Image (Credit): NASA’s Alta-8 small Unmanned Aircraft System testbed vehicle. (NASA/Bowman)
“…there have been a limited number of visual sightings of drones over military facilities in New Jersey and elsewhere, including within restricted air space. Such sightings near or over Department of Defense installations are not new. The Department of Defense takes unauthorized access over its airspace seriously and coordinates closely with federal, state, and local law enforcement authorities, as appropriate.”
-Joint statement by the FBI, Federal Aviation Authority, and Departments of Homeland Security and Defense regarding the recent sighting of UFOs long the East Coast. It is an interesting admission by the government that this is more common than thought. It reminds one of the Chinese balloon shot down by the U.S. Air Force in 2023. At that time, we learned that Chinese air balloons had been flying over the United States for years.
Note: The same press release played down the drone issue in general, stating:
Having closely examined the technical data and tips from concerned citizens, we assess that the sightings to date include a combination of lawful commercial drones, hobbyist drones, and law enforcement drones, as well as manned fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and stars mistakenly reported as drones. We have not identified anything anomalous and do not assess the activity to date to present a national security or public safety risk over the civilian airspace in New Jersey or other states in the northeast.
What’s going on in New Jersey and other parts of the East Coast? We are hearing of mysterious drone flights over communities and military installations, which the government cannot confirm.
Earlier this week, New Jersey State Senator Jon Bramnick stated:
The State of New Jersey should issue a limited state of emergency banning all drones until the public receives an explanation regarding these multiple sightings.”
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy voiced his own concerns as well to President Biden, stating:
While I am sincerely grateful for your administration’s leadership in addressing this concerning issue, it has become apparent that more resources are needed to fully understand what is behind this activity.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation says it knows nothing at this point, stating:
The public can continue to call our 800 line, or submit a tip online, we are acting on every substantive lead that we get.
And, always helpful, Donald Trump has joined the chorus, stating:
Mystery Drone sightings all over the Country,…Can this really be happening without our government’s knowledge. I (don’t) think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, (shoot) them down!
As noted, this mystery covers other parts of the East Coast, including Maryland and Virginia. So is this another Chinese balloon-like incident, teenage pranksters, or something more targeted against U.S. interests?
With drones doing heavy damage in Ukraine, Russia, and the Middle East, we are no longer talking about toys. It just represents another wave of space technology causing us to look up with fear, not unlike the Cold War, which gave us plenty of other UFO scares.
We should know soon enough what is happening, but it demonstrates again the risks related to the militarization of our airspace. It starts low to the ground and goes as high as our most sensitive satellites, representing a renewed threat to all the satellites and aircraft assisting with astronomy.
Keep looking up, but hold off on shooting them down until we know more.
If you saw the recent film The Holdovers, you witnessed Paul Giamatti at the top of his game as a private school instructor (which earned him an Oscar nomination).
But if you would like to learn about another side of Mr. Giamatti, then you may want to check out his podcast with Stephen Asma called Chinwag. It is by no means a science or an astronomy podcast, yet it is a fun collection of conversations that often touch on related topics and guests, be it topics such as UFOs and the Drake Equation, or guests including astronaut Mike Massimino, writer Ted Chiang, and actor William Shatner.
Yes, there is plenty here about the occult and mind-numbing drugs, but I recommend you sift though some of this to find the gems. Below are a few of the episodes you may want to try, but don’t expect William Shatner to talk about Captain Kirk and space travel. He is too busy sharing stories about spiritualism, drugs, and his early acting career.
Paul and Stephen dig into our Chinwag mailbag for this SETI-inspired question (that’s Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence to any novice listeners). The Drake Equation is explained and let’s just say there’s A LOT of math involved.
It’s been 60+ years since last estimates were made on the odds of finding intelligent life in the Milky Way, and Chinwag listener Rick B. wants to know, how long could a civilization broadcast its presence through technology, and what current factors might affect a civilization’s ability to remain detectable? Is there a ticking clock to our existence, and what’s Twinkie-lung got to do with all this?
In this Chinwag, Paul and Stephen are thrilled to be subject to fascinating thought experiments by award-winning fiction writer Ted Chiang. Up for the discussion?
The difference between fact and fiction when it comes to the existence of alien life, and whether Paul is indeed an assassin because he played one in an action film Ted once saw. Imaginations are running amok and people can’t differentiate between what’s real and what isn’t. Is social media to blame or was The National Enquirer the social media of yester-year? Online echo chambers and the dangerous speed of information may be a culprit for conspiracy theories. And is belief in aliens and monsters in pop culture a direct response to higher anxiety levels and an externalization of neuroses? Then, what is singularity and was it born with the invention of the wheel?
Paul and Stephen are happy to learn that Ted’s not afraid that AI will take over, but the natural desire to do less work may lead to more romances between humans and AI robots. So buckle up and plug in your lady-cyborg and get ready for an all new fascinating Chinwag!
Paul and Stephen are obsessed with UFOs and life beyond earth–so who better to add to the conversation than a guy who’s been to space twice?
This week, our intrepid Chinwaggers are joined by former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino, a man who decided that a fear of heights would be best overcome by a trip to space. In this week’s classified file: space toilets, robot arms, and why there should never be more than one comedian per space shuttle.
Stephen Asma and Paul Giamatti are giddy to speak with lifelong hero and Star Trek alum William Shatner on tequila tastings, space travel, bum drug trips, holding on to your inner child and that time he beat up an Australian Olympic swimmer on stage.
“AARO found no evidence that any USG investigation, academic-sponsored research, or official review panel has confirmed that any sighting of a UAP represented extraterrestrial technology.“
AARO found no empirical evidence for claims that the USG and private companies have been reverse-engineering extraterrestrial technology. AARO determined, based on all information provided to date, that claims involving specific people, known locations, technological tests, and documents allegedly involved in or related to the reverse-engineering of extraterrestrial technology, are inaccurate.
AARO assesses that all of the named and described alleged hidden UAP reverse engineering programs provided by interviewees either do not exist; are misidentified authentic, highly sensitive national security programs that are not related to extraterrestrial technology exploitation; or resolve to an unwarranted and disestablished program.
Uncle Sam is starting up a new website so the public can report UFOs, or Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) to use the politically correct term. The Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) is building the website, which notes:
AARO will be accepting reports from current or former U.S. Government employees, service members, or contractors with direct knowledge of U.S. Government programs or activities related to UAP dating back to 1945. These reports will be used to inform AARO’s congressionally directed Historical Record Report.
You can already find some of the UAP data trends on the AARO website, such as the graphic below.
And what type of information is the government collecting on these UAPs? This page summarizes some of the reporting criteria. Once the website is up, the specific reporting criteria will be shared.
Keep looking up, and keep a notebook by your side.
Image (Credit): Reported-UAP hot spots per published statistics as of April 17, 2023. (AARO)
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