Space Command chief throws cold water on the question of UAPs in space
"I am not aware of anything that is extraterrestrial, other than comets and things like that."
DENVER—Last month, President Donald Trump took to social media with an announcement that he would direct the Pentagon and other federal agencies to "begin the process" of disclosing government files related to alien life and UAPs (unidentified anomalous phenomena). It was the latest chapter in a yearslong slow burn of sensational claims, congressional hearings, and yes, the military's release in 2020 of intriguing videos that do, indeed, appear to show things that defy simple explanations.
Subsequent reports from NASA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) did not find any link between the unexplained phenomena and aliens, but that didn't stop enthusiasts from wanting to know more.
"To date, in the peer-reviewed scientific literature, there is no conclusive evidence suggesting an extraterrestrial origin for UAP," a NASA blue-ribbon panel wrote in a 2023 report. "The limited amount of high-quality reporting on unidentified aerial phenomena hampers our ability to draw firm conclusions about the nature or intent of UAP," the DNI report stated in 2021.
This story was first published by Ars Technica. Read the original report