soviet PNUTS target DocumentedSecondhand
- Elizondo says Army civilian intelligence officer Eugene 'Gene' Lessman recruited him and trained him in remote viewing near Sierra Vista, Arizona, with an older training manual, as the formal program was winding down; he then took an Army civilian intelligence (MICECP) post in Panama UnverifiedSecondhand
- Elizondo says he joined four other trained viewers in an informal group session at a secure Pentagon facility focused on an unidentified terrorism detainee, who he later heard told lawyers five luminous figures disturbed him UnverifiedSecondhand
- Elizondo asserts Lessman tried to keep a small cadre active during funding withdrawal and that informal, off-books remote-viewing practice continued Documented
- Ingo Swann reportedly described a Jupiter ring system in a 1973 session; rings were observed by Voyager 1 in 1979 ReportedSecondhand
- Declassified operational review reports more than 200 taskings and concludes operational utility could not be substantiated DocumentedAnalysis
Documents gathered (29 lines of evidence)
- Army GRILL FLAME memorandum documents SRI work and named researchers Readable here
- CENTER LANE training and participant chronology Primary record linked
- Coordinate Remote Viewing manual Primary record linked
- AIR evaluation: Utts and Hyman disagree on paranormal inference Primary record linked
- Operational evaluation judged reports insufficiently reliable and actionable Primary record linked
- Some participants allege lunar or extraterrestrial remote-viewing targets Primary record linked
- SCANATE report of Pat Price's West Virginia coordinate session Readable here
- Operational evaluation: more than 200 taskings; utility could not be substantiated Readable here
- Disposition memo recommending termination; CIA declined to restore the program Readable here
- CIA memo on retrieving original Price transcripts, sketches and audio, with contrary analysis of the Soviet PNUTS target Readable here
- SRI report on nine Pat Price experiments Readable here
- Elizondo's Imminent: Lessman training, informal post-1995 cadre, five-person Pentagon session on a detainee Accounts / secondary only
- Ingo Swann: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Readable here
- Joseph McMoneagle: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Primary record linked
- Harold E. Puthoff: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Readable here
- Russell Targ: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Readable here
- Lyn Buchanan: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Primary record linked
- Pat Price: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Readable here
- Paul H. Smith: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Primary record linked
- Ed Dames: Documented association with U.S. government-funded remote-viewing research or program history Primary record linked
- Jessica Utts: 1995 AIR evaluation of research and operational utility Primary record linked
- Ray Hyman: 1995 AIR evaluation of research and operational utility Primary record linked
- Original SCANATE report records Pat Price's response to coordinates for a West Virginia site, including alleged underground features and documents Readable here
- CIA memo reportedly discusses retrieval of original Price session transcripts, sketches and audio, and a contrary analysis of the Soviet PNUTS target Readable here
- Elizondo says Army civilian intelligence officer Eugene 'Gene' Lessman recruited him and trained him in remote viewing near Sierra Vista, Arizona, with an older training manual, as the formal program was winding down; he then took an Army civilian intelligence (MICECP) post in Panama Accounts / secondary only
- Elizondo says he joined four other trained viewers in an informal group session at a secure Pentagon facility focused on an unidentified terrorism detainee, who he later heard told lawyers five luminous figures disturbed him Accounts / secondary only
- Elizondo asserts Lessman tried to keep a small cadre active during funding withdrawal and that informal, off-books remote-viewing practice continued Primary record linked
- Ingo Swann reportedly described a Jupiter ring system in a 1973 session; rings were observed by Voyager 1 in 1979 Readable here
- Declassified operational review reports more than 200 taskings and concludes operational utility could not be substantiated Readable here
On the timeline (7)
- 1972 CIA-supported remote-viewing investigations begin at SRI Disputed
- 1973-06 SCANATE report records Pat Price's coordinate session on a West Virginia site Claim unverified
- 1978 Army GRILL FLAME-related funding and sessions documented Documented
- 1983–1985 Army CENTER LANE remote-viewing unit Reported
- 1986 DIA SUN STREAK phase and controlled remote-viewing manual Documented
- 1990–1995 DIA STAR GATE phase Documented
- 1995-09 AIR evaluation and debate between Utts and Hyman; operational use discontinued Reported