Hikers caught bright triangular UAP over Chilean Mountains

Hikers caught bright triangular UAP over Chilean Mountains
The 20 best Alien & UFO documentaries for those who want to believe and to freak You out tonight

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After seeing Steven Spielberg's "Disclosure Day," check out these real-life accounts of strange aerial sightings.
What is it about UFOs that we humans find so fascinating? Is it the desire to know that there may be life beyond our planet? Is there something about these flying objects being unidentified that makes us feel like amateur detectives? Is it the conspiracy element that drives us to seek answers that the government may be covering up?
No matter what drives our interest, it's the intangible mystery of it all that connects UFO enthusiasts. For decades, documentarians have been intrigued by stories of UFO sightings, from centuries-spanning intros to the subject like UFOs: The Secret History (2010), to character-driven pieces such as Curse of the Man Who Sees UFOs (2016), to the prolific works of James Fox.
Ahead, we're looking at some of the best UFO documentaries that explore what may be out there, for those of us who want to believe.
Director Randall Nickerson spent more than a decade gathering material for this documentary, which tells the story of a massive otherworldly sighting and the psychological effects of not being believed. On Sept. 16, 1994, 60 children claimed they saw a UFO on their school grounds in rural Zimbabwe; their accounts were dismissed, but the group is still sticking to their story nearly 30 years later. Ariel Phenomenon follows one of those witnesses as she returns to the site of the event as an adult, bringing in a BBC reporter and a Harvard professor to corroborate her story — and those of her classmates — for the first time. —Katie Rife
If the title of this documentary isn't enough to sell you on it, the highly entertaining story therein surely will. The cursed man who sees UFOs is Christo Roppolo, an eccentric Californian who claims to have videotaped multiple sightings over the years. Director Justin Gaar joins him on various pursuits to capture more footage, and he (and most viewers) find it impossible not to be charmed by Roppolo's enthusiasm. As the film shifts to a more poignant meditation on Roppolo's life beyond his hunt for aliens, Gaar shows how investigating the human observer is just as fascinating as what they observe. —Kevin Jacobsen
James Fox is a mainstay of the UFO sighting scene, and his film for the History Channel is considered one of the most thorough and well-researched documentaries on the “nuts and bolts” side of extraterrestrial research. Fox’s focus here is on the link between the U.S. military and the UFO phenomenon: What do they know, how long have they known it, and why aren’t they sharing this information with the public? His approach is straightforward and fact-based, utilizing footage from congressional hearings and press conferences, along with interviews with retired military and government officials, to lend an air of legitimacy to the subject. —K.R.
David Huggins, a New Jersey-based artist who claims to have had a consensual sexual relationship with a female alien that lasted for several years, could be nothing more than a joke. What makes this documentary about Huggins so good, though, is that it doesn’t treat him as one, instead using his story as a jumping-off point into an earnest exploration of the nature of belief and, indeed, of reality itself. Sequences of Huggins explaining his artwork — a series of paintings depicting his encounters that numbers in the hundreds — to skeptical gallery-hoppers skillfully strike a tricky tonal balance, and the addition of a religious studies professor who compares Huggins’ experiences to those of medieval saints brings a fresh, fascinating perspective. —K.R.
Bill Ryan in 'Mirage Men'
Credit: Perception Management Productions/ Youtube
This provocative documentary, based on the book of the same name by Mark Pilkington and John Lundberg, presents a radical alternative theory of UFOs: that they’re all lies. What the directors posit is that, 60 years ago, the U.S. military deliberately concocted the extraterrestrial phenomenon as a way to distract the public from classified weapons research, and that the government has been manipulating belief in aliens ever since. Interviews with former members of the AFOSI (Air Force Office of Special Investigations) officers support Pilkington and Lundberg’s case, and the film has a spooky aura that makes you feel as if you’re being watched. But by whom? —K.R.
Another documentary investigation of a global extraterrestrial event, this film focuses on the Varginha UFO Incident, which began in the winter of 1996 when three teenage girls saw a four-foot-tall creature with a huge head and red eyes they described as “the devil” in Varginha, Brazil. Things get even weirder from there as documentarian James Fox shines a light on a lesser-known example of a so-called UFO “flap” in his deep-dive, interview-based style. —K.R.
Billing itself as “the definitive investigation of the UFO phenomenon,” this 2003 film was originally produced for the Sci-Fi Channel, and its reputation has only grown in the years since its release. It also marked the directorial debut of James Fox, a name that appears multiple times on this list. Fans praise the documentary for the depth of its research and its level-headed approach to what can be a very out-there topic. It’s convinced of the existence of UFOs, and argues this point passionately, which was a risky stance to take 20-plus years ago — but, given revelations since, it’s a stance that’s aged as well as the documentary itself. —K.R.
Documentarian and UFO expert James Fox’s 2020 follow-up to I Know What I Saw incorporates new information that’s come to light in the decade since that previous film’s release, creating an informative overview of what we know about what the U.S. government knows about UFOs (or, to use the more official term, UAPs — unidentified anomalous phenomena). The documentary covers revelations from The New York Times’ bombshell 2017 investigation into the Pentagon’s clandestine UFO program, pairing it with new evidence for a movie that comes with the endorsement of both Jacques Vallée (a scientist/UFOlogist) and now-deceased U.S. Senator Harry Reid. —K.R.
If you're looking for a primer on the history of unidentified flying objects and our cultural understanding of them, this is where to start. Director David Cherniack doesn't resort to sensationalist storytelling; rather, he treats the subject with earnest sincerity as we learn about 19th-century sightings, explore what might really have happened in Roswell, and hear modern-day accounts. Bolstered by expert analysis, the film provides a fascinating look into governmental cover-ups over the years and humanity's natural curiosity for what may be out there. —K.J.
UFOlogist Steven M. Greer is the founder of the Disclosure Project, a group that advocates for classified information on extraterrestrials to be made available to the public. This crowdfunded 2017 documentary is part of that mission, collecting theories and stories from the early-‘60s through the present day that all point toward a government cover-up of the truth about aliens. Like I Know What I Saw, this film relies heavily on interviews with retired military personnel to give it credibility, along with archival footage to bolster Greer’s convincing case. —K.R.
The long-running newsmagazine show has performed dozens of investigations into extraterrestrial encounters, but this 2022 episode, part of the revival series on Netflix, is among the best. Its focus is on the UFO sightings that occurred all over West Michigan in 1994, where multiple people — including a National Weather Service meteorologist — saw what they described as clusters of lights flying over Lake Michigan before abruptly disappearing. This episode, the second episode of Volume 3, is structured around first-person interviews, and while it offers no clear answers, it’s pretty darn compelling. —K.R.
Like Ariel Phenomenon and Love & Saucers, this UFO documentary from director Alan Stivelman focuses on the human consequences of extraterrestrial contact. The film follows Juan, an Argentinian gaucho whose life was so shattered by an alien encounter that he still lives as a hermit and refuses to talk about what happened to him even 30 years later. Astronomer and UFOlogist Jacques Vallée appears to shed additional light on Juan’s story, and dramatic effects sequences dramatize the emotional impact of his close encounter. —K.R.
13. The Age of Disclosure (2026)

What makes The Age of Disclosure so unique is that it’s told from the perspective of government and military officials. Instead of interviewing the usual crackpot weirdos that so many UFO documentaries do, The Age of Disclosure features interviews with senators like Kirsten Gillibrand, ex-CIA officials, Navy pilots, and former NORAD director James D. Cobb.
The major point that The Age of Disclosure wants to reveal is how deep the US government and military truly are in the search for aliens and UFO technology, and how desperate both are to keep American citizens in the dark. Whether it’s to protect secret info from foreign governments or to keep society from devolving into panic, the documentary claims there is a lot that the average person doesn’t know. It’s a seriously compelling and shocking documentary purely because of the number of big-name figures it was able to attract. If you liked the conspiracy aspect of Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), you’ll love the alleged real conspiracies happening in our government right now that The Age of Disclosure uncovers.
14. The Manhattan Alien Abduction ( 2024 )

The three-part docuseries The Manhattan Alien Abduction tells the wild story of Linda Napolitano, who claims that in 1989 aliens abducted her in the middle of Manhattan. The story also purports that dozens of witnesses have stepped forward to corroborate her claims.
But there are cracks in the tale, like how none of the witnesses have ever publicly identified themselves, and one woman who claims to know for certain that Napolitano is making it all up. That makes this Netflix docuseries so gripping because it isn’t just an abduction story; it also examines whether there’s a potential hoax and scam behind it all. If you loved Hulu’s crypto-turned-cartel docuseries Sasquatch (2021), you’re going to love all the questions, conflicts, and mysteries in The Manhattan Alien Abduction.
15. The Mothman of Point Pleasant ( 2017 )

