In an attempt to fit various types of UFO/alien experiences into some categorized listing, the astronomer and ufologist J. Allen Hynek created a classification system. He first introduced this terminology to the world in his book, "The UFO Experience: A Scientific Inquiry" in 1972. His determination was that UFO/alien encounters could be broken down into three basic types.

It is accepted that a close encounter must occur within a 500 foot range to avoid the misidentification of conventional terrestrial aircraft or other natural phenomena. Beyond that range objects are considered to be either "nocturnal lights", "daylight disks", or " visual and radar reports".

According to Hynek's classification system a close encounter of the first kind is the near sighting (500 foot or less away) of an unidentified flying object, odd lights or an aerial object that is maneuvering or otherwise displaying characteristics that are not possible with terrestrial technology.

A close encounter of the second kind is the sighting of a UFO that leaves some physical trace of its presence. These can take the form of either measurable heat or radiation damage on the observer or damage to the immediate terrain and its flora and fauna. Incidences of human paralysis or inexplicable frightened or agitated animals as well as interference of radio and television reception fall into this category. The phenomena of "lost time" associated with a UFO sighting is also a second kind encounter.

Due to Steven Spielberg's famous movie, close encounters of the third kind are most well known. This encounter scenario is where the witness observes "animate beings" in associated with the sighted UFO. Hynek himself did not wish to use the term "alien" as there was no was to rule out the possibility that the beings seen were actually humans as opposed to automatically assuming they were of extraterrestrial origin.

Others have added extra classifications to this list although not all ufologists universally accept them. Ted Bloecher added seven more potential categories although they are mostly subsets of the major classifications and three do not particularly pertain to UFO's or aliens at all. Of the most accepted of these additional classifications is added the close encounters of the fourth kind. In the fourth close encounter category is the actual abduction of a human by alien beings.

The close encounters of the fifth kind classification was proposed by Steven M. Greer, the founder of the Center for the Study of Extraterrestrial Intelligence. These encounters are one's mutually arrived at with a conscious and deliberate purpose by both the humans and the aliens for the purposes of communication. These "contactee" encounters were considered to have begun sometime in the 1950's and supposedly continue, along with the less planned encounters, to this day.

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