The 1985 CIA Intelligence Assessment of Project SUN STREAK: Declassified Records of Psycho-Energetic Applications

Program Origins and Objectives\nIn 1985, the United States Army’s Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM) transitioned its psycho-energetic research program, then known as Project GRILL FLAME, to the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) under the new codename Project SUN STREAK. This program was part of a larger, long-term intelligence initiative known as STAR GATE. The primary objective of SUN STREAK was the application of 'anomalous mental phenomena'—specifically remote viewing—to gather intelligence on high-value foreign targets that were inaccessible via conventional satellite or human intelligence (HUMINT) methods.\n\n## Operational Protocols\nDeclassified records from the CIA’s 'Electronic Reading Room' detail the rigorous protocols established for the program. Remote viewers were trained in 'Coordinate Remote Viewing' (CRV), a technique where they were provided with geographical coordinates or 'beacons' and asked to describe the location without prior knowledge. Documents from July 1985 include tasking sheets (Tasking 8501) where viewers were directed to investigate Soviet research facilities and suspected weapons storage sites. The intelligence reports indicate that while the data was often fragmented, several viewers provided accurate descriptions of structural layouts and personnel movements that were later corroborated by other intelligence sources.\n\n## Scientific Evaluation and Oversight\nProject SUN STREAK operated under strict oversight, involving both military intelligence and scientific consultants from the Stanford Research Institute (SRI). The declassified files include internal assessments written by program managers who argued that remote viewing represented a 'low-cost, high-reward' intelligence tool. However, the documents also reveal internal friction, as some CIA officials remained deeply skeptical of the reproducibility of the results. Detailed memos describe the statistical methods used to evaluate the accuracy of the sessions, marking a rare instance where the U.S. government attempted to quantify psychic phenomena within a formal intelligence framework.\n\n## Legacy of Project SUN STREAK\nThe program continued through the early 1990s before being consolidated and eventually terminated following a 1995 evaluation by the American Institutes for Research (AIR). The declassification of the Sun Streak files has provided researchers with thousands of pages of raw data, session transcripts, and training manuals. These documents serve as an official record of the government’s serious exploration of consciousness and its potential applications in national security and foreign espionage.