The Mothman is one of the wildest and strangest stories in American history. Here are the facts: Starting in late 1966, in Point Pleasant, West Virginia, dozens of locals started seeing a strange winged creature. Soon after, UFO sightings spiked, residents claimed ominous men in black visited them, and some even got phone calls from a strange man who identified himself as Indrid Cold. The hysteria continued to grow for a year until December 1967, when the Silver Bridge connecting Point Pleasant to Gallipolis, Ohio, collapsed into the river below, killing 46 people, all while the Mothman allegedly flew overhead.
Was the Mothman a cryptid, an alien, or just a sandhill crane? Why so many UFO sightings? Who were the men in black? Were they from the government or aliens themselves? Or was the entire thing a case of mass hysteria? If so, how could it all culminate in a very real disaster? Nobody knows for sure, but everyone has theories. For a complete timeline of events, including interviews with locals, newspaper transcripts, and more, The Mothman of Point Pleasant is a great documentary to watch. If you loved 2002’s The Mothman Prophecies, check out this doc to discover the true story that inspired it.
16. The Program ( 2024 )

In 2017, The New York Times broke a story about how the US government had secretly been looking into the possibilities of UFOs. Since then, we’ve found ourselves in a new era of alien obsession and ufology. The main difference is that this time, members of Congress and the military are also asking these questions.
The Program is a documentary about the alleged government/military cover-up of UFOs and alien encounters. It shows real footage from congressional hearings with people who claim to have in-depth knowledge that, until recently, was purposefully being suppressed. For fans who loved The Age of Disclosure and its deep dive into the government’s potential knowledge of UFOs, The Program will be an engrossing watch you don’t want to miss.
17. Travis: The True Story of Travis Walton ( 2015 )

One of the most famous alien abduction stories ever is that of Travis Walton. In 1975, he and a group of workers were driving through the forest when they reported a bright light in the sky. Walton allegedly ran toward the light and was beamed up. He then went missing for six days before returning to society and giving an in-depth abduction story that involved alien probing and more. His story became the basis for the 1993 film Fire in the Sky.
Travis: The Trust Story of Travis Walton pulls back the Hollywood glamour and presents the timeline of events told by Walton himself, as well as numerous paranormal researchers and skeptics. It also dives into the mental struggles that Walton has had throughout his life, dealing with the fame and scrutiny that came with his story. If you’re a fan of Fire in the Sky, you’ll want to check out the true story behind it.
18. The Rendlesham UFO: The British Roswell (2025 )
In 1980, a well-documented UFO sighting happened at the RAF Woodbridge base in England’s Rendlesham Forest. Military personnel reported seeing strange lights in the forest, and when they investigated, it turned out to be a UFO. The official report from the RAF says the lights were able to break apart and fly off in different directions, and the areas they touched tested positive for radiation.
The Rendlesham UFO - The British Roswell sees a group of investigators travel to the forest to commune with whatever entity caused the ordeal. The film mixes mysticism with ufology to create a unique, new-age alien documentary unlike any other. For enthusiasts who believe that UFOs and metaphysics are intertwined, this is a great watch.
19. The Phoenix Lights - Beyond Top Secret - Expanded and Updated (2018 )

One of the most well-documented UFO encounters ever happened in 1997 over Phoenix, Arizona. For almost two hours, residents of Phoenix saw strange glowing orbs in the sky, all moving synchronously. With dozens of eye-witness videos and thousands of reports made to the police (including one by Kurt Russell), there’s no denying that something was over the Arizona skies that night.
Even wilder, there’s still no formal explanation for the events. Skeptics point to the large number of Air Force bases near Phoenix and say it could have been the Air Force flying jets… but the military has never said it was flying jets that evening, especially completely silent ones (and if you live near an Air Force base like me, you know how loud fighter jets are). For a documentary that explores one of the wildest mass UFO sightings in human history, you need to watch The Phoenix Lights - Beyond Top Secret. If you love the historical inspiration behind the film Battle: Los Angeles (2011), but want something more rooted in history, this documentary will definitely make your jaw drop.
20. Moment of Contact ( 2022 )

In 1996, an alleged alien encounter happened in Varginha, Brazil, where a group of girls said they spotted some kind of injured creature, and shortly after, witnessed tons of military personnel throughout the town. Skeptics say it was all a misunderstanding and that the girls likely saw a disabled homeless man covered in dirt. But believers say it’s the biggest alien cover-up since Roswell.
Moment of Contact sheds light on this story and follows a team of filmmakers as they head to Brazil and search for answers. If you’ve ever seen The Cove (2009) and love the way it’s filmed like a real movie following the documentary crew on their journey, you’ll enjoy the similar vibe of Moment of Contact. Even for non-believers, it’s a fun adventure to watch the crew search for clues and information from the infamous 1996 event.
Secret NASA audio captures 'alien base' comment during moon mission debrief

A third batch of UFO files was released by the Pentagon on Friday morning.
The document drop included recorded NASA briefings after Apollo 16, which referred to an 'alien starbase' on the dark side of the moon. The comments were not included in the official transcript from the 1972 mission.
Among the most bizarre releases was a 1958 CIA memorandum discussing a phone conversation with a scientist regarding concerns about a destroyed 'space message and its transmitter.'
The scientist, Dr Leon Davidson, was a chemical engineer who worked on the Manhattan Project and at Los Alamos, and studied UFOs.
The third set of documents was quietly uploaded to the Department of War's website on the same day as the release of the Hollywood blockbuster Disclosure Day.
According to the Pentagon, there have been 'unprecedented levels of interest' in the UFO files, with the website receiving more than 1.7 billion hits worldwide since it launched in May.
The latest trove adds dozens of documents, photographs and videos to the government's rapidly expanding public archive of unexplained sightings.
Follow along for the latest updates.
UFO leakers expose disturbing government tactics used to keep America's alien cover-up a secret
Americans have been told that anyone with knowledge of secret UFO programs should come forward.
Members of Congress have urged witnesses to testify, government agencies have established official reporting channels and advocacy groups have promised support and protection. Public interest in UFOs has surged to levels not seen in decades.
Yet behind the growing push for disclosure, a very different story is emerging from the people who say they answered the call to step forward.
A trio of whistleblowers and witnesses recently took the stage at Contact in the Desert, the world's largest UFO-themed gathering, claiming they have paid a devastating personal price for sharing what they know.
Air Force veteran Dylan Borland, who testified before Congress last year about encountering a 100-foot triangular craft near Langley Air Force Base, painted a troubling picture of life after coming forward.
'Somebody... falsified classified information and lied to the government to persuade the government and is threatening me with treason,' Borland said.
'You want to know how my life is? The rest of my life that will be hung over my head. Statute of limitations for treason is life.'
Former national security official Matthew Brown described a disturbing home intrusion that he believes was meant as intimidation, while US Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Alexandro Wiggins said he fears his involvement in the UFO issue could jeopardize his retirement and future career prospects.

A trio of whistleblowers and witnesses recently took the stage at Contact in the Desert, the world's largest UFO-themed gathering, claiming they have paid a devastating personal price for sharing what they know
The Daily Mail has not independently verified the allegations made by Borland, Brown or Wiggins.
The Pentagon has repeatedly stated that service members and government employees can report UFO incidents through official channels, while the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) has said it is committed to gathering information from witnesses and whistleblowers.
Investigative journalist Jeremy Corbell, who joined the three men on stage last weekend, told the Daily Mail: 'You heard Senior Chief Wiggins. He is an active-duty Navy servicemember, a single father and just one year away from retirement.
They pressured him, saying they would get the Secretary of Defense to force him to sit for a deposition, even though he had already publicly stated that he respectfully declined,' Corbell said.
Is the Gulf Stream about to collapse? Mysterious 'cold blob' in the Atlantic suggests key current is weakening, scientists warn
A mysterious 'cold blob' has emerged in the North Atlantic – and scientists say it indicates a critical ocean current is on the verge of collapsing.
While the rest of the Earth's oceans have grown warmer amid the building El Niño, one patch of sea southeast of Greenland has remained stubbornly chilly.
For decades, scientists have been baffled over why this 'hole' is cooling down while everywhere else heats up.
Now, a group of researchers argue that it is because the critical Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is slowing down.
AMOC is a vast network of ocean currents carrying warmth from the tropics to Europe, of which the Gulf Stream is one small part.
However, recent data suggests that human–caused climate change could be driving this system to a tipping point that could trigger its total collapse.
Were AMOC to collapse, it would plunge northern Europe into a 'new Ice Age' and trigger famines by disrupting crucial monsoon rains in Africa and Asia.
Lead author Professor Stefan Rahmstorf, of Potsdam University, told New Scientist: 'Even if, in some modelling approaches, it seems possible that the cold blob is caused by the atmosphere, in fact, the data show it is caused by the ocean.'

A 'cold blob' in the North Atlantic could be a sign that the crucial Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is slowing down
AMOC plays a crucial role in keeping the planet's current climate stable by moving heat, nutrients, and carbon around the world.
The 'engine' driving this global conveyor belt is the cold, salty waters that form in the North Atlantic around Greenland.
As this dense water sinks towards the bottom of the ocean, warm water from the Tropics is pulled northwards, and the cycle keeps the current moving.
However, scientists are concerned that fresh water from Greenland's melting glaciers is disrupting this process by diluting the water and making it less dense.
Studies have shown that AMOC has already slowed by about 15 per cent since the mid–20th century due to climate change, and could be driven into total collapse in the future.
Since a slowing AMOC would result in less warm water arriving in the North Atlantic, scientists had suggested that it could be part of the explanation for the cold blob.
However, our direct observations of AMOC only date back around 20 years, which makes drawing a strong connection challenging.
Likewise, other researchers have proposed a competing theory, arguing that the cold blob is actually being caused by changing wind conditions.

