NASA first publicly discussed the problem of UFOs: “We are looking for”

The US space agency NASA hosted a four-hour panel discussion on the topic of unidentified flying objects, with members of the public allowed to poll participants via the Internet.

NASA held its first public meeting on UFOs a year after it began its study of unexplained sightings, Sky News reports.

The space agency televised Wednesday’s four-hour hearing with an independent panel of experts at NASA Headquarters in Washington, in which the public participated remotely.

The team included 16 scientists and other experts selected by NASA, including retired astronaut Scott Kelly, the first American to spend nearly a year in space.

According to group chairman David Spergel, the group studied what unclassified information is available on the subject and how much more is needed to understand what is happening in the sky.

No classified military data related to alleged Chinese spy balloons seen flying over the US this year was included, Sky News notes.

However, the group said they have seen a spike in sighting reports since then, with the Department of Defense’s Office of Anomaly Resolution in All Areas, which is also investigating separately from NASA, receiving about 800 sightings so far, but only a tiny fraction of them contain signals that could be considered “anomalous”.

During the meeting, the experts were asked a number of questions, including why experts began to call the mysterious phenomena “unidentified aerial phenomena” (UAP) and not “unidentified flying objects” (UFOs or UFOs).

Dr. Daniel Evans, Assistant Associate Assistant Administrator for Research, said they no longer use the term UFO (Unidentified Flying Object) due to the stigma attached to the term.

He said they chose to use the term Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) instead because the topic is “serious business.”

Asked what they would do if they did find extraterrestrial life, astrobiologist Dr. David Grinspoon said NASA would be “highly interested” in sharing the evidence.

He cited an example from 1996, when NASA scientists believed they had found possible signs of life on Mars in a meteorite.

In this regard, a large-scale press conference was convened with the participation of the space agency, and “this is exactly what would happen” if a similar event happened during this study. “If we found something, we would try to make sure we were right, and then loudly and proudly announce it to the public,” he said.

In order to make this discovery, Dr. Spergel said that NASA “is engaged in the search for life in any form.”

“Searching for extraterrestrial life is a really important thing. We haven’t found life outside of Earth yet,” he said. “But we’re looking.”

However, dispelling hopes that we were close to first contact, Dr. Evans said firmly: “I want to emphasize this loudly and proudly: there is absolutely no conclusive evidence of extraterrestrial life associated with unidentified objects.”

He went on to lament that several members of the committee had been subjected to “online abuse” for being part of a team that detracted from the scientific process.

He said NASA security is looking into it.

“It’s this rigorous, evidence-based approach that separates fact from fiction,” Dr. Evans said.

The final report is expected by the end of July, followed by a meeting to discuss its findings.