The US authorities is monitoring greater than 650 potential circumstances of so-called “unidentified aerial phenomenon,” generally often called UFOs, in keeping with the director of the workplace created final yr to give attention to the sightings.
Sean Kirkpatrick, director of the Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Decision Workplace, informed a Senate Armed Providers subcommittee Wednesday that the variety of circumstances was up from the 350 studies referenced in an unclassified intelligence report on unidentified aerial phenomenon launched earlier this yr.
“Of these over 650, we’ve prioritized about half of them to be of anomalous fascinating worth, and now we have now to undergo these and go ‘How a lot of these do I’ve precise information for?’” Kirkpatrick stated.
Kirkpatrick outlined to lawmakers how his workplace helps the Pentagon and intelligence group to determine rising overseas applied sciences, together with his position in serving to to determine the high-altitude surveillance balloon from China that flew over US airspace in February.
He performed video from two of circumstances that had been declassified, one which had been resolved and the opposite unresolved.
The primary video confirmed a small orb that flew by means of the digicam display screen of an MQ-9 drone within the Center East in 2022. The drone’s digicam adopted the item because it moved by means of the sky, coming out and in of the display screen.
Kirkpatrick defined that this case was unresolved as a result of there was no different proof past the video. “It’ll be just about inconceivable to totally determine that, simply primarily based off of that video,” he stated, including that the hope was as extra information was gathered on these episodes, patterns might emerge to assist clarify the unresolved circumstances.
Within the second video from South Asia earlier this yr, an object flew by two MQ-9 drones, together with one which captured video showing to have a propulsion path behind it, which Kirkpatrick stated was initially believed to be “really anomalous.”
However he stated after they pulled aside the video body by body, his workplace decided that it was a “shadow picture.”
“That is within the infrared, that is the warmth signature off the engines in a commuter plane that occurred to be flying within the neighborhood of the place these two MQ9s have been at,” he stated.
Thursday’s listening to, chaired by New York Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, is the most recent that Congress has held over the previous yr on UAPs as lawmakers stress the Pentagon to unravel the unexplained sightings.
Whereas a lot of the general public focus is over the potential of UFOs, Kirkpatrick as soon as once more reiterated there’s no proof of represented extraterrestrial life within the sightings.
“In our analysis, AARO has discovered no credible proof to date of extraterrestrial exercise, off-world know-how or objects that defy the recognized legal guidelines of physics,” Kirkpatrick stated.
Senators requested Kirkpatrick in regards to the prospect of rising applied sciences from overseas international locations like Russia and China. He stated that in a small variety of circumstances, he has issues the episodes may very well be proof of potential technological developments. These circumstances, he stated, are handed off to the intelligence group to analyze additional.
“They’re much less danger averse at technical development than we’re. They’re simply keen to attempt issues and see if it really works,” he stated. “Are there capabilities that may very well be employed towards us in each ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) and a weapons vogue? Completely. Do I’ve proof they’re doing it in these circumstances? No, however I’ve regarding indicators.”
Supply: CNN