The North Atlantic 'cold blob' or 'warming hole' is a region of ocean that has been getting cooler even while the rest of the planet gets hotter
In 2022, scientists claimed that the rapid warming in the Arctic has shifted the jet stream over the cold blob region and that these strong westerly winds are drawing more heat out of the ocean.
However, a group of researchers led by Professor Rahmstorf now say they have found strong evidence linking the cold blob to AMOC's decline.
Instead of using computer–based climate models, the researchers used 'climate reanalyses', which are based on direct measurements from satellites, buoys and ships.
They found that surface heat loss has actually decreased in the cold blob since 1995, meaning that the wind is not taking more heat away.
Likewise, they discovered that the cold blob is not just cooling at the surface, but also at 3,280 feet (1,000 m) below the waves.
According to the researchers, this clearly shows that the warming hole is being caused by a change in the way ocean currents distribute heat and not by the wind.
This is vitally important because it would make the North Atlantic cold blob one of the 'early warning signals' that AMOC is weakening.
In their paper, published in Geophysical Research Letters, the researchers conclude: 'Our analysis supports the interpretation of the observed "cold blob" as a sign of a weakening AMOC.'

Scientists found that the amount of heat being lost from the surface has actually decreased over time (illustrated), meaning that it is not wind–driven heat loss causing the cooling

Researchers found that the cool spot is also getting colder beneath the surface, which suggests that it is being driven by changes in ocean currents, such as the AMOC
More immediately, this means that the cold blob could also threaten the 'subpolar gyre', a massive swirling current that surrounds the North Atlantic.
This current helps to bring salty water to the surface to feed the process of cooling and sinking that drives AMOC.
However, if the subpolar gyre failed, it would actually cool the UK and northern Europe even faster than a full AMOC collapse.
A recent Parliamentary report warned that the collapse of the subpolar gyre could create 2°C (3.6°F) and 3°C (5.4°F) of cooling over the North Atlantic, threatening the viability of agriculture in the UK.
Professor Rahmstorf warns: 'The subpolar gyre passing this tipping point could already lead to serious climate impacts in western Europe as early as in the 2040s'
Atlantic 'cold blob' caused by weakening ocean current system that's likely nearing a tipping point, reanalysis finds

A part of the Atlantic Ocean, just south of Greenland and Iceland, has been cooling off while the rest of the world gets hotter. This enigmatic patch is often referred to as the "cold blob" and scientists have been trying to figure out the mechanisms behind its cooling. While some studies have blamed increased heat loss at the sea surface, others suggest weaker currents are bringing less heat to the area. Now, a new study, published in Geophysical Research Letters, provides additional support for the latter—now using reanalysis data based on direct weather observations instead of just modeling.
The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is a system of ocean currents that acts as a planetary "conveyor belt," moving warm surface water from the tropics northward and cold, dense water southward. This ocean circulation plays an important role in regulating Earth's climate and redistributing heat. Many previous studies have linked the Atlantic cold blob to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC). They indicate that a weakening of this system may be bringing less warm water to the area.
The authors of the new study say that this makes sense since the cold blob region is where the AMOC delivers its heat and passes it to the atmosphere. They note that other studies have used observed sea surface salinity changes and paleoclimatic proxy data to suggest that the AMOC has been slowing down since preindustrial time.

"A further weakening of the AMOC could have major repercussions for future climate for millennia, given that the AMOC is known to have a tipping point beyond which it is likely to shut down," the study authors write.
Still, some think that the cold blob is caused by surface heat loss and atmospheric effects, but models and proxies have not reached consensus.
The research team decided to back up modeling with observational data to attempt to settle the debate. They used observation-based reanalysis data for ocean heat content and surface fluxes, including satellite and temperature measurements and combined this with climate models. They also conducted a heat budget analysis, which quantified the balance between incoming and outgoing heat in the cold blob region. The data for quality reanalysis goes back to 1955 and the satellite data goes back to 1993, allowing the team to determine changes over many decades.
Their results indicated that the cooling in the "cold blob" is a deep ocean phenomenon, driven by changes in ocean heat transport, not just surface temperature changes. The data indicated that surface heat loss has actually decreased in the cold blob area, contradicting the idea that increased surface cooling is responsible.
The team writes, "To explain a cooling trend in the cold blob region by surface heat loss while the AMOC is steady, this heat loss would need to increase to outcompete the AMOC's heat supply. The opposite is seen in the ERA5 data: surface heat loss has in fact decreased (since 1993 significantly, since 1955 slightly) over the cold blob. The latter is to be expected when the AMOC supplies less heat to the region and thus less is released to the atmosphere."
Further weakening of this crucial current system could have far-reaching effects on weather, sea level and ecosystems, according to many climate models. The researchers urge policymakers to think of risk management strategies to lessen the impact that the AMOC tipping point might bring.
They write, "Given the well‐established existence of a tipping point of the AMOC, as well as recent studies finding a range of different 'early warning signals' of the ocean circulation approaching such a tipping point, the strong evidence for a weakening AMOC is a serious concern for society and policy. While large uncertainty remains over how close Earth is to this tipping point, standard CMIP6 simulations of future global warming scenarios suggest it is crossed in a substantial subset of these model simulations around the middle of this century."
Written for you by our author Krystal Kasal, edited by Gaby Clark, and fact-checked and reviewed by Robert Egan—this article is the result of careful human work. We rely on readers like you to keep independent science journalism alive. If this reporting matters to you, please consider a donation (especially monthly). You'll get an ad-free account as a thank-you.
Journal information: Geophysical Research Letters
Mysterious ‘cold blob’ in the Atlantic suggests the AMOC is weakening
A patch of ocean south-east of Greenland is the only place on Earth that is cooling, and it could be a sign that the warm water "conveyor belt" in the Atlantic is slowing down
By Alec Luhn

The “cold blob” appears in a data visualisation showing average temperatures in 2015, relative to the 1951-80 average
NASA Scientific Visualization Studio/Goddard Space Flight Center
Over the past 150 years, Earth’s entire surface has been warming, except for one patch of the north Atlantic. Located south-east of Greenland, this area has cooled by as much as 1°C and is known as the “warming hole” or the “cold blob”.
The swath of ocean — dubbed the “cold blob” or “warming hole” — has cooled by nearly 1 degree Celsius (1.8 Fahrenheit) since 1900.
Scientists have long debated whether this anomaly is driven by heat loss from the ocean surface due to changes to winds and clouds, or whether it’s a signal of the weakening of a critical system of ocean currents, which transports heat. The new research concludes it’s the latter, and the finding points to a worrying future.
The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC, works like a vast ocean conveyor belt, pulling warm water from the tropics to the Northern Hemisphere, where it cools, sinks and flows back south.
A raft of research suggests this system is weakening as human-driven global warming melts ice and causes a surge of freshwater into the ocean, disrupting the AMOC’s delicate balance of heat and salinity. Some scientists warn the AMOC is heading toward a tipping point, potentially as early at this century, which would mean a future collapse is locked in.
An AMOC shutdown would be a global catastrophe, causing accelerated sea level rise on the US East Coast, plunging Europe into a winter deep freeze and shifting the monsoon in Africa, driving prolonged droughts.
The cold blob has been interpreted by some as a fingerprint of AMOC change, because it’s the region to which the AMOC brings much of its heat.
To better unravel what’s happening in this part of the Atlantic, the study scientists combined real-world ocean heat data from instruments and satellites with climate models.
They found that cooling in the cold blob was not just happening on the surface but also deep in the ocean, where atmospheric conditions like winds and clouds have a much weaker influence.
All signs point to the influence of the AMOC, the study found. “It is changing ocean heat transport” which is driving the cooling of the cold blob, said Stefan Rahmstorf, a study author and a physics and oceans professor at Potsdam University, Germany.
There is also plenty of other evidence the AMOC is weakening, independent of the cold blob, he added, with some studies suggesting it’s at the weakest it’s been in around 1,000 years.
Previous studies have demonstrated it’s possible to generate a cold blob through atmospheric conditions alone, said René van Westen, a marine and atmospheric researcher at Utrecht University, who was not involved in the research. But the fact the new study found consistent results across different datasets “strengthens the robustness of the conclusions,” he said.
David Thornally, a professor of ocean and climate science at University College London, also not involved in the research, said that the study bolsters evidence of a link between the cold blob and a weakening AMOC, but cautioned that the sparseness of real-world data means the available datasets “are best viewed as good approximations rather than perfect representations of reality.”
Uncertainties remain, he told CNN, and “I don’t think (this study) will be the final word on the issue.”
Jonathan Baker, a senior climate scientist at the UK Met Office, agreed, telling CNN “I would view this study as adding evidence for an AMOC contribution to the cold blob, rather than definitively settling the question.”
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New UFO files describe spinning discs, glowing orbs and one object shaped like a potato
WASHINGTON (AP) - One was a rotating disc that sent out beams of light. Another was a shining red orb of a hue the observer had never seen before. Then there was the one compared to a potato, and also a bean, but with a coat of shimmering, fish-like scales.
Those were some of the UFOs described in documents released Friday by the Pentagon, the third release since President Donald Trump directed his administration to give the public full disclosure around what it knows about alien life and mysterious objects in the sky.
The 72 files released on Friday don´t include the kind of blockbuster revelation that Trump has teased. There´s no conclusive evidence of alien life or government cover-ups. But the files reveal new details about some recent sightings, along with the government's efforts to explain what many find inexplicable.
Take, for instance, the potato.
It happened in 2022, on a brisk February morning in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Five U.S. Army members at Fort Carson walked out of an office building and saw something strange hovering over Cheyenne Mountain, a few miles to the west.
"The object was `potato´ shaped with distinct edges and appeared to look painted in a creamy/whitish opalescent color," according to an account in an FBI document. It was made up of "articulating fish scales or panels that were non-symmetrical, non-overlapping and irregular shaped."

