Pentagon UFO office unveils official website for US government personnel to report sightings

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The office states it will "follow the science wherever it leads."

a seal reading "AARO" above the Pentagon
AARO's seal in front of the Pentagon. (Image credit: AARO/Wikimedia Commons)

The Pentagon's official office for addressing UFOs has a new website where U.S. government and military personnel can report their own sightings.

The All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) unveiled the new website on Wednesday (Aug. 30). According to a note from the office's director, Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick, the website will be used to inform the public about ARRO's findings as well as offer a way for the public to report sightings of UFOs or, as they're now called, unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP).

While the site is still under construction, it features a section where the office will be "accepting reports from current or 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 help the office complete a historical record of such events, as requested by the United States Congress.

Related: UFO whistleblower tells Congress the US government is hiding evidence of 'non-human intelligence'

The site also outlines the office's mission, which it states is to "minimize technical and intelligence surprise by synchronizing scientific, intelligence, and operational detection identification, attribution, and mitigation of unidentified anomalous phenomena in the vicinity of national security areas."

In addition, the site offers a three-part definition of UAP, which it states are objects in the air that can't immediately be identified; objects or devices that travel between different domains such as air, space or water; and underwater objects that are not immediately identifiable or may be related to the first two definitions.

This focus on objects in space and in water is part of the reason the term "UFO" has fallen out of fashion and has been replaced with the more all-encompassing term "UAP." 

In a set of slides offering a more comprehensive overview of AARO's mission, it is stated that the office will study "recovered enigmatic technologies, leveraging cross-sector partnerships and the latest developments in theoretical and applied physics, [and] engineering." 

In July 2023, a U.S. Air Force and intelligence community veteran told a Congressional subcommittee that the American government is hiding the existence of a "multi-decade UAP crash retrieval and reverse-engineering program." No definitive proof of those claims have come to light, but several members of the U.S. Congress have vowed to get to the bottom of them.

A slide showing various UAP reporting trends reported between 1996 and 2023 as collected by AARO and shown in an April 2023 hearing. (Image credit: U.S. Dept. of Defense/AARO)
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 —  Pentagon establishes office to track UFOs in space

 — Pentagon releases its long-awaited 2022 UFO report

 —  Pentagon has 'no credible evidence' of aliens or UFOs that defy physics

AARO was established in July 2022 in order to "detect, identify and attribute objects of interest in, on or near military installations, operating areas, training areas, special use airspace and other areas of interest, and, as necessary, to mitigate any associated threats to safety of operations and national security," according to a Department of Defense statement. 

Despite collecting hundreds of reports from U.S. military and government personnel, Kirkpatrick stated at a public hearing in April that his office "has found no credible evidence thus far of extraterrestrial activity, off-world technology or objects that defy the known laws of physics." 

In a Frequently Asked Questions section on the new site, AARO states that it "uses a rigorous scientific framework and data-driven approach to better understand UAP" and will "follow the science wherever it leads." 

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Brett Tingley
Brett Tingley
Managing Editor, Space.com

Brett is curious about emerging aerospace technologies, alternative launch concepts, military space developments and uncrewed aircraft systems. Brett's work has appeared on Scientific American, The War Zone, Popular Science, the History Channel, Science Discovery and more. Brett has English degrees from Clemson University and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. In his free time, Brett enjoys skywatching throughout the dark skies of the Appalachian mountains.

15 Comments Comment from the forums
  • rod
    https://www.aaro.mil/
    Here you go folks, now some can report their UFO/UAP sightings. I plan to view Saturn tonight using my telescope.
    Reply
  • silo commander area 51 L
    Found a small dead extraterrestrial insect like life form yesterday. Today things are good.
    Reply
  • rod
    I did enjoy some Saturn observing tonight. No UAP/UFOs to report or ET phoning home buzzing around in my area :)

