Topic
Official programs, reports, laws and hearings, from Project Blue Book to AARO and the National Archives. 328 events, newest first.
Government6 Jun 2023
Days after David Grusch's claims of a secret crash-retrieval program went public, Oversight Chairman James Comer said his committee planned a UAP hearing, with Reps. Anna Paulina Luna and Tim Burchett leading the inquiry. The Pentagon said it had found nothing verifiable to support Grusch.
Photo: US House of Representatives, Public domain
GovernmentJun 2023
After David Grusch alleged a hidden craft-retrieval program, Defense Department spokesperson Sue Gough told NewsNation that AARO had found no verifiable information that programs to hold or reverse-engineer extraterrestrial materials ever existed.
Photo: U.S. House Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs, Public domain
Government31 May 2023
NASA's independent UAP study team held a livestreamed public meeting ahead of its report. Chair David Spergel said the main lesson was the need for high-quality data, and NASA said it had seen no convincing evidence linking UAP to extraterrestrial life. Panelists reported online harassment.
Photo: NASA Headquarters / NASA/Joel Kowsky, Public domain
Government19 Apr 2023
AARO director Sean Kirkpatrick testified in open session to the Senate Armed Services emerging threats subcommittee and showed two declassified MQ-9 videos, including a spherical object over the Middle East that he said could not be identified from the available data.
Photo: Defense.gov, Public domain
Government7 Mar 2023
Pentagon UAP office director Sean Kirkpatrick and Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb released a draft, 'Physical Constraints on Unidentified Aerial Phenomena'. It was not peer-reviewed or an official Pentagon document; a speculative passage on a mothership releasing small probes drew wide headlines.
Photo: Christopher Michel, CC BY-SA 4.0
Government17 Feb 2023
Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles told Nine's Today show that Defence had advised there had been no balloons like the Chinese one shot down over the U.S. in Australian airspace, and that Australia could track and deal with any such balloon.
Photo: Commonwealth of Australia - Department of Defence, CC BY 4.0
Government16 Feb 2023
After U.S. jets downed three objects over Alaska, Canada and Lake Huron, President Biden said they were most likely private or research balloons. He ordered an inventory of airborne objects, better detection and new classified rules on when to shoot.
Photo: U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Chloe Shanes, Public domain
Government16 Feb 2023
Japan's ruling LDP and Komeito approved a government plan on Feb. 16, 2023 to relax rules on using weapons against unmanned objects violating Japanese airspace. It followed the Defense Ministry's statement that objects seen in 2019-2021 were strongly suspected to be Chinese spy balloons.
Photo: Guilhem Vellut, CC BY 2.0
Government14 Feb 2023
Moldova's civil aviation authority closed the country's airspace for about 80 minutes on Feb. 14, 2023 after the defence ministry reported a small object resembling a weather balloon over the north near Ukraine. Officials said poor weather kept them from identifying or tracking it.
Photo: My_another_account, CC0
Government13 Feb 2023
Opening a briefing after U.S. jets downed three objects, Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said there was no indication of aliens or extraterrestrial activity. NSC spokesman John Kirby added that Americans did not need to worry about aliens.
Photo: The White House, Public domain
Government13 Feb 2023
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Feb. 13, 2023 that U.S. high-altitude balloons had entered China's airspace more than ten times since early 2022. The White House National Security Council called the claim false.
Photo: China News Service, CC BY 3.0
Government13 Feb 2023
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said on Feb. 13, 2023 that the UK and its allies would review what the North American airspace intrusions meant for British security. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the country had capabilities such as quick-reaction Typhoon jets to keep it safe.
Photo: Richard Townshend, CC BY 3.0
Government12 Feb 2023
On Feb. 12, 2023, a maritime development office in Qingdao's Jimo District told fishermen an unidentified flying object had been spotted off Rizhao and that it was preparing to shoot it down. No follow-up official account said whether that happened.
Photo: Smainali3, CC BY 3.0
Government11 Feb 2023
Canadian Defence Minister Anita Anand said NORAD aircraft, on the prime minister's order, downed a small cylindrical object flying near 40,000 feet over central Yukon. She said recovery was under way with the military and RCMP and that its origin and purpose were unknown.
Photo: Tech. Sgt. Jack Sanders via U.S. Secretary of Defense, Public domain
Government10 Feb 2023
The Bureau of Industry and Security added six Chinese entities to the Entity List, citing support for PLA aerospace programs including airships and balloons. The rule said the PLA uses high-altitude balloons for intelligence and reconnaissance.
Photo: U.S. Department of Commerce, Public domain
Government9 Feb 2023
The House passed H.Res. 104, sponsored by Rep. Michael McCaul, 419-0. It condemned the Chinese government's high-altitude surveillance balloon as a brazen violation of U.S. sovereignty and asked for briefings on past airspace intrusions.
Photo: U.S. House of Representatives - Office of the Clerk, Public domain
Government9 Feb 2023
At a Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee hearing, Pentagon official Melissa Dalton said Chinese balloons had briefly crossed the U.S. at least three times under the prior administration. Officials said they waited to shoot over water to limit risk from debris.
Photo: Leonard Fitzgerald, Public domain
Government9 Feb 2023
A senior U.S. official said Chinese balloons had passed over more than 40 countries, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the balloon downed off South Carolina was part of a surveillance program spanning five continents, run by a PLA reconnaissance unit.
Photo: U.S. Department of State, Public domain
Government3 Feb 2023
China's Foreign Ministry said the object over the U.S. was a civilian airship for mainly meteorological research, blown off course by westerly winds, and expressed regret over its unintended entry. The Pentagon rejected this, saying it was a surveillance balloon.
Photo: Jeanne, Public domain
GovernmentFeb 2023
After an F-22 downed the Chinese balloon off South Carolina, recovered debris went to the FBI laboratory at Quantico, where officials said specialists in 20-plus forensic disciplines focused on its electronics. The White House said the debris included electronics and optics from the payload.
Photo: U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Public domain