FILE - A patron passes a painting inside the International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell, N.M., on June 10, 1997.
(AP Photo/Eric Draper, File)
It stayed motionless, shimmering, for about two minutes, the men recounted to the FBI. Then it vanished in the blink of an eye. None of the men had phones on them. There's no video, no photos.
Authorities tasked with investigating the episode said they couldn't explain it easily. Their report found - with "low confidence" - that it may have been "backscattering of sunlight." Low light from the rising sun could have reflected off the mountain's snow and illuminated low clouds above, it said.
The men insisted it was a clear, cloudless day. No aircraft or balloons were believed to be in the area. The four-page report, heavily redacted and attributed only to an "intelligence community partner," said it didn't appear to be technology from a foreign adversary. An FBI rendering looks just like one might imagine - like a scaly, pale potato above a low mountain.
The case remains unsolved.
A similarly inclusive report examined a series of sightings in October 2023, this time by six federal law enforcement agents. Multiple times, the agents said, they saw a bright orange orb appear above a ridgeline and spawn two to four smaller red orbs.
The orbs disappeared quickly most of the time, but in one instance, the agents said an orb hovered motionless in the sky for several hours. There's no video or photo evidence of the sightings, the report said.
An analysis dated this month goes through a series of possible explanations. Military aircraft were conducting exercises in the area, and some deployed flares. There could have been other testing of developmental U.S. technology nearby, the report said. It listed those as "plausible" but not conclusive explanations.
Yet it didn't rule out the possibility that it was some "unrecognized technology." With relatively little evidence to work from, it called for more investigation into the case.
The analysis was conducted by the Pentagon´s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, which Congress created in 2022 to investigate reports of unidentified anomalous phenomena, also known as UAP. Previous reports from the agency say it has not found any evidence of extraterrestrial life.
Among the most recent files is an FBI report from February detailing a sighting in an undisclosed part of the Northeast United States. A person whose name is blacked out reported coming home and seeing an intense light hovering below the trees in their backyard. It was described as a sphere of a "brilliant and beautiful" red, which the person had never seen.
"Inside the red sphere, at the center, there appeared to be what (redacted) described as a `white plasma sun´ about the size of a basketball," according to the FBI file.
A second sphere appeared, and both silently flew out of sight, the file says. Cellphone footage shows two glowing red orbs floating across the sky. The White House shared the video on social media on Friday with no message beyond the file´s name: "`NORTHEASTERN ORB SIGHTING,´ 2025."
So far, the Trump administration's transparency campaign has led to the release of about 300 files dating to the 1940s, some brand-new to the public and some adding detail on previously known cases.
The newest batch includes a 2008 CIA report from Zimbabwe labeled as "never before released." On a July day above the country´s main airport, observers reportedly saw something straight out of a Hollywood movie: It was "disc-like in shape with a hollow center, and had a series of rotating lights on the underside of the airframe."
"At one point during observation, `beams´ were observed emanating from the object," the CIA report said.
The lights changed colors, and the aircraft ascended high out of view, the report says. There was debate about where it came from, according to the report, with some suggesting a foreign government and some positing "extraterrestrial origins."

The Pentagon is pictured in Washington, Thursday, June 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Mystery of missing UFO-linked Air Force general deepens as new photo reveals final moments before vanishing
A new picture of the missing Air Force general allegedly tied to UFO secrets has opened up an even greater mystery about the final hours before he vanished.
The photo captured retired Major General William Neil McCasland exiting a local sporting goods store in New Mexico with a mysterious parcel just a day before he walked out of his Albuquerque home on February 27.
The new clue was released by the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Office after a Freedom of Information Act request by Lauren Conlin, a reporter at Los Angeles Magazine.
McCasland was seen during the day wearing sunglasses and appearing alert and composed as he walked out of REI with the large white shipping bag and another smaller item tucked under his left arm.
It is not known what was in the mystery package, although such soft and malleable bags are often used for mailing clothing. The smaller, yellow item in McCasland's hand has been theorized to be a lightweight first aid kit by viewers online.
According to McCasland's wife, Susan Wilkerson, the Air Force veteran left behind his phone, wallet, wearable devices and prescription glasses when he left their home around 11am local time. She also claimed her husband 'planned not to be found.'
McCasland had also changed his clothes, leaving his normal attire behind, and only took a pair of boots and his .38-caliber revolver with him.
The general's disappearance has become a national talking point after it was revealed that he possessed both US nuclear and UFO-related secrets and his career allegedly connected him to several other scientists and nuclear workers who died or disappeared.

A new surveillance image shows retired Air Force general William Neil McCasland the day before he vanished without a trace on February 27

The item seen in McCasland's hand on February 26 has been compared to a waterproof first aid kit by viewers on social media
Trump releases THIRD bombshell tranche of UFO files revealing shape-shifting orbs over the US and CIA reports hidden for decades
The Trump administration has released a third tranche of previously classified UAP files, adding dozens of new documents, photographs and videos to the government's rapidly expanding archive of unexplained sightings.
The materials were uploaded to the Department of War's website on Friday morning and include a series of cases that investigators were unable to explain, leaving the nature of the phenomena unresolved definitively.
Among the newly released records is a 2025 FBI report describing a video captured by a citizen in the northeastern US.
According to the witness, a bright object hovered over their backyard as a 'brilliant red sphere' roughly the size of a basketball.
Another never-before-seen video shows what officials described as a 'plasma-like sphere' hovering above a pond at an undisclosed location in the US, appearing to shift shape and brightness as it moved.
Friday's release also includes dozens of long-hidden CIA files about mysterious sightings, revealing that the agency assembled a panel of top scientists to investigate 'flying saucers' amid fears the reports could clog military warning systems and spark mass hysteria.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said in a statement: 'The Department of War is in lockstep with President Trump to bring unprecedented transparency regarding our government’s understanding of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP).
'These files, hidden behind classifications, have long fueled justified speculation, and it’s time the American people see it for themselves. This release of declassified documents demonstrates the Trump Administration’s earnest commitment to unprecedented transparency.'

One video released on Friday shows what officials described as a 'plasma-like sphere' hovering above a pond at an undisclosed location in the US, appearing to shift shape and brightness as it moved. The incident was captured in 2025

Another video released on Friday, was taken by Americans in 2024. The footage shows glowing lights hanging over a pond in the northeastern region of the US
According to the Pentagon, there have been 'unprecedented levels of interest' in the UFO files, and the Department of War's website has received over 1.7 billion hits worldwide since its launch on May 8.
A second release took place two weeks later.
Many of the images and videos in today's release were submitted by American citizens, with officials noting that footage was captured using iPhones.
The FBI report describes the July 2025 sighting from a witness who parked their car after returning from work.
The sighting occurred within 25 miles of several other unexplained encounters, including the so-called 'Triangle Orbs,' 'Red Orb Rotation' and 'Orbs Over the Pond' incidents, in a sparsely populated area familiar to both witnesses.
The other unresolved video, also filmed in the northeastern US, is reported as showing a light source hovering over a pond at an estimated distance of 2,700 feet.
'The luminous object resembled a “plasma-like sphere” intermittently changing shape and luminosity,' the FBI description stated.
'At times, the primary light source appeared to separate into smaller luminous points.'
A smaller luminous object could be seen hovering just above the water beneath the primary light source, appearing distinct from any reflection on the surface.

