Inside the CIA Records on Future Targets

Introduction

Some declassified U.S. government records describe remote-viewing experiments in which the target was deliberately not chosen until after the viewing session had ended. Within the history of remote-viewing research, this is one of the clearest attempts to test claims of precognition rather than ordinary perception of a distant location. Instead of asking whether a participant could describe a place that already existed as the target, these protocols postponed target selection and any associated “beacon” activity until later.

The resulting procedures are historically important because they show that government-sponsored researchers recognised the need to separate present-time information from alleged future information. They do not, however, demonstrate that precognition was established. The protocols describe an experimental design intended to reduce conventional explanations, while later independent reviews argued that the broader body of remote-viewing evidence still fell short of proving a reliable operational capability.[CIA]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…

What the precognition condition changed

Traditional outbounder remote-viewing experiments typically followed a simple sequence. A target location already existed, an outbound experimenter or “beacon” travelled there, and the viewer attempted to describe it without conventional sensory contact. Even if the experiment was carefully blinded, critics could still argue that the target physically existed during the viewing session.

The declassified CIA document Feedback and Precognition Dependent Remote Viewing altered that sequence in a fundamental way. According to the protocol, participants completed the viewing session first. Only afterwards were both:

• the target selected; and
• the beacon activity carried out.[cia.gov]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…

The report explicitly distinguishes this as a “precognition condition”, stating that both target selection and beacon activity occurred after remote viewing had concluded. This timing was designed to eliminate the possibility that the viewer was describing a location already designated as the experimental target at the moment of viewing.[CIA]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…

The protocol therefore tested a different hypothesis from conventional remote viewing. Rather than asking whether information could be obtained from a distant contemporary location, it asked whether the eventual target chosen in the future might somehow correspond to impressions recorded earlier.

Why delayed beacon activity mattered

Delaying the beacon served a methodological purpose rather than simply adding complexity.

In many earlier remote-viewing experiments, the beacon was an individual physically present at the target site during the viewing period. Supporters sometimes suggested that the viewer might somehow acquire information associated with the beacon’s experience. Whether or not one accepts that interpretation, the beacon represented a present-time feature of the experiment.

Under the delayed protocol, no beacon had yet travelled anywhere while the viewing occurred. Consequently:

If a successful correspondence were nevertheless observed, proponents argued that it could not easily be explained by a viewer accessing an already existing experimental target. Instead, any apparent success would have to involve some relationship with a later event—such as future target assignment or future feedback itself.[CIA]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…

This distinction explains why delayed-target protocols became an important subset of future-target research rather than merely another variation on standard remote viewing.

Why researchers considered this a stronger design

From an experimental perspective, delayed target selection attempted to tighten several important controls.

First, it reduced opportunities for ordinary information leakage. Because no one could know the correct target during the viewing session, accidental cueing by an informed experimenter should in principle become much more difficult.

Second, it forced investigators to define the experiment’s timeline precisely. Researchers had to specify:

• when the viewer’s record became fixed;
• when random target selection occurred;[cia.gov]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…
• when any outbound visit took place;
• when feedback was delivered; and
• how judging would compare the transcript against candidate targets.

These details matter because future-target experiments depend heavily on chronology. Any uncertainty about when decisions were made can weaken claims that the target genuinely lay in the future rather than having been influenced by unconscious procedural choices.

The declassified reports therefore demonstrate an increasing awareness among programme researchers that experimental timing itself was central to evaluating precognition claims.[CIA]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…

What the records can and cannot prove

The existence of these protocols is sometimes misunderstood.

The released documents clearly establish that government-funded researchers did conduct experiments specifically designed around delayed target selection. They also show that investigators consciously distinguished ordinary remote viewing from experiments intended to examine possible precognition. That historical point is supported directly by the declassified records.[CIA]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…

The documents do not establish that precognition was demonstrated as an accepted scientific fact. Experimental protocols describe how a study was conducted, not whether its underlying hypothesis was confirmed. A carefully designed protocol can still produce ambiguous or disputed findings.

This distinction became particularly important during the 1995 review commissioned by the U.S. government. Independent evaluators acknowledged that some laboratory results appeared statistically unusual, but they concluded that the overall evidence remained insufficiently reliable for intelligence use. Critics also argued that free-response judging, subjective matching and inconsistent replication limited confidence in claims involving either ordinary remote viewing or future-target protocols.[CIA]cia.govAN EVALUATION OF REMOTE VIEWING: RESEARCH…A remote viewer is asked to visualize a place, location, or object being viewed by a "bea…

The historical significance of the delayed-target experiments therefore lies less in proving precognition than in illustrating how researchers attempted to construct increasingly stringent tests of extraordinary claims.

How these protocols fit within the future-target debate

Within the broader history of remote-viewing research, delayed target selection represents one of the most demanding experimental approaches. By ensuring that neither the designated target nor the beacon activity existed during the viewing session, researchers attempted to remove one of the most obvious conventional explanations available to critics.

