In UFO lore, contact between human and alien beings. There is much to suggest that these may not be physical beings but perhaps projections of the Unconscious.
The term was created by famed author and UFO investigator J. Allen Hynek. He proposed three types of close encounters:
First Kind: The sighting of an unidentifiable object or odd light
Second Kind: Observation plus effects such as heat, damage, paralysis, sound, lost time
Third Kind: Observing beings
Others have proposed further types of close encounters:
Fourth Kind: Abduction of a human by aliens
Fifth Kind: Human initiated contact with extraterrestrials (the "contactee" phenomenon)
Sixth Kind: An incident that causes a human injury or death
Seventh Kind: A human/alien mating that produces a hybrid or "Star Child"
Readers, please enjoy this guest blog post by Sandra Kynes, author of several books, including The Herb Gardener's Essential Guide, Plant Magic, and the new Witches' Encyclopedia of Magical Plants, among many others.
Although a few old books...