Pictured is an artistic interpretation of a 2022 incident potentially involving a UFO reported near Colorado Springs, Colorado

Above is another artistic impression of a UFO sighting in 2023 submitted to the FBI from law enfrocement
According to the report, the object remained largely stationary for about 45 minutes before suddenly disappearing. The witness reported hearing no sound at any point during the encounter.
The footage was captured by a private citizen using an iPhone and was later analyzed and authenticated by the US government. Officials said the video was cropped to protect the witness's identity, but stressed that no other edits, enhancements or alterations were made to the footage.
Officials had previously indicated that the next UFO file release would include newly declassified CIA records, an agency that some whistleblowers have accused of playing a central role in concealing evidence of extraterrestrial activity.
However, the documents released Friday do not substantiate those allegations.
In one newly released CIA file labeled 'Scientific Advisory Panel on Unidentified Flying Objects, Report, 1952-1953,' officials warned that growing public fascination with flying saucers could become a national security risk by overwhelming military reporting channels and distracting personnel from genuine threats.
Among the cases discussed by the panel were the so-called 'Foo Fighters,' mysterious glowing objects reported by Allied pilots during World War II that appeared to fly alongside aircraft and perform unusual maneuvers.
The batch also includes a 1958 CIA memorandum detailing a conversation with Dr Leon Davidson about the alleged destruction of a mysterious 'space message,' and the device said to have transmitted it.
A censored version of the memo has long been publicly available.
Another newly released CIA record details a far more recent incident that reportedly triggered alarm within the intelligence community.
According to a cable dated July 2, 2008, CIA assets in Zimbabwe were placed on high alert after an unidentified object was spotted hovering above the country's main airport in Harare.
The cable, which was circulated throughout the US government and military during the final months of the George W. Bush administration, described a craft that 'hovered at an undetermined altitude directly over the Harare airport.'
RELATED
Pentagon releases 3rd batch of UFO files, detailing mysterious orb sightings:
Washington — The Pentagon on Friday released a new group of documents and videos related to UFOs, or UAPs, the third release since the government began a wave of new disclosures last month.
The latest batch includes 53 documents and 10 images from the CIA, FBI, NASA, the Department of Defense and other unspecified agencies, along with six videos and three NASA audio recordings. The videos show orb-like objects in the sky, while a set of images and clips offer "artistic interpretations" of reported sightings.
Several of the documents detail encounters reported by federal law enforcement officers in 2023, in which five agents reported seeing strange orbs on the horizon. One agent recounted their partner asking, "Are you seeing this?" as a glowing orb lit up the sky.
The Pentagon uploaded the files to its UFO website. Four of the videos show eyewitness footage of strange encounters, a shift from previous releases, which were dominated by military footage. The new videos, which were collected by the FBI, include details from interviews with the witnesses.
One encounter happened in July 2025. The video, titled "Northeastern Orb Sighting," shows two bright lights moving through the sky.
"The witnesses described the orbs' motion as silent and smooth, and as moving in tandem as though they were flying in formation or tethered together," the video description said, citing the FBI's interviews.
Another video, called "Orbs Over the Pond," shows an encounter from October 2024, which occurred within 25 miles of the Northeastern Orb Sighting. The footage shows "a light source below the horizon, hovering above a pond at an estimated distance of 2,700 feet," the Pentagon's description said.
"The luminous object resembled a 'plasma-like sphere' intermittently changing shape and luminosity. At times, the primary light source appeared to separate into smaller luminous points," the Pentagon said. "A luminous point below the primary source hovered just above the water and did not appear consistent with a surface reflection. The object remained generally stationary for approximately 45 minutes before disappearing."
One of the files includes documents from a panel convened by the CIA in 1952 and 1953, dubbed the "Scientific Advisory Panel on Unidentified Flying Objects." The panel concluded that flying saucers did not pose a physical threat, but recommended an official policy of "debunking" the issue to "strip the UFO subject of its mystery." The group warned that a "morbid national psychology" around UFOs could be exploited by adversaries.
Another intriguing disclosure centers around a series of strange events in the Western U.S. that occurred over the course of two days in October 2023. Five "federal law enforcement special agents" provided their accounts to the Pentagon's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, and each narrative is included in the files.
One agent said the sightings began with "weird lights moving along in groups miles away." Another said red lights "accelerated instantly and maneuvered with perfect, smooth coordination into a horizontal formation." A person identified as Witness 4 described smaller orbs "being hatched from the larger very bright orange light" multiple times, losing count "after five occurrences." Witness 3 said the discharged orbs were like "grapes being expelled from a basketball," and recalled their partner saying, "Are you seeing this?"
The FBI produced digital renderings of the agents' accounts to recreate the sightings. The Pentagon said that the renderings were prepared in 2026:
The files also include a July 2008 CIA report of a UFO sighting above the Harare International Airport in Zimbabwe that was transmitted to the White House Situation Room and the intelligence community. Individuals aware of the incident didn't know if the hovering object, which appeared to emanate "beams," was a reconnaissance device of a foreign government or extraterrestrial in nature.
According to observers, "the object was disc-like in shape with a hollow center, and had a series of rotating lights on the underside of the airframe." Its presence put the area on high alert.
A more recent sighting in 2022 near Colorado Springs, Colorado, describes a "potato"-shaped object that appeared painted in a "creamy/whitish opalescent color" that was "somewhat translucent with a slight shimmer." The FBI created an artistic interpretation based on the description:
After the object was reported to the Defense Department, an intelligence partner conducted an analysis that assessed with "low confidence" the sighting could have been attributed to "sunlight backscattering," where sunlight reflecting from snow on Cheyenne Mountain illuminated the underside of low-altitude clouds. Even with that analysis, the case remains unresolved as of this month.
The recent releases of files were prompted by an executive order President Trump signed earlier this year mandating the Pentagon to disclose more documents related to UFOs. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the move "demonstrates the Trump Administration's earnest commitment to unprecedented transparency."
The fungal network hidden beneath our feet: Secret web of fungi could circle Earth 2.7 TRILLION times
It might sound like something out of The Last of Us, but scientists have uncovered a hidden fungal network lurking beneath our feet.
Almost every part of the Earth's surface is criss–crossed by tiny living threads known as arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi.
Now, a study has calculated just how colossal this secret web really is.
Placed end–to–end, scientists say Earth's fungi network stretches over 68.35 quadrillion miles (110 quadrillion km).
That's long enough to circle the planet 2.7 trillion times, or to cover the distance from the Earth to the sun one billion times over.
Researchers also found that the network contains approximately 300 megatonnes of carbon – about five times the weight of all living humans on Earth put together.
Lead author Dr Justin Stewart, with the Society for the Protection of Underground Networks (SPUN), says: 'It is hard to overstate the importance and enormity of these fungi.
'There could be up to 10 meters (33 feet) of mycorrhizal network in just a teaspoon of soil.'

Scientists have mapped a vast hidden network of fungi beneath our feet, which could stretch 2.7 trillion times around the Earth

Stretched end to end, these complex networks would cover the distance from the Earth to the sun over one billion times over
Besides frozen ice caps, AM fungi can be found in almost every corner of the world.
They live among plant roots and thrive in the first 15 inches (40 cm) of soil, but can be found even in the deepest soil layers up to 26 feet (eight metres) beneath the surface.
These networks might be totally invisible to the naked eye, but they are one of the most important aspects of the world's ecosystem.
Threadlike structures called hyphae fill the soil, connecting to plants via their roots and creating complex symbiotic relationships.
Scientists estimate that these fungi form 'trade relationships' with 70 per cent of all plant species on Earth, exchanging nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus for carbon.
Studies have shown that plants get up to 80 per cent of their phosphorus from these relationships, as well as 20 per cent of their nitrogen.
To see exactly where these fungal threads can be found, scientists from SPUN attempted to calculate the biomass of the entire world–spanning network.
They started by gathering over 1,600 soil samples from 4,000 sites around the world, measuring the length of all the hyphae in a given amount of soil.

AM fungi consist of thread–like structures called hyphae, which burrow into plant roots to establish complex 'trading relationships', exchanging nutrients for carbon

Researchers found that the network contains approximately 300 megatonnes of carbon – about five times the weight of all living humans on Earth put together
This information was combined with global data on climate, soil chemistry, and vegetation and used to train machine learning models to predict fungal density across every terrestrial ecosystem.
To work out how much biomass this translates to, the team also needed to work out the radius of the tubular hyphae strands.
This was done by using a robotic imaging system to measure over 300,000 living hyphae across fungal systems grown in the lab.
The result is an interactive map that reveals the incredibly dense networks of fungi thriving right beneath your feet, which you can find on the SPUN website.
Dr Stewart compares these findings to discovering a vast web of 'transport infrastructure' beneath the soil.
He says: 'Roads may not cover most of Earth’s surface, but they enable the movement of people, food, energy, and materials that society depends on.
'Mycorrhizal fungi do something similar underground, as they build hyper–efficient supply chains that move carbon and nutrients between plants and soils.'
Farmland had mycorrhizal densities that were approximately half as high as in wild ecosystems.