Supporters have argued that such protocols make positive results more striking because they minimise present-time informational pathways. Skeptics respond that they also increase dependence on subjective judging and retrospective interpretation, meaning exceptionally rigorous statistical and procedural controls are required before extraordinary conclusions can be justified.

As a result, the CIA-linked records occupy an important place in the history of remote-viewing research. They document a genuine methodological effort to test future-target claims under stricter timing conditions while leaving unresolved the larger scientific question of whether those conditions produced evidence strong enough to establish precognition.[CIA+2CIA]cia.govFEEDBACK AND PRECOGNITION DEPENDENT REMOTE…In the precognition condition, both the target selection and the beacon activity occurre…

Amazon book picks

Further Reading

Books and field guides related to Inside the CIA Records on Future Targets. Use these as the next step if you want deeper reading beyond the article.

Book

Phenomena

By Annie Jacobsen

Provides context for classified psychic research.

See on Amazon

Book

Remote Viewers: The Secret History of America's Psychic Spies

By Jim Schnabel

First published 1997. Subjects: United states, department of defense, United states, central intelligence agency, Parapsychology.

See on Amazon

Book

The seventh sense

By Lyn Buchanan

First published 2003. Subjects: Military intelligence, American Espionage, Military aspects of Parapsychology, Remote viewing (Parapsycho...

See on Amazon

Book

Reading the Enemy's Mind : Inside Star Gate

By Paul H. Smith

First published 2005. Subjects: United states, central intelligence agency, Parapsychology, Military intelligence.

See on Amazon

Browse more on Amazon:PhenomenaRemote Viewers: The Secret History of America's Psychic SpiesThe seventh sense

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

eBay marketplace picks

Marketplace Samples

Live-tested eBay searches with available results related to this page.

Shop location

UsingUSA USA USAUKCanadaAustraliaIreland

Example eBay listing

CIA Challenge Coin Central Intelligence Agency USA Commemorative Medal Gift

SearcheBay.co.uk: CIA memorabilia

Browse similar oneBay.co.uk

Example eBay listing

Rare HTF CIA Spy Techs CIA/OTS Career Fair Comic Book Style Memorabilia

SearcheBay.co.uk: CIA memorabilia

Browse similar oneBay.co.uk

Example eBay listing

RARE CIA Pewter Tag Pilsner Beer Glass 12oz?

SearcheBay.co.uk: CIA memorabilia

Browse similar oneBay.co.uk

Example eBay listing

RARE Vintage ICA 1992 Montreal - CIA Congress Document Bag Memorabilia

SearcheBay.co.uk: CIA memorabilia

Browse similar oneBay.co.uk

Browse more oneBay.co.uk

Example items shown for inspiration; availability and pricing can change. Branchoria may earn a commission if you purchase through outbound eBay links.

Endnotes

1. Source: cia.gov
Link:https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00789R002200200001-5.pdf

2. Source: cia.gov
Link:https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/document/cia-rdp96-00791r000200180006-4

3. Source: cia.gov
Link:https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00789R002200210001-4.pdf

4. Source: cia.gov
Link:https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00789R002200370001-7.pdf

5. Source: cia.gov
Link:https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00789R002800180001-2.pdf

6. Source: cia.gov
Link:https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP96-00791R000200180005-5.pdf

7. Source: Wikipedia
Title: Remote viewing
Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Remote_viewing

8. Source: psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk
Title: spr.ac.uk Remote Viewing
Link:https://psi-encyclopedia.spr.ac.uk/articles/remote-viewing/

Additional References

9. Source: reddit.com
Link:https://www.reddit.com/r/todayilearned/comments/1c08wm5/til_that_project_[stargate

10. Source: researchgate.net
Title: 369604750 Remote Viewing a 1974 2022 systematic review and meta analysis
Link:https://www.researchgate.net/publication/369604750_Remote_Viewing_a_1974-2022_systematic_review_and_meta-analysis

11. Source: greydynamics.com
Title: intelligence past the tangible world cias stargate project
Link:https://greydynamics.com/intelligence-past-the-tangible-world-cias-stargate-project/

12. Source: scispace.com
Link:https://scispace.com/pdf/remote-viewing-the-future-with-a-[tasking

13. Source: scribd.com
Link:https://www.scribd.com/document/78204780/Russell-Targ-and-Jane-Katra-What-We-Know-About-Remote-Viewing

14. Source: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
Link:https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30291000/

15. Source: academia.edu
Link:https://www.academia.edu/108445581/Remote_Viewing_A_1974_2022_Systematic_Review_and_Meta_Analysis

16. Source: Wikipedia
Title: Stargate Project (U.S. Army unit)
Link:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stargate_Project_%28U.S._Army_unit%29

17. Source: ftp.nuneslaw.com
Title: Project Stargate And Remote Viewing Technology Th
Link:https://ftp.nuneslaw.com/sites/book-search/243/219/u2D907/Project%20Stargate%20And%20Remote%20Viewing%20Technology%20Th.pdf

18. Source: youtube.com
Title: Remote Viewing: The Secrets of the Stargate Project
Link:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wn3fkBU1JQ4