Have you ever encountered an unidentified flying object (UFO)? If so, it seems the government is now very interested.
On October 31, the Pentagon unveiled a reporting form for providing information about unidentified flying objects (UFOs), also known as unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP).
However, this new reporting tool is not accessible to the general public. It is available exclusively to current or former federal employees, military personnel and contractors.
Additionally, it is only open to individuals with “direct knowledge of alleged U.S. government programs” related to UAP, according to a Department of Defense press release.
Sean Kirkpatrick, the director of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), said in the press release: “We want to hear from you.”
All information shared through this platform is kept secure, although classified information should not be included on the original form. Those who provide information may be contacted by officials from the AARO, a department within the Department of Defense, to arrange follow-up interviews.
This move by the Pentagon reflects a resurgence of interest and an unprecedented level of transparency regarding UAP in recent years.
In 2020, the Department of Defense released three videos, one from 2004 and two from 2015, showing “unidentified” aerial phenomena. These videos, recorded by Navy pilots, show indistinct objects moving through the air at high speed.
In July, Congress held a public hearing in which former military officials provided testimony based on their alleged firsthand encounters with UAP.
One of these officials, a former Navy commander, reported seeing a “small white Tic Tac-shaped object” during a flight over the ocean in 2004.
He emphasized that the object “did not function according to any of the known aerodynamic principles that we expect from objects flying in our atmosphere.”
Despite the enormous attention UAP is now receiving, anecdotal reports of extraterrestrial objects should be received with a high degree of skepticism, according to experts.
“There is no good evidence that UAP sightings are non-human (alien) craft,” Mick West, a science writer who specializes in UFOs, told McClatchy News. “Eyewitness accounts are unreliable. Video evidence invariably turns out to be much less interesting than claimed.”
“However, there is still value in investigating observations that are unexplained,” West said.
“If a pilot fails to identify something common (like a balloon), then that is a problem because it is (at the very least) a distraction. There is also the possibility that there are things like adversary drones – used offensively or for surveillance. And we cannot 100% rule out the possibility of some technological advancement.”