Tiny living threads known as arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi can be found in almost every environment on Earth. This map is the first attempt to work out just how big their network really is

Grasslands such as the Tibetan Plateau are home to 40 per cent of the world's AM fungi, despite being some of the least protected ecosystems on Earth
Wild grassland ecosystems such as the Sud Wetlands in South Sudan and the Tibetan Plateau were home to 40 per cent of the world's AM fungi.
Dr Stewart says: 'Wild grasses in particular appear to support very high densities of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal networks.
'In some observational studies, more than 100 metres of fungal hyphae were found in a single gram of soil.'
That is a particularly important finding because grasslands are some of the world's least protected ecosystems, being converted into farms four times faster than woodlands.
If the network of mycorrhizal fungi in the soil were degraded or lost, it could have enormous consequences for the world above ground.
Co–author Dr Toby Kiers, executive director of SPUN, told the Daily Mail: 'Without these fungi, we lose the living infrastructure that holds ecosystems together.
'Degraded soils lose their ability to recover because the fungal workforce that rebuilds them is gone.
'These fungal communities are a foundation for ecosystem resilience. Lose the fungi, and much of what grows above ground becomes far more fragile.'
Billy Meier’s UFO Photos: Real Evidence or Elaborate Hoax?
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Pentagon drops 72 new UFO files with spinning discs, glowing orbs and a potato craft
by Kelly Williams - Content Editor

new UFO Files have been released
(Image: Getty Images)
Fresh UFO documents have been unveiled by the Trump administration, featuring several striking accounts of enigmatic aerial phenomena. One involved a spinning disc that emitted beams of light.
Another described a glowing red sphere of a colour the witness had never encountered before. Then there was the object likened to a potato, and also a bean, but covered in glistening, fish-like scales.
These were amongst the UFOs detailed in papers published on Friday by the Pentagon, marking the third disclosure since President Donald Trump instructed his administration to provide the public with complete transparency regarding what it understands about extraterrestrial life and puzzling sky objects.

The 72 documents unveiled on Friday
The 72 documents unveiled on Friday don't contain the sort of bombshell revelation that Mr Trump has hinted at. There's no definitive proof of alien existence or governmental conspiracies.
However, the papers unveil fresh particulars about some recent encounters, alongside the government's attempts to clarify what many consider baffling.
Consider, for example, the potato. It occurred in 2022, during a crisp February morning in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Five US Army personnel at Fort Carson emerged from an office building and spotted something peculiar suspended above Cheyenne Mountain, several miles to the west.

The papers unveil fresh particulars about some recent encounters
(Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
"The object was 'potato' shaped with distinct edges and appeared to look painted in a creamy/whitish opalescent color," according to an account in an FBI document. It comprised "articulating fish scales or panels that were non-symmetrical, non-overlapping and irregular shaped".
It remained stationary, glistening, for approximately two minutes, the men recalled to the FBI. Then it disappeared in an instant.
None of the men carried phones with them. There is no footage and there are no photographs.
Officials charged with examining the incident stated they couldn't account for it readily. Their report concluded – with "low confidence" – that it might have been "backscattering of sunlight".
Dim light from the emerging sun could have bounced off the mountain's snow and lit up low clouds overhead, it suggested.

There's no definitive proof of alien existence or governmental conspiracies
(Image: Getty Images/Science Photo Library RF)
The men maintained it was a bright, cloudless day. No aircraft or balloons were thought to be in the vicinity.
The four-page report, extensively censored and credited only to an "intelligence community partner", stated it didn't seem to be technology from a foreign adversary.
An FBI illustration appears exactly as one might expect – resembling a scaly, pale potato hovering above a low mountain. The case remains unresolved.
A similarly inconclusive report scrutinised a sequence of sightings in October 2023, this time by six federal law enforcement officers.
On multiple occasions, the officers reported, they witnessed a brilliant orange orb materialise above a ridgeline and produce two to four smaller red orbs.

