On Friday, the Pentagon released a report that examined reporting UFO sightings from the past 50 years and found no evidence of alien or extraterrestrial intelligence at play.
The conclusion is consistent with past US government efforts to explain and examine the accuracy of claims that have captured the world's imagination for more than 100 years.
The study, which was conducted by the Defense Department's All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office, looked at government investigations undertaken by the U.S. government on UFO sightings dating as far back as 1945 and determined that no evidence existed that any of these sightings were signs of alien life or that any U.S. based company or government entity reverse engineered alien technology and were hiding it from the public.
"All investigative efforts, at all levels of classification, concluded that most sightings were ordinary objects and phenomena and the result of misidentification," said the report, which was mandated by Congress.
Another volume of the report focused on more recent research will be out later. A government report from 2021 that reviewed 144 sightings of aircraft and other flying devices that appeared to fly at incredible speeds and trajectories came to the same determination while also calling for better data collection.
Last summer a retired Air Force intelligence officer thrust UFOs back onto the big stage while testifying before Congress that the U.S. was concealing a longstanding program that retrieves and reverse engineers UFOs, a claim that the Pentagon flatly denies.
The authors of Friday's report said the purpose was to apply a rigorous scientific analysis to a subject that has long captured the American public's imagination.
"AARO recognizes that many people sincerely hold versions of these beliefs which are based on their perception of past experiences, the experiences of others whom they trust, or media and online outlets they believe to be sources of credible and verifiable information," the report said.
"The proliferation of television programs, books, movies, and the vast amount of internet and social media content centered on UAP-related topics most likely has influenced the public conversation on this topic, and reinforced these beliefs within some sections of the population," it added.
