ABSTRACT
A cult is regarded by academics either as a form of sect that is a breakaway group from a larger parent body, or as a separate type, sui generis. As a kind of sect it would probably have formed by some process of fission, perhaps because of disputes or possibly because of some heterodox views held by a minority group which is at variance with the larger community. The general characteristics of the religious cult only barely apply to unidentified flying object (UFO) cult groups who are not usually in the thrall of some charismatic leader (though ufology does have its gurus), neither are they intensely exclusivist as far as membership is concerned. Ufology is virtually tailor-made for mockery and ridicule. A number of enthusiasts have formed UFO clubs, and it is all too easy to visualize ex-trainspotters in their anoraks keeping vigil on the hills in the hope of glimpsing strange lights in the sky.
