Canada's UFO Secrets

 

Canada's UFO Secrets by Chris A. Rutkowski
8/11/26: 256 pages
Dundurn Press

Canada's UFO Secrets: Disclosing Government Files on What Is Happening in Our Skies by Chris A. Rutkowski is a highly recommended look into how the Canadian government handles UFO reports, researcher Chris A. Rutkowsk's involvement in collecting reports, the history, government policy, investigations, and additional information. If you are looking for a gripping, sensationalized, heart-stopping account of aliens invading and attacking, you will be disappointed. If you are more interested in the open, honest transparency about the documents from Canadian UFO or UAP (unidentified aerial phenomena) reports, then this will be of interest to you. 

This book is the culmination of 75 years of aerial phenomena records in Canada, Included are historical documented cases, investigations, and government correspondence. The book follows a overview of the history of sightings through archives from the 1940s until the present. Included are photos of documents and some fragments of objects. Following the text are Acknowledgements, List of Abbreviations, Notes, Bibliography, Image Credits, and an Index. 

Rutkowski has been researching Canadian UFO reports since the 1970s when he was in college. Early on UFO/UAP reports were sent to the Institute of Astrophysics as "non-meteoric sightings" and they didn't know what to do with them. At that time Rutkowski said, "Send them to me" and this began years of his collecting and investigating the sightings. The text is a consideration of the information and the development of Canadian UFO policy by the government and military. According to Rutkowski, since the Canadian UFO Survey began in the late 1980s, there are close to 25,000 separate UFO reports in Canada. He points out that the data is there, it just need analysis.

Included from a community college course he taught on how to be a UFO investigator Rutkowski  is a 30 question checklist he developed as a guide to interviewing witnesses and recording information on sightings. He also includes  The vast majority of sightings can be explained as misidentified conventional phenomena. There are some which initially appear to be unexplainable, but could be with more information. The book ends with six categories of explanations for reported UFO sightings. The first five explain almost all sightings, however, the  final one gives a nod to, perhaps, visitors from outer space.

While it is clear that reports of UFO/UAPs are increasing, it is also obvious that current technology and advancements can explain the increase in many new sightings with drones, more amateur weather balloons, international spying (think Chinese weather balloon from 2023), to name a few. Even people releasing the fire-powered paper lanterns or aurora's could be an unexplainable phenomena to some unsuspecting viewer. Most sightings are airplanes, satellites, planets, fireballs, and meteors.  

Canada's UFO Secrets is a great choice for anyone interested in a serious, not sensationalized, examination of Canada's UFO reports/sightings. Thanks to Dundurn Press for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.