    Observed 2000-2200 EDT. Full Moon 30-August-2023. August 2023 issue of Sky & Telescope shows Full Moon 31-August-2023 0136 UT/2136 EDT 30-August-2023 so waning gibbous tonight in Aquarius. Moon rise near 2021 EDT. As the Moon rose higher, the fields lit up with moonlight. The Moon hit me in the eye like a big pizza pie, its amore 😊 The Moon and Saturn separated by a bit more than 19.5 degrees according to Stellarium 23.2. I enjoyed views of Saturn ranging 31x to 111x views using TeleVue eyepieces with my 90-mm refractor telescope. The moons Titan and Rhea were distinct in the north up and mirror reverse view. Skies clear, temperature 17C, winds 360/7 knots, h=62%. It was a relaxing evening out and I could see three or four satellites in the early period pass by, most were polar orbiting near 2nd magnitude. Saturn rose above a tree line near 2100 EDT, an easy target to view. Saturn provided more detail at 71x and 111x using TeleVue 14-mm Delos and TeleVue 9-mm Nagler. Hint of Cassini division along with some cloud banding. The rings are closing. Before viewing Saturn, I enjoyed some low power views of Arcturus at 31x and unaided eye views of the summer triangle (Deneb, Vega, and Altair regions).
    Reply
  • Dave
    There are a lot of people out there buying into this doublespeak by the Pentagon.
    Three credible whistleblowers at a congressional hearing give testimony of non human spacecraft being seen that defy the laws of physics. Misdirection and coverups revealed with members of congress vowing to get the bottom of things.

    A wing obviously exists in the military with a definitive agenda. A crash UAP retrieval and reverse engineering program is obviously going on. The AARO needs to come forth and admit the truth. It is time to acknowledge what everyone already knows.

    Occam's razor has shifted. Intelligent lifeforms are observing us. We are not alone. The very concept is is not only a justified belief, but a truth as well. The evidence keeps mounting everyday. Thousands of credible witnesses can't be wrong. We are not the center of the universe.
    You may not like it, but humankind is on the cusp of a new way of thinking. A new interpretation of the understanding of our existence. it is time to wake up!
    Reply
  • silo commander area 51 L
    rod said:
    https://www.aaro.mil/
    Here you go folks, now some can report their UFO/UAP sightings. I plan to view Saturn tonight using my telescope.
    This is a good way to bring up children in my opinion..
    Reply
  • Boy_Named_Sioux
    Dave said:
    There are a lot of people out there buying into this doublespeak by the Pentagon.
    Three credible whistleblowers at a congressional hearing give testimony of non human spacecraft being seen that defy the laws of physics. Misdirection and coverups revealed with members of congress vowing to get the bottom of things.

    A wing obviously exists in the military with a definitive agenda. A crash UAP retrieval and reverse engineering program is obviously going on. The AARO needs to come forth and admit the truth. It is time to acknowledge what everyone already knows.

