In the wake of increased media attention surrounding the mysterious objects in the sky that experts call “unidentified aerial phenomena” (UAP), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is putting together a team for a deeper investigation.
According to an official NASA press release, 16 individuals, including a former NASA astronaut, have been chosen to head up an investigatory team regarding UAPs, or the objects spotted in the air that can not be confirmed as any type of known aircraft or equipment.
Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, was quoted in the press release explaining that this type of research is crucial if the world ever hopes to understand the UAP phenomenon.
“Exploring the unknown in space and the atmosphere is at the heart of who we are at NASA,” Zurbuchen said. “Understanding the data we have surrounding unidentified aerial phenomena is critical to helping us draw scientific conclusions about what is happening in our skies. Data is the language of scientists and makes the unexplainable, explainable.”
NASA’s study into Unidentified Aerial Phenomena begins on October 24. And the next ODNI/DOD report on UAP is due to be sent to Congress by October 31. Whatever the true nature of the phenomenon, UFOs have gone from fringe to mainstream.https://t.co/lBNSIQ7sg1
— Nick Pope (@nickpopemod) October 21, 2022
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Daniel Evans, the assistant deputy associate administrator for research at NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, is responsible for assembling the team.
“NASA has brought together some of the world’s leading scientists, data and artificial intelligence practitioners, aerospace safety experts, all with a specific charge, which is to tell us how to apply the full focus of science and data to UAP,” Evans said. “The findings will be released to the public in conjunction with NASA’s principles of transparency, openness and scientific integrity.”
The U.S. space agency was careful to point out in a separate, but related tweet, that UAPs having any kind of extraterrestrial origins is unproven at this point.
The focus of the study is to inform NASA what possible data could be collected in the future to shed light on UAP. There is no evidence supporting the idea that UAP are extraterrestrial in origin.
— NASA (@NASA) October 21, 2022
NASA isn’t wasting any time in getting started, as the study is set to begin on Monday.
The 16-member team, made up of some of the best and brightest in a number of fields, will spend the next nine months attempting to “lay the groundwork for future study on the nature of UAPs for NASA and other organizations.”
“The team will identify how data gathered by civilian government entities, commercial data, and data from other sources can potentially be analyzed to shed light on UAPs. It will then recommend a roadmap for potential UAP data analysis by the agency going forward,” the press release read.
David Spergel, president of the Simons Foundation and one of the team’s members, is also the team’s chair. A major player in the cosmology space, so to speak, Spergel “has measured the age, shape and composition of the universe and played a key role in establishing the standard model of cosmology,” the press release read.
While each member of NASA’s UAP study team boasts an impressive background, one especially notable member is former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly, brother of Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, also a former astronaut.
According to NASA, the study’s results will be made public in mid-2023.
Earlier this year, The Hill reported on a House hearing regarding the UAP situation — the first of its kind in 50 years — with some lawmakers expressing concerns that such unidentified objects pose clear “national security threats,” especially if the objects spotted, which often exceed any known flight capabilities of U.S. aircraft, originated from any of America’s adversaries.
“They are real, they need to be investigated, and the many threats they pose need to be investigated,” Indiana Rep. André Carson said.
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