SPECIAL REPORT - SUN STREAK EVALUATION

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Collection: 
Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 
CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5
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RIPPUB
Original Classification: 
S
Document Page Count: 
15
Document Creation Date: 
November 4, 2016
Document Release Date: 
May 16, 2000
Sequence Number: 
2
Case Number: 
Publication Date: 
January 1, 1989
Content Type: 
NOTES
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PDF icon CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5.pdf574.71 KB
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Approved For Release 2000/08/08 : CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 I BACKGROUND (U) (S/SF/SS-2) SUN STREAK is an in-house DIA project for developing an operational psychoenergetics (i.e., remote viewing) capability for the Intelligence Community. Twelve GDIP billets were authorized for DIA in 1986 for this activity. Personnel from the a--iiry INSCOM CENTER LANE Project had been examining similar phenomenon were transferred to DIA to form the SUN STREAK core group. DIA had earlier (1985) received operational control from 162 t-ftb DA for this 6-person army unit. CAM') (S/NF/SS-2) In 1985, the DIA SUN STREAK rogram anager?prepared an Action Jlan that: (1) detailed the steps necessary to transition the CENTER LANE unit to DIA; (2) identified SUN STREAK staffing and support needs; and (3) set forth key programmatic requirements for the SUN STREAK activity. The Jctionlplan anticipated that time required for achieving a prototype operational capability would be approximately 3 years. qV05" -) Key aspects of this ction Flan along with additional procedural information, were sent to congressional committees in 1986. The IC staff was also briefed at this time on the Action ?plan and anticipated SUN STREAK operational development and data evaluation procedures. (S/NF/SS-2) Programmatic and operational requirements identified in the / ction 'lan were to: (1)/_-1-in special access program (SAP) i/ Approved For Release 2000/08/08 : CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 Approved For Release 2000/08/ 6-00789R000700260002-5 status (accomplished in March 1985); (2) gain human use approval (granted in March 1985); (3) set up a senior oversight and a task coordinating committee (accomplished -- though not currently activated); (4) establish tight project controls along with an automated data base management and records system (accomplished); and (5) to establish an R/D link for supporting operational capability development (accomplished via HQ SGRD funding and a DARPA MIPR). (S/NF/SS-2) The R/D link, via SRI International, has yielded improved data evaluation procedures, has identified potential personnel selection techniques, and has contributed to training/developmentmethods that are cures ntly in project use. The activity at SRI-has; extensive review by a 9-member peer review panel to insure that scientific rigor is maintained. (S/NF/SS-2)' 9asic approach employed by SUN STREAK toward developing a prototype operational remote viewing (RV) capability is to locate personnel with potential RV capability and to develop these abilities via appropriate training/development procedures. Once satisfactory progress is noted on sirle-to- verify training tasks, these individuals are presented advanced training and operational simulation targets. Operational '. a C-P simulation targets are usually US military orfscientific targets where ground truth is totally known or can be readily determined. Satisfactory performance on these tasks wmnrtd qualify an individual for operational projects of interest to the intelligence community. In e ^of the operational projects, however, ground truth is usually not known (or is only partially 6EW Approved For Release 2000/08/08 : CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 Approved For Release 2000/O RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 known). Consequently, complete evaluation of the viewer's data cannot be made until a later time when ground truth does become available. In the interim, reasonable estimates of the overall validity of the viewer's data can be made for many of the operational projects worked, based on what is generally known or suspected about the target. These interim evaluation results Cwt tae updated whenever new ground truth is received. 1\ (S/NF/SS-2) The operational projects pursued by SUN STREAK are approved by the program manager and are, in part, based on the program manager's familarity with IC needs and on solicitation from others within the IC who have been briefed into the SUN STREAK program. (S/NF/SS-2) T#e ~evaluatio,performed for this report cover all the operational and operational simulation projects (approximately 2,00) that have been worked by SUN STREAK personnel CL 4a u" 4-i~ 440 since 1986. Hsr, special operations J,O^ Lcnt+9~. ~-tA `~ e -le, from the SRI talent pool. These { v,6 taof L k 1,---t overall evaluationypr ~11 as) vz Approved For Release 2000/08/08 : CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 Approved For Release 2000/08 96-00789R000700260002-5 II EVALUATION (U) 1. DATA BASE (U) (S/NF/SS-2) The SUN STREAK project maintains an extensive record of all project activity. Details include project timing, people involved (i.e., viewers, interviewers, and possibly observers , and a variety of other data considered essential for good record keeping and for evaluating project results. This data, along with project summaries, are maintained in an automated data base for convenient retrieval. Copi of project summaries are also sent to the program ianagerwor his review. In addition, all raw data (i.e., sketches, viewer's notes) are maintained in a separate file that is available for review and analysis (Additional project record details are in appendix I). (S/NF/SS-2) Evaluationsconducted for this report involved a complete reexamination of the entire SUN STREAK operational data base. Many of the earlier projects had only been partially evaluated, or not evaluated at all, due