The files have been released under the Trump administration
(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
The orbs vanished rapidly most of the time, but in one instance, the officers claimed an orb remained suspended motionless in the sky for several hours. The report stated there is no video or photographic evidence of the sightings.
An assessment dated this month examines a range of potential explanations. Military aircraft were carrying out training exercises in the region, with some deploying flares.
There may have been additional testing of experimental US technology in the vicinity, the report noted. It described these as "plausible" though not definitive explanations.
However, it didn't dismiss the possibility that it involved some "unrecognised technology".
With comparatively scant evidence available, it urged further investigation into the incident. The assessment was carried out by the Pentagon's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, established by Congress in 2022 to examine reports of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP).
Earlier reports from the agency indicate it has discovered no evidence of extraterrestrial life. Amongst the latest files is an FBI report from February outlining a sighting in an undisclosed location in the north east United States.
An individual whose identity is redacted reported returning home to witness an intense light hovering beneath the trees in their rear garden. It was characterised as a sphere of "brilliant and beautiful" red, unlike anything the person had previously observed.
"Inside the red sphere, at the centre, there appeared to be what (redacted) described as a 'white plasma sun' about the size of a basketball," according to the FBI file.
A second sphere materialised, and both silently departed from view, the file states. Mobile phone footage captures two glowing red orbs drifting across the heavens.
The White House posted the video on social media on Friday with no accompanying message beyond the file's title: "'NORTHEASTERN ORB SIGHTING,' 2025."
Thus far, the Trump administration's openness initiative has resulted in the publication of roughly 300 files spanning back to the 1940s, some entirely fresh to the public and others providing additional details on previously known incidents.
The latest collection features a 2008 CIA document from Zimbabwe marked as "never before released".
On a July afternoon above the nation's primary airport, witnesses allegedly observed something resembling a scene from a Hollywood blockbuster: it was "disc-like in shape with a hollow center, and had a series of rotating lights on the underside of the airframe".
"At one point during observation, 'beams' were observed emanating from the object," the CIA document stated.
The illumination shifted colours, and the craft climbed high beyond sight, the document reveals.
Discussion arose regarding its origins, according to the document, with some proposing a foreign government while others suggested "extraterrestrial origins".
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David Kipping Has a New Take on the Existence of Advanced Life in the Universe... and the Numbers are Not Encouraging!
The Cosmological Hart-Tipler Conjecture offers a new take on "Where is Everybody?"
Credit: NASA
Between the mid-70s and early 80s, two physicists (Michael Hart and Frank Tipler) published a controversial series of papers arguing that extraterrestrial intelligence didn't exist. As they argued, the likelihood that extraterrestrial civilizations (ETCs) would have had enough time to develop advanced computing, spaceflight, and self-replicating machines (Von Neumann probes) means they would have colonized the galaxy (and come to Earth) long ago. Since there was no evidence of this, they reasoned that ETCs must not exist and humanity was alone in the Universe.
This came to be known as "Fermi's Paradox," or more accurately, the Hart-Tipler Conjecture (H-TC). Their arguments have since inspired countless proposed explanations, not the least of which was "Sagan's Response." In a recent study, Professor David Kipping of Columbia University (and the head of its Cool Worlds Lab) offers a new take on this hypothesis known as the "Cosmological Hart-Tipler Conjecture" (CH-TC). This new model employs a simple equation involving emergence, propagation, and time and accounts for cosmic expansion, with potentially disturbing implications.
The Hart-Tipler Conjecture, or "Fermi's Paradox," was inspired by a story involving famed Italian-American physicist Enrico Fermi. In 1950, while having a "lunchtime conversation" with friends at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, Fermi allegedly asked out of nowhere, "Where is Everybody?" His colleagues laughed, knowing he was referring to their earlier discussion of the recent spate of UFO sightings. According to the story, Fermi and his colleagues did some calculations and determined that (assuming interstellar transit was feasible) extraterrestrials should have visited Earth several times by now.
As noted, this inspired numerous counter-proposals, including the 1983 paper authored by Carl Sagan and William Newman, "The Solipsist Approach to Extraterrestrial Intelligence." For starters, Sagan and Newman criticized the calculations used by Hart and Tipler, including propagation rates, the time required to expand across the entire galaxy, and several underlying assumptions in their models. These included the belief that ETCs would pursue unlimited expansion and that their colonies would last for millions or even billions of years.
Nevertheless, as Kipping argues, the H-TC has experienced something of a renaissance in recent years, thanks to advances in additive manufacturing (3-D printing), artificial intelligence, and commercial spaceflight. These advances have led many commentators to suggest that the types of probes Von Neumann envisioned (what he called "Universal Constructors") are inevitable, and even "imminent." In addition, all proposed resolutions to the Fermi Paradox that don't argue for the non-existence of ETCs require special explanations for why humanity has not heard from any.
These include the theory that extraterrestrial civilizations are very rare (the Rare Earth or [Great Filter Hypothesis), that they are avoiding detection (the Zoo Hypothesis or Dark Forest Hypothesis), and that interstellar travel and settlement are very difficult (the Percolation Hypothesis). The main flaws in these arguments are that they generally assume uniformity of motivation, in which all intelligent life is expected to follow similar patterns of development and behavior. They also tend to favor the idea that exploration will involve self-replicating probes.
As Kipping explained to Universe Today via email, he chose to adopt a different approach:
In my paper, I try to move away from the specific notion of self-replicating probes and more generally speak of an artificial infection. That could be a scifi-esque colonization program, some kind of interstellar biological pathogens, AI-powered self-reproducing machines, or something we’ve never even imagined yet. Even so, one might question whether the notion of an infection is plausible.
To paraphrase Feynman, in science you start with a guess (destructive infections spawn at some rate), calculate the consequences of that guess (the Universe should be largely infected by now), and then compare those consequences to observations or experience (we exist, so this scenario seems incompatible).
Addressing this, Kipping presents a bare-bones model of "artificial infections" (à la Von Neumann Probes and any other means of expansion across space) on a cosmological scale that accounts for cosmic expansion. The model has only three parameters: a spontaneous rate of intelligent life emerging (λ), a propagation rate (u), and a start time for the calculation (t). Cosmic expansion (the Hubble-Lemaitre Constant) is key, since all previous proposed resolutions to the Fermi Paradox (including the H-TC) focus on our galaxy alone.
But as Kipping argues, if we take seriously Hart and Tipler's proposition that probes could traverse the Milky Way in a short period of cosmic time (300,000 to 20 million years), it naturally follows that they could "infect" other galaxies as well. And considering the rate of cosmic expansion (73.5 km/s per megaparsec, faster than the speed of light), the consequences for spacecraft capable only of sub-light travel (Hart and Tipler considered velocities of 1 to 10% of the speed of light) cannot be ignored. Said Kipping:
Cosmic expansion acts against infection waves; it’s almost like a friction that makes universe-scale infections harder to achieve. My intuition before starting the project was that this would be sufficient to decouple most galaxies from each other, so I was surprised how probe speeds of even 10% the speed of light led to infected universes. Of course, the key thing to remember is that infections spawn randomly across the cosmos in this model, so it’s not as if a single infection seed takes over the universe at 0.1c - it’s a cohort of them sprinkled across the Universe.
His model assumes that each galaxy can transition from an uninfected state (U) to an infected state (I) in one of two ways: either an ETC can emerge within the galaxy (i.e., via the spawn rate) and begin sending out probes or other means of exploration/settlement, or by external infection from another galaxy (via propagation). Rather than producing detectable technosignatures, Kippen's model assumes that "infection" would entail the nullification of local habitability - which is not to say "sterilization," but that they would cease showing signs of activity we would recognize as being indicative of life.
When computing the expected fraction of galaxies infected at cosmic time, several implications emerge. However, none of them are definitive or conclusive. Nevertheless, it does establish some very tight constraints on the possible existence of technological civilizations in our Universe. As Kipping explained, the spawn rate has to be dialed down to staggeringly tiny values, of order 1 in a million galaxies over cosmic history; otherwise, we are left with the disturbing possibility that humanity is alone in the Universe:
The firmest conclusion we can say is that if infections spawn more frequently than 1-in-100,000 galaxies, then 99.9% of the Universe would be infected for a 0.1c infection wave speed. If we take it as a given that this is inconsistent with observation/experience, then this requires that less than 1 in 10 quadrillion star systems have ever spawned an infection. That’s a staggeringly tight observational constraint on alien behavior; it’s by far the strongest statistical statement we can make in all of SETI.
There are possible explanations for this that don't involve the non-existence of intelligent life beyond Earth, as Kipping notes. For what Sagan described as "Contact Optimists," a natural explanation would be that despite there being a large population of ETCs in our Universe, the odds of them ever spawning an infection (i.e., sending out probes or ships) are astronomically small. However, this is difficult to consider if one rejects the idea of uniformity in behavior and motivation. As David Brin argued in his 1983 paper, "The 'Great Silence': the Controversy Concerning Extraterrestrial Intelligent Life," it only takes one species to break the pattern for a proposed resolution to become untenable.
In contrast, the contact pessimist has a much easier job explaining the apparent lack of evidence for ETCs, either by stating that they don't exist or employing the Great Filter argument. But as Kipping stated, this explanation is also difficult to maintain:
If the filter is behind us, then where? Life started so early that it strongly indicates abiogenesis is a rapid and easy process. Perhaps some evolutionary steps are hard and very rarely transpire, but evolutionary biologists have argued against this recently. Or perhaps it’s ahead of us, and we won’t last another century needed to develop infection technologies.
But then it’s hard to imagine how such a future Great Filter is so potent that it can suppress the odds at the level needed here. We can imagine many ways in which humanity continues, so surely someone, somewhere, especially those civilizations with greater wisdom than our own, would sail past the challenges we face today without annihilation.
Consider A Canticle for Leibowitz, the famous science fiction tale that chronicles the collapse of human civilization, its rebirth, and (spoilers!) its imminent collapse again towards the end. Or Foundation, where the collapse of the Galactic Empire (à la The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire) is inevitable, but is not a permanent condition. In short, the data supports no conclusions, something that Kipping acknowledges.
"Frankly, I don’t have a good answer for this," he tells us. "I suspect I will be wrestling with this question for the rest of my life in frustration and wonder." The same may apply to the rest of us, and humanity as a whole!
US government aware of several kinds of alien life, whistleblower claimsGovernment whistleblower David Grusch previously told Congress that the federal government had recovered non-human ‘biologics’ and technology from wrecked vehicles of non-human origin
Graig Graziosi in Washington, D.C.
David Grusch — a former U.S. Air Force officer who testified before Congress in 2023 that the federal government was running secret UFO programs and had recovered non-human "biologics" and materials from crashes — is back again with new claims that Uncle Sam is hiding a aliens from the public's eye.
He was among Unidentified Aerial Phenomena whistleblowers and like-minded lawmakers who gathered at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday to call for more transparency from the government on the subject.
He claimed that the U.S. government is aware of “several” types of alien life that ranges in complexity, but did not provide further details, according to NewsNation.
The demonstration comes just three days before the worldwide release of Stephen Spielberg's new film, Disclosure Day, which is a fictional story about the day when humanity learns that extraterrestrials are real.
The group demanded the government release files it reportedly has that detail encounters between humans and nonhuman, extraterrestrial life.
David Grusch, a former United States Air Force officer and member of National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, speaks during a news conference on the declassification of federal secrets related to unidentified aerial phenomena on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C
(Reuters)
The demonstrators asked for the release of a number of files, including those pertaining to the 1996 Varginha incident, in which people from Varginha, Brazil, claim they had contact with non-human, sentient beings that were later taken to the U.S.
Some current and former lawmakers have given full-throated support to the disclosure movement. Republican representative Anna Paulina Luna said that lawmakers were requesting that the White House grant whistleblowers immunity to freely share what they know about UAPs and UFOs without fear of retribution.
“Disclosure today, disclosure tomorrow,” Congressman Jared Moskowitz, a Democrat, said during the event. “The American people deserve to know.”
The subject of disclosure has become something of a bipartisan issue, at least among a handful of lawmakers.
“For decades, the American people have been treated like children, told there are government secrets they just don’t get to know,” Congressman Eric Burlison, a Republican, said.
While the possibility that the government is hiding away secrets about aliens and nonhuman spacecraft is enticing, lawmakers also noted that their push for transparency also focuses on the Pentagon coming clean about where and how it spends its money.
During Grusch's 2023 testimony, the subject of Special Access Programs — which are classified beyond Top Secret and are hidden away even from members of Congress — became a point of interest for lawmakers receiving his report.
“The topics that we’re discussing here today go beyond life in the universe,” Grusch said during Tuesday's gathering. “Political appointees have not complied with the disclosure law.”
Reuters
In May, the Pentagon launched a website collecting a variety of images that may or may not show aerial phenomena. The site leans hard into imagery meant to entice those with an interest in UFOs and aliens.
In 2023, Grusch told lawmakers numerous times that he would be willing to talk to them about classified information and provide details of some of his more enticing claims in a secure environment, but it's unclear if those meetings ever actually happened.
Grusch's claims prompted a 2024 review by the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office — which was established to examine UAP and UFO claims — that found no evidence of recovered extraterrestrials or extraterrestrial technology by the U.S. government.
While some lawmakers have lent their voices to demand more transparency, others — especially those aligned with the MAGA movement — have suggested that the aliens aren't aliens at all, but demons.
During a recent episode of The Benny Show podcast, Vice President JD Vance said he believes aliens are actually spiritual entities.
“I don’t think they’re aliens, I think they’re demons anyway, but that’s a longer discussion," he said.
Republican congresswoman Lauren Boebert made similar comments during a podcast interview in early May.
“There’s nothing that says that fallen angels, that Nephilim just disappeared. I do believe that this is more spiritual, and, if you really want to go there, demonic,” she said while discussing the Pentagon's new UFO website.
The Nephilim are a supposed race of hybrids created from humans reproducing with fallen angels.
FBI 302: senior U.S. intel official reports seeing “super-hot” orb-like UAP

A newly circulated FBI 302 interview report is drawing attention in UFO/UAP circles after it described an alleged late-2025 encounter involving orb-like aerial objects at a U.S. military site in the Western United States. According to the document, a senior U.S. intelligence official—identified in the source as USPER—gave a first-hand account of seeing a “super-hot” orb hovering near the ground before it accelerated away at a speed that reportedly outpaced a helicopter sent to track it. The report has begun circulating through recent declassified-intelligence discussions, adding another case to the growing archive of government-sourced UAP material.