    Occam's razor has shifted. Intelligent lifeforms are observing us. We are not alone. The very concept is is not only a justified belief, but a truth as well. The evidence keeps mounting everyday. Thousands of credible witnesses can't be wrong. We are not the center of the universe.
    You may not like it, but humankind is on the cusp of a new way of thinking. A new interpretation of the understanding of our existence. it is time to wake up!
    Dave you said it!!!
    I watch a lot of strange or unexplainable videos on YouTube and while yes not all of them are credible or even close to being real there are a lot of them that I do believe to be real footage of UFO'S or UAP'S. Often the events are captured from multiple angles by complete strangers or recorded during a live stream making editing of the footage impossible. Every day all over the planet people are seeing, and now thanks to smartphones recording these phenomenon making it in my opinion almost impossible to deny the existence of aircraft (and water craft) that are capable of performing maneuvers far beyond anything that we the public are aware of.
    With all the evidence available I just don't see how people can still remain stuck in the mindset that alien life is science fiction and anyone who believes in it is some tinfoil hat wearing kook eating up whatever conspiracy comes his way.
    There's much more evidence other than YouTube videos that has convinced me the government is covering up their knowledge of UAP's and many of it is declassified documents that confirm whistle blowers stories that were written off long ago due to propaganda sold to us by the media; therefore creating a stigma that discourages people from coming forward with information. There have been though, some deathbed confessions by those privy to crafts captured throughout the years (starting once we reached the atomic age).
    I know that what I'm saying sounds crazy and I believe that that's exactly how it's supposed to sound. Think about how our viewpoints and opinions are formed: Movies and TV have a large influence on our culture and our beliefs in what's plausible and what's asinine. In adulthood we become capable of critical thinking but only within the boundaries we've learned throughout our upbringing in a school system designed to snuff creativity and reward memorization or repatation, preparing us for a lifetime of subordination and compliance. When I was in my 20's I'd accepted the belief instilled within me that alien life was a fantasy story, played out in movies and video games but gawked and laughed upon whenever brought up by someone crazy (or brave actually) enough to do so.
    There was a time in my childhood where I questioned how the universe could be so large but so empty but those thoughts were quickly averted by my Grandmother because the Bible says that man is God's greatest creation and nothing about life anywhere else and that's final.
    ANYWAYS what I'm trying to get at is that we're conditioned to have a very judgemental viewpoint on anyone who talks about aliens or ufo's and I believe THAT'S the biggest problem when it comes to accepting the POSSIBILITY that aliens might exist and could be visiting our planet.
    If nonbelievers could drop all their preconceived notions conceived via years of social conditioning and approach the evidence objectively and without bias they too might come to the same conclusion.
    It's an interesting enigma that whenever footage is clear and vivid it's photoshopped but if it's shakey or out of focus it's a staged event hiding within the blurred lines.
    My hope is that one day it will all come out and mankind can benefit from the suppressed technology capable of changing our infrastructure and creating endless possibilities concerning our understanding and exploration of the cosmos.
    Obviously I could go on and on but I'll cut it off here. Thanks for reading this far..... assuming that is that you did lol. Stay curious my friend.
    Reply
  • Boy_Named_Sioux
    rod said:
    I did enjoy some Saturn observing tonight. No UAP/UFOs to report or ET phoning home buzzing around in my area :)

    Observed 2000-2200 EDT. Full Moon 30-August-2023. August 2023 issue of Sky & Telescope shows Full Moon 31-August-2023 0136 UT/2136 EDT 30-August-2023 so waning gibbous tonight in Aquarius. Moon rise near 2021 EDT. As the Moon rose higher, the fields lit up with moonlight. The Moon hit me in the eye like a big pizza pie, its amore 😊 The Moon and Saturn separated by a bit more than 19.5 degrees according to Stellarium 23.2. I enjoyed views of Saturn ranging 31x to 111x views using TeleVue eyepieces with my 90-mm refractor telescope. The moons Titan and Rhea were distinct in the north up and mirror reverse view. Skies clear, temperature 17C, winds 360/7 knots, h=62%. It was a relaxing evening out and I could see three or four satellites in the early period pass by, most were polar orbiting near 2nd magnitude. Saturn rose above a tree line near 2100 EDT, an easy target to view. Saturn provided more detail at 71x and 111x using TeleVue 14-mm Delos and TeleVue 9-mm Nagler. Hint of Cassini division along with some cloud banding. The rings are closing. Before viewing Saturn, I enjoyed some low power views of Arcturus at 31x and unaided eye views of the summer triangle (Deneb, Vega, and Altair regions).
    Neat. Sounds really interesting and I've often pondered getting a high scale telescope but am not very knowledgeable about the hobby and don't have the slightest idea of where to begin. I don't want to spend too much money but at the same time want a reasonably powerful model with programmable coordinates and memory capabilities. I can't go too big due to limited storage space but am under the belief that bigger is better? Anyways if you can point me in the right direction I'd appreciate it, but if not then that's fine too. You just sounded very knowledgeable on the matter so I figured I'd give it a shot.
    Look forward to a response but also accept the idea that you may not want to commit your time helping someone you don't even know. Either way best of luck in your endeavors exploring the cosmos via your 🔭
    Reply
  • rod
    Boy_Named_Sioux said:
    Neat. Sounds really interesting and I've often pondered getting a high scale telescope but am not very knowledgeable about the hobby and don't have the slightest idea of where to begin. I don't want to spend too much money but at the same time want a reasonably powerful model with programmable coordinates and memory capabilities. I can't go too big due to limited storage space but am under the belief that bigger is better? Anyways if you can point me in the right direction I'd appreciate it, but if not then that's fine too. You just sounded very knowledgeable on the matter so I figured I'd give it a shot.
    Look forward to a response but also accept the idea that you may not want to commit your time helping someone you don't even know. Either way best of luck in your endeavors exploring the cosmos via your 🔭
    Okay, I do not use any sophisticated telescopes with smart technology or computer systems or dial in a coordiante and see if you can see the object :) My 90-mm refractor telescope I purchased in 1991 and use TeleVue eyepieces chiefly, along with some Orion and Celestron models. 1.25-inch focuser. The refractor is mounted on a Vixen PortaII altazimuth mount using dovetail plate and tube rings, just like a rifle scope is mounted (base and rings). The targeting device is a simple, Telrad. A good star chart and easy alignment of the Telrad target view, I am in stargazing fun mode :) In 2018 I purchased an Orion XT10i Newtonian. It has a programmable pad, but I still use a Telrad on it, so easy to adjust and find objects in the night sky quickly without aligning on bright stars about 60-degrees apart. The focuser takes 2-inch and 1.25-inch eyepieces. I use Starry Night application and Stellarium as well as monthly Sky & Telescope charts. If you do not have binoculars, that could be an easy start. I use 10x50 pair. Newtonian telescopes require parodic adjustments, collimation to keep the views in sharp focus. I adjust and clean my primary mirror (and secondary mirror if needed) once per year along with collimation. The refractor telescope min maintenance, occasional eyepiece cleaning and objective lens. I have a stargazing database too I developed using MS ACCESS DB.

