Provenance

25% weight

Provenance tracks the origin and custody chain of every piece of evidence. It answers the fundamental question: where did this data come from, and can we trust it? Fields in this category cover who collected the data, what classification it carried, when it was declassified, whether FOIA requests produced it, and whether the sources have been independently verified. Provenance carries the highest weight (25%) because evidence without verified sourcing cannot serve as a foundation for analysis.

40 total fields

5 Critical

10 High

12 Medium

13 Low

Critical5 fields · 4x weight multiplier

Field	Description	Weight
Source Data Present	Whether any source and provenance information exists for this record.	5
Primary Source Types	The types of source material available (e.g. FOIA, firsthand witness, official report).	5
Has Official Sources	Whether government or official agency documentation exists for this event.	5
Source Credibility	Credibility rating for the source (e.g. official, verified, unverified, disputed).	5
Event Type	Primary event type (e.g. sighting, encounter, incursion, landing, retrieval).	5

High10 fields · 3x weight multiplier

Field	Description	Weight
Source Count	Total number of sources documenting this event.	3
Has Firsthand Sources	Whether firsthand witness accounts are among the sources.	3
Has FOIA Documents	Whether Freedom of Information Act documentation has been obtained.	3
Individual Source References	Detailed references to each source document or material.	3
Declassification Date	When the source material was declassified, if applicable.	3
Source Type	Type of source material (e.g. FOIA, official report, firsthand witness, media).	3
Primary Source Flag	Whether this is a primary (firsthand) source or secondary (derived) source.	3
Classification Data Present	Whether the record includes any classification or taxonomy information.	3
Secondary Event Types	Additional event type classifications beyond the primary type.	3
Unknown Probability	Estimated probability (0–1) that this event represents a genuine unknown.	3

Medium12 fields · 2x weight multiplier

Field	Description	Weight
Original Classification Level	The classification level assigned to the report when it was created (e.g. SECRET, TOP SECRET).	2
Current Classification	The current classification status of the source material.	2
Last Verified Date	When the record was last independently verified for accuracy.	2
Verified By	Individual or organization that last verified the record.	2
Source Author	Author or creator of the source material.	2
Source Organization	Organization that produced or holds the source material.	2
Source Date	Publication or release date of the source.	2
Source Classification Level	Classification level of the source document (e.g. UNCLASSIFIED, SECRET).	2
Hynek Classification	J. Allen Hynek's Close Encounter scale (NL, DD, RV, CE1–CE5).	2
Vallée Classification	Jacques Vallée's five-category classification system (AN, FB, MA, CE variants).	2
Blue Book Classification	Classification assigned by the U.S. Air Force Project Blue Book, if applicable.	2
AARO Category	All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office categorization, if applicable.	2

Low13 fields · 1x weight multiplier

Field	Description	Weight
Publication Status	Whether the record is published, draft, or archived.	1
Data Source ID	Identifier linking this record to its originating dataset.	1
Data Entry Organization	Organization responsible for entering the data into the record system.	1
Data Entered By	Individual who entered or digitized the data.	1
Data Entry Date	When the data was entered into the record system.	1
Source ID	Unique identifier for an individual source reference.	1
Source Title	Title or name of the source document or material.	1
Source URL	URL to access the source, if publicly available.	1
Source Archive URL	Archive URL (e.g. Wayback Machine) preserving access if the original is removed.	1
Source Reference Detail	Page, section, or exhibit reference within a larger work (e.g. "pp. 15-23", "Exhibit B").	1
Source Notes	Additional notes about the source or its provenance.	1
Tags	Descriptive tags for searchability and categorization.	1
Keywords	Keywords associated with this event for text-based search.	1

Field

Weight

Source Data Present

Primary Source Types

Has Official Sources

Source Credibility

Event Type

Field

Weight

Source Count

Has Firsthand Sources

Has FOIA Documents

Individual Source References

Declassification Date

Source Type

Primary Source Flag

Classification Data Present

Secondary Event Types

Unknown Probability

Field

Weight

Original Classification Level

Current Classification

Last Verified Date

Verified By

Source Author

Source Organization

Source Date

Source Classification Level

Hynek Classification

Vallée Classification

Blue Book Classification

AARO Category

Field

Weight

Publication Status

Data Source ID

Data Entry Organization

Data Entered By

Data Entry Date

Source ID

Source Title

Source URL

Source Archive URL

Source Reference Detail

Source Notes