This is an FBI 302 interview conducted with a senior US intelligence official regarding his first-hand account of a UAP encounter at a US military facility. USPER relayed to FBI agents that he and other federal and state personnel conducted searches to where orbs had been searching the area with a helicopter, they found a “super-hot” orb hovering over the ground. The orb is reported to have travelled for 20 miles at a speed too fast for the helicopter in pursuit.
An additional “swarm” of lights were seen moving in all directions. A total of four or five additional orbs were seen shortly thereafter for a short time, flaring up and then down. This pattern of four or five orbs flaring up, then down continued over the next thirty minutes across the area. Redactions have been made to protect the identity of eyewitnesses, the location of government facilities, or potentially sensitive information about military sites not related to UAP.
No redactions have been made to any files released under President Trump's directive concerning information about the nature or existence of any encounter reported as a UAP or related phenomena.
The source material, hosted in a UAP-focused archive and presented as an FBI-collected statement, says the official and other federal and state personnel searched an area where orb-like objects had previously been seen. After that search, a helicopter was deployed and the team reportedly located a high-temperature orb positioned low over the ground. The account says the object then traveled roughly 20 miles, moving too quickly for the helicopter in pursuit. The same statement also describes an additional “swarm” of lights moving in multiple directions, suggesting a broader, multi-object event rather than a single isolated sighting.
The report further states that four or five additional orbs appeared shortly afterward, briefly flaring up and then dimming down, with that pattern repeating over a period of about 30 minutes across the area. According to the document, the encounter involved multiple government personnel and a range of observation methods, including night-vision equipment, ground observers, and personnel in aircraft. The source also says other pilots in separate aircraft observed the objects, while some of the linked images in the archive allegedly come from the same incident and were captured through night-vision devices.
What makes the case notable is not simply the presence of unusual lights, but the provenance of the account. The document is presented as an FBI 302 interview, a format used to record witness statements and investigative interviews. In the UAP field, that makes the report relevant as a piece of primary-source documentation, even as the underlying explanation for the observations remains unresolved. For researchers, the key issue is separating what was reported from what was concluded. The document describes sighting conditions, perceived movement, and apparent heat signatures, but it does not by itself establish the nature of the objects.
The account also comes amid broader public interest in recently released and declassified intelligence-related UAP material, much of which has fueled debate about how military and intelligence agencies record unexplained events. Cases involving multiple witnesses, sensor overlap, and night-vision imagery are especially significant because they offer more data points than a single anecdotal report. Still, even in such cases, unusual aerial behavior can stem from a range of possibilities, including misidentification, sensor artifacts, classified technology, or genuinely unexplained phenomena.
As with many UAP disclosures, the document is likely to be scrutinized for timing, chain of custody, and corroborating evidence. The archive identifies the file as USPER-Statement-Redacted.pdf and notes it as a late-2025 incident connected to a sensitive government testing installation. For now, the report adds to the record of government personnel describing orb-like UAP in ways that suggest speed, heat, and coordinated movement—details that continue to keep the case in the center of ongoing UAP investigations and public discussion.
UFO FILES: Search for answers returns to earliest UAP sightings

Fox News aired a special report, “Unexplained Encounters,” that revisited the United States’ longest‑standing mystery: unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP). Anchored by Bret Baier, the segment linked contemporary congressional efforts to protect whistleblowers with a historical record of sightings that stretches back to World War II. The program highlighted recent legislative talks, declassified documents from the Trump administration, and testimonies from former military officials, underscoring a shift from routine dismissal toward systematic inquiry.
House leaders are preparing to meet White House officials to request explicit immunity for individuals who disclose classified information about UAP. Senator Mark Kelly (D‑AZ) stressed that “scientific research must be free from retaliation if these phenomena represent advanced technologies, possibly from foreign adversaries.” The proposed safeguards aim to encourage pilots, intelligence analysts, and other insiders to come forward without fear of career repercussions. Lawmakers argue that a transparent pipeline of data is essential for national‑security assessments and for evaluating any potential technological threats.
The report devoted considerable attention to the “Foo Fighters” reported by Allied aircrews in the 1940s. One of the most detailed accounts came from Polish Air Force Flight Lieutenant Roman Sobinski, who, on a 1942 bombing run over Germany, described an object “almost the size of the moon” that remained unmoved when his rear gunner fired. After landing, Sobinski’s crew was initially mocked by military officials, who suggested the pilot might have been intoxicated. Subsequent declassified records, released during the Trump administration, catalogued fourteen similar incidents between December 1944 and January 1945, describing orange‑colored, cylinder‑shaped lights that followed aircraft with “perfect control.” These documents reveal that the phenomenon was not isolated to a single squadron but was reported across multiple units.
Former Army Director for the UAP Task Force, Col. Karl Nell (Ret.), appeared on the program to assert that the phenomenon is “100 % real.” He recounted how wartime reports reached the White House, prompting the Office of Scientific Research and Development to launch investigations—efforts that later discovered German pilots were observing comparable lights. Anthropologist Peter Skafish, co‑founder of the SOL Foundation, traced the post‑war surge in sightings to 1947, noting that reports became “near‑daily” across the United States. Skafish characterized the Air Force’s Project Blue Book as largely a public‑relations operation designed to “mollify” the public by offering conventional explanations such as weather balloons or cosmic‑ray research, rather than conducting a rigorous scientific analysis.
The Fox News segment concluded that the convergence of historic eyewitness accounts, newly released government documents, and growing legislative interest marks a turning point in how the United States addresses UAP. While past administrations often dismissed or “debunked” sightings, the consistency of reports from trained military personnel now compels a more serious scientific and security‑focused approach. Experts cited in the report suggest that, statistically, the existence of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe is increasingly plausible. As Congress moves toward protecting whistleblowers and as intelligence agencies continue to evaluate the data, the nation appears poised to transition from speculation to structured investigation—potentially reshaping both defense policy and our broader understanding of the skies.
Scientists Have Detected Something Deeply Alarming at the Bottom of the Ocean

Shutterstock / Futurism
Something is stirring in the waters off the coast of Greenland, and it isn’t a submarine fleet sent by Donald Trump.
According to reporting by the New Scientist, evidence is mounting that the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation — a massive system of deep sea currents that acts like a conveyor belt for the world’s oceans known as AMOC — is starting to slow its gears. As it does, cold waters from the Greenland ice sheet are allowed to pool in the North-Atlantic, creating a “cold blob” that’s only getting colder as the rest of the world warms up.
This in turn has a major impact on jet streams, fueling extreme weather across the world. Should it collapse, the New Scientist notes that the AMOC could act as a climate tipping point, setting off a chain reaction resulting in much colder weather for some, and much drier weather for others by as early as 2040.
“The cold blob can disturb the atmospheric jet stream and storm activities, so it has implications for extreme weather events in North America and Europe,” Laifang Li, assistant professor of meteorology and atmospheric science at Penn State explained in a press release announcing an earlier study on the AMOC.
Identifying how severe this cold blob ends up being may depend on the cause for the weakening AMOC — a topic which has researchers split. Some, like Li, say it’s caused by atmospheric forces, while others have identified oceanic conditions as the culprit.
In the latter camp is Stefan Rahmstorf, researcher at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, whose team found evidence that heat loss from the ocean surface has been slowly shrinking since 1955, meaning whatever’s happening is driven by ocean currents. As Rahmstorf plainly told the New Scientist: “even if, in some modelling approaches, it seems possible that the cold blob is caused by the atmosphere, in fact, the data show it is caused by the ocean.”
One thing that’s sure is that the AMOC is definitely weakening, as troubling data from deep-ocean buoys shows crucial ocean currents slow at various points throughout the Atlantic. What this ultimately means remains to be seen — but rest assured, it isn’t good.
More on climate change:
NASA aircraft quietly broke the sound barrier
NASA has taken a step toward quiet supersonic flight. The X-59 experimental aircraft broke the sound barrier for the first time without producing the deafening sonic boom typically associated with supersonic aircraft. This confirmed that the concept works and that the mission is proceeding according to plan.
The NASA X-59 aircraft completed its first supersonic flight as part of the Quest mission.
Credit: NASA / Lori Losey
Pilot Jim Less took off from Edwards Air Force Base in California and accelerated the X-59 to approximately 1,148 km/h, which is 1.1 Mach—ten percent faster than the speed of sound. The flight altitude was about 13,230 m. The test lasted 81 minutes, during which the team evaluated flight characteristics in subsonic and supersonic modes.
An F-15 fighter jet flew alongside for observation. Its loud sonic boom drowned out any sounds from the X-59, so it was not possible to assess the aircraft’s quietness during this flight.
NASA’s X-59 aircraft completed its first supersonic flight as part of the Quest mission.
Source: NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center
The next step will be a flight under mission conditions. The X-59 is scheduled to reach a speed of Mach 1.4, or approximately 1,489 km/h, and climb to an altitude of about 16,760 meters. These parameters form the basis for the final phase of testing.
Following this, the X-59 will conduct test flights over several communities in the United States. NASA will collect data on how people perceive the noise from the aircraft and will share it with U.S. and international regulators to help develop new noise standards.
The X-59 aircraft is central to the Quest mission, which aims to demonstrate that supersonic commercial flights over cities are possible without causing noise pollution for people on the ground.
As part of the program, NASA is developing methodologies and technologies for designing supersonic airliners. American manufacturers will be able to build new aircraft with the confidence that they will meet quiet flight requirements, and passengers on international routes will reach their destinations faster.