    When it comes to the Pentagon website, it would be interesting to show all the amateur telescope observer locations and many hours of stargazing (my MS ACCESS DB shows the number of hours for my observing sessions) where no UAP/UFOs are reported being seen and compare to where others claim to see these objects along with the number of hours, they claim to have seen them. In more than 30 years of active stargazing as well as solar observing (I use a solar filter), nothing to report here. I do see weather balloons up very high passing by in the jet stream and also brightly colored party balloons floating by but no ET buzzing me :)
    Reply
  • Dave
    A UFO or UAP sighting is an extremely rare experience. An astronomer in his or her lifetime may not see one. And yet, the President of the United States may see one. Experienced navy pilot David Fravor saw one. A very credible witness. The Pentagon in the same breath will say there is no credible evidence. Navy pilot Ryan Graves saw one. A very credible witness. The Pentagon in the same breath will say there is no credible evidence. In both instances the UAP's in question were observed performing maneuvers that defy the laws of physics. These pilots did not see the planet Venus. They saw spacecraft. The AARO will tell you that there is no evidence of any object that defies the laws of physics.
    Even my 3 year old grandson can tell you that the AARO and the Pentagon are lying. Ryan Graves and David Fravor are telling the truth. Fravor and Graves know what they saw, non human intelligent lifeforms observing the earth.
    Reply
  • billslugg
    The main problem is humans are prone to misinterpretation. We can take a credible observer at his or her word that they saw something, but we cannot use that to prove an ET origin. Here is an example where an airline pilot mistook Venus for a UFO that was rushing towards him, put it into a dive, injured some passengers. In science, something must be repeatable by an independent party. No amount of "one time" eyewitness accounts or images can meet that requirement. If you had a piece of a UFO that several different labs could analyze, that would meet the standard. Anecdotal accounts and images cannot prove the case and are only sufficient for helping to justify further research.
    https://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/sleepy-pilot-mistakes-planet-venus-oncoming-plane/story?id=16158107#:~:text=The%20pilot%20indicated%20that%20a%20U.S.%20Air%20Force,jet.%20He%20forced%20the%20plane%20into%20a%20dive.
    Reply