to lack of suitable ground truth,, ro e`c s were reevaluated at this time to adjust OW new i me l l i gence data that has 11-" U ray become available .fr~~ ~~mP Win.rc~ts? o, (S/NF/SS-2) For this evaluation, the data base was subdivided into 6 main project types: (1) scientific and k Approved For Release 2000/08/08 : CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 Approved For Release 2000/ IA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 chnological (S/T); (2) (counterterrorist (CT); (3) Counternarcotics (CN); (4) Counterintelligence (CI); (5) cument (contents (Doc Cont); and (6) .redictive (pred). Total projects worked for these categories are shown /rn k_' Sr 4 CC 2 f,, urel (S/NF/SS-2) Of the nearly 200 projects worked, approximately one-half cannot be evaluate since ground truth is not sufficiently known at this time. For approximately one-fourth of the projects, ground truth is totally known (or highly certain), and for the other one- fourth, ground truth is only partially known but considered sufficient for making a reasonable interim evaluation. (S/NF/SS-2) Some of these1categories can overlap. For example, prediction data is also an aspect of most of the CN, many of the CT and a few of the S/T projects. The prediction category in figure 1 refers Mely to predictions of a political/military nature. A4ture analysis predictive data will be evaluated as a separate aspect of s categories. 2. EVALUATION TECHNIQUES (U) (S/NF/SS-2) Techniques used for evaluating the SUN STREAK operational and simulated operational data base depend on the nature of the task and type of project. S/T projects are the most difficult to evaluate. This difficulty arises from the Approved For Release 2000/08/08 : CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 Approved For Release 2000/08/ 8 CIA-RDP96-00789R00070000~-5 general complexity existing at most S/T target sites, possible ambiguous aspects of known ground truth about the target site, from the nature of the information desired, and in a few Ito 4 cases, possibly from the,,(RV)targeting method employed. It is easier to evaluate data w S/T targets if only a single issue, such as presence or absence (of a particular system, for example) is desired, then it is to evaluate how well a viewers' detailed but possibly fragmentary description correlates with aspects of a complex site. In this case a considerable amount of subjectivity can be involved in evaluating the degree of data /target correlation. (S/NF/SS-2) To assist in reducing overall subjectivity of evaluating complex S/T targets, the viewers' data is examined and compared to ground truth with several data categories in mind. These categories are shown in f' ure 2_~, and include geographic descriptions, large and small scale objects, large and small ;scale functions, personality data, and predictive data. Not all these categories may be relevant to a specific project, and in some cases may even be part of the RV targeting procedure A(e.g., when a photo of target building is used as an RV targeting reference for accessing its unknown contents). (S/NF/SS-2) After identifying the appropriate data category, the next step is to examine the viewers' raw (or summarized) data for comparison to known or estimated ground truth and to make a best judgement on what approximate degree of data correlation actually Approved For Release 2000/08/08 : CIA-RDP96-00789R000700260002-5 Approved For,7Release 2000 11 R -1 - DP96-00789R000700260002-5 t exists: Fi defines the scale ratings used along with their approximate degree of data correlation. (4 x II contains detailed instructions for analyst consideration when reviewing the data). (S/NF/SS-2) Final evaluations and summaries are prepared by the 'grogram Aanager and(his project representative who is not part h of SUN STREAK staff) in conjunction with the responsible A area analyst or Intelligence 2ommunity point-of-contact. Latest intelligence data and reports on that target site are also reviewed during this process. In some cases, area analysts and the IC points-of-contact provide written appraisals to assist in the final evaluation process. These evaluations are recorded on summary forms and are maintained in the ~rogram ~h~nager's files. (S/NFISS-2) An example of an S/T target evaluation is in f u In this case the target site was 1AVe project was completed in June 1987 and involved four viewers (2 proven and 2 novice). In this example, the bracket ( ) SG1C SG1 B indicates a best estimate was made "ince ground truth is not yet 7 SG1A totally known a dash means that data category was not t/ present in the viewers' data. One of the viewers~,::0101) attempted to describe the site 6 months in the future. In this case, SG1C SG1 B geographic features, large scale objects) are not impo tant ain-e-e--- Some of the data categories (i.e., AThe Vocument Veading projects were, however, carefully isolated and a known or designated location. Predictive data of the complex event type (e.g. political/military situations) shows a\low data correlation (i.e., reliability) of about 10 percent or less. (S/NF/SS-3) If all SUN STREAK projects are averaged together, as shown in f, re 6, data correlation would range from about 20 percent for small scale aspects to about 40 percent for large scale aspects. While "averaging" such data may indicate overall results in the long run, such averaging tends to washout those results that have singular high merit, such as the identification several months in advance of a specific area in the U.S. where a fugitive was later found. In this case, SUN STREAK data was not .y~Q KQ ~){nx 1 N 1Z~ p c~ aw^/ Cd"Q_ acted upon; fortunately, the fugitive wasnabducted (S/NF/SS-3) Another way of considering overall SUN STREAK project data correlation is to consider only the proven viewers. This data is shown in figure 7 for times when these experienced viewers received a 2 or 2+ in the numerical ratings assigned to their data correlations. Only twP-o4 types of data are presented here; SIT and Versonality data .i-S obtained from the various CT, CN and CI projects. For S/T projects, proven viewers would be ,,(c~a cw..[.Pc