Reports of UFO's Sightings Up

By Isaac White.

A report from the Pentagon has revealed a dramatic rise in UFO sightings across the U.S. After more than a year of focusing attention on unidentified flying objects that military pilots have seen but sometimes been hesitant to report due to fears of being labeled as crazy, The United States Department of Defense established the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) in July 2022 to track unidentified objects underwater or in space. That covers a really fascinating topic: things that can transition across different domains. In other terms – UFOs.

In 2022, hundreds of new reports were received by the Pentagon’s recently created unit responsible for looking into possible UFO sightings. Since March of 2021, the United States government has received over 350 new reports of what the United States government refers to as “unidentified aerial phenomenon,” more commonly known as UFOs. According to a report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence that was released in January, roughly half of these reports remain unexplained to this day.

According to the information provided in the report, the office has tentatively classified 163 of the reports as involving “balloons or balloon-entities.” A small number of further sightings have been suggested to be caused by drones, birds, weather conditions, or airborne debris such as plastic bags.

The report cautioned against rushing to conclusions because “initial characterization does not mean positively resolved or unidentified...” The report does, however, mean nearly 200 of these reported incidents are unexplained, leaving the door open to speculation and a continuance of fascination for those looking to the skies with wonder.

The appearance of balloon-like objects included in the report from January may provide nuance to the recent Chinese spy balloon incident. The United States military disclosed that comparable Chinese balloons had violated American airspace at least three times during the presidency of Donald Trump, which began in January 2017 and ended in January 2021.

The mystery and wonder of unexplained flying objects have been the subject of many Americans interest in recent years. One incident from 2004, sometimes referred to as the Tic Tac situation, is one that continues to fuel the case for the existence of alien life through the experience of Naval aviators.

Cutting-edge radar on a Navy vessel was able to keep track of unidentified targets moving at breakneck speeds as they descended from high altitudes over the period of many days. After much deliberation, the controllers decided to send two fighter planes to investigate one of the puzzling radar contacts.

An unusual object without wings, control surfaces, or a means of propulsion was seen by four pilots navigating in astonishing ways. Then, as a Top Gun trained squadron leader pursued the unusual craft, it sped off at incredible speeds. One of the shocked pilots told ABC News the object “was not from this world” because of its apparent defiance of human aircraft capabilities.

The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office is required to make yearly reports on its findings. The debate on whether or not the sightings people report of unidentified flying objects are alien in nature will remain.