There is a seriousness in Congress regarding unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) – what most people call UFOs – not seen historically. The Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC), Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities held its first hearing on “the mission, activities, oversight, and budget of the All-Domain Anomaly, Resolution Office (AARO).” The subcommittee’s meeting was only the second in 50 years. At the April 19 hearing, Dr. Sean M. Kirkpatrick, AARO director, was the sole witness as the SASC members inquired about the progress being made by his office and what level of funding and authorities would be needed.
Congress Takes UFO Sightings Seriously
Subcommittee Chairwoman Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) opened the hearing by explaining that President Biden’s budget request provided only enough money to defray the operating expenses of AARO and provided little funding to “sustain critical research and development necessary to support a serious investigation.” Gillibrand made it clear the subcommittee intended to remedy the lack of budget and authority by understanding better what AARO is accomplishing. To that end, Dr. Kirkpatrick explained:
“The AARO team is organized around four functional areas: operations, scientific research, integrated analysis, and strategic communications. In the nine months since AARO’s establishment, we’ve taken important steps to involve and improve UAP data collection; standardize the department’s UAP internal reporting requirements; and implement a rigorous framework for scientific and intelligence analysis.”
For those waiting to hear what they’ve suspected for decades – but that the US government never confirmed – spoiler alert, the AARO director asserted: “The majority of unidentified objects reported to AARO demonstrate mundane characteristics of balloons, unmanned aerial systems, clutter, natural phenomena, other readily explainable sources… AARO has found no credible evidence thus far of extraterrestrial activity, off-world technology, or objects that defy known laws of physics.” However, the director did talk about the efforts AARO is undertaking to come to defensible, scientifically credible determinations regarding observed UAPs. During the subcommittee’s questioning, Kirkpatrick described the work AARO was doing with over 650 UAP sightings.
(Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Dr. Kirkpatrick described that the altitudes at which most UAP sightings take place are between 15K feet and 30K feet. The size and shape of the objects vary, but they are typically round or oval, one to four meters in size. Shapes also include rectangles, triangles, squares, disks, and cylinders, amongst others.
Characteristics of UAP Sightings Vary
Estimated speeds at which observed objects traveled are from stationary to approximately two times the speed of sound with no discernable means of propulsion, that is, no heated exhaust emanating. Areas of the globe where the most sightings occurred were primarily on the coasts of the US, the Middle East, eastern China, and the western coast of Africa. Additionally, the AARO director showed videos of UFO sightings.
“Those videos offer insight into why the UFO topic matters. Whatever these orbs are and whoever made them, their apparent intelligence-collection role might be of value to the US if replicated,” Tom Rogan wrote in the Washington Examiner. Though the public hearing was poorly attended by the subcommittee members, questions from those present raised crucial national security issues. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) wanted to know about the national security impact of UAP sightings. The AARO director was clear in his concern about whether they might be indications of advanced, heretofore unknown, technologies possessed by the US’s adversaries, most notably Russia and China.
Though AARO has not discovered any significant Russian or Chinese technical breakthroughs, nonetheless, “of the cases that are showing, you know, some sort of advanced technical signature, of which we are talking single percentages of the entire population of cases we have, I am concerned about what that nexus [with potential adversaries] is. And I have indicators that some are related to foreign capabilities,” Kirkpatrick said, choosing his words carefully.
Dr. Kirkpatrick’s testimony made it clear that the Department of Defense now has an abiding interest in UAPs and is willing to put resources toward understanding what they are. Additionally, there is an appreciation for the national security implications not previously shown. Finally, the Pentagon is looking to the sky – a hopeful sign.
