https://www.scmp.com/rss/326099/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he was directing the Pentagon and other government agencies to identify and release files related to extraterrestrials and UFOs because of “tremendous interest”. Trump made the announcement in a social media post hours after he accused former president Barack Obama of disclosing “classified information” when Obama recently suggested in a podcast interview that aliens were real. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One: “I don’t know if they’re... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344066/trump-says-hes-ordering-release-us-files-ufos-and-aliens?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344066/trump-says-hes-ordering-release-us-files-ufos-and-aliens?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 03:12:48 +0000 Tribune News Service Tribune News Service Former US president Barack Obama said in a podcast interview on the weekend that aliens are real, but they aren’t at Nevada’s Area 51. During an appearance on YouTuber Brian Tyler Cohen’s show, Obama said he hadn’t seen extraterrestrials but that they existed. “They’re not being kept in Area 51, there’s no underground facility, unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States,” Obama said during a rapid-fire round of questions at the end of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343697/are-aliens-real-obama-says-yes-rules-out-long-running-conspiracy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343697/are-aliens-real-obama-says-yes-rules-out-long-running-conspiracy?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Feb 2026 05:09:10 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo So, The X-Files, the hit American science fiction TV series from the 1990s, turned out to be a docudrama. Going by a new investigative report by The Wall Street Journal, there really was a vast government conspiracy over the existence of unidentified flying objects (UFOs) and their associated myths such as alien sightings. However, it wasn’t so much that the US government suppressed – as per the show – the truth about little green men in flying saucers visiting the Earth with superior alien... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/article/3314416/sorry-there-are-no-ufos-just-vast-us-deep-state-conspiracy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/article/3314416/sorry-there-are-no-ufos-just-vast-us-deep-state-conspiracy?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Jun 2025 20:31:15 +0000 Yasu Chinen, a 53-year-old translator and interpreter based in Tokyo, is among a growing number of Japanese captivated by UFOs – and he is convinced he has seen evidence that humanity is not alone in the universe. Chinen recalls the moment vividly: it happened during a “contact event” in Nagano several years ago. These gatherings, popular among extraterrestrial enthusiasts, aim to initiate sightings or communication through meditation and group intention. Chinen first developed an interest in... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3305267/close-encounters-inside-japans-growing-fascination-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3305267/close-encounters-inside-japans-growing-fascination-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 06 Apr 2025 04:00:09 +0000 A stunning blue and white spiral spotted in skies across Europe late on Monday was created by frozen fuel tumbling from a SpaceX rocket, according to weather forecasters and scientists. The UK’s Met Office said on social media that it had received many reports of an “illuminated swirl” in the sky on Monday evening probably caused by a rocket that had blasted off earlier from Cape Canaveral in Florida. “Don’t panic! No, it wasn’t a UFO but the degassing of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket,” said the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3303870/spacex-rocket-fuel-makes-stunning-swirl-european-sky?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3303870/spacex-rocket-fuel-makes-stunning-swirl-european-sky?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 25 Mar 2025 17:24:35 +0000 Is there anybody out there? Yes! says a Republican congressman: the aliens are right under the ocean. US congressional Representative Tim Burchett said in an interview Wednesday that an admiral – whom he did not identify – had told him of an alien craft moving at incredible speeds in the sea. “They tell me something’s moving at hundreds of miles an hour underwater … as large as a football field, underwater,” the Tennessee congressman told disgraced former Republican congressman Matt Gaetz, who... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3296055/us-congressman-says-aliens-exist-under-sea-large-craft-moves-incredible-speeds?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3296055/us-congressman-says-aliens-exist-under-sea-large-craft-moves-incredible-speeds?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 Jan 2025 02:38:34 +0000 The Pentagon flatly dismissed claims by a US lawmaker that Iran might be launching drones over New Jersey from a “mothership” off the East Coast. “There is no truth to that,” Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said on Wednesday. “There is no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States and there’s no so-called ‘mothership’ launching drones towards the United States.” Republican Congressman Jeff Van Drew, whose district in New Jersey includes Atlantic City, said he had uncovered what appeared... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3290450/pentagon-says-no-iranian-mothership-us-after-mysterious-new-jersey-drone-sightings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3290450/pentagon-says-no-iranian-mothership-us-after-mysterious-new-jersey-drone-sightings?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Dec 2024 05:01:42 +0000 The Pentagon’s latest report on UFOs has revealed hundreds of new reports of unidentified and unexplained aerial phenomena but no indications suggesting an extraterrestrial origin. The review includes hundreds of cases of misidentified balloons, birds and satellites as well as some that defy easy explanation, such as a near-miss between a commercial airliner and a mysterious object off the coast of New York. While it isn’t likely to settle any debates over the existence of alien life, the report... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3286667/new-pentagon-report-ufos-reveals-hundreds-incidents-worldwide?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3286667/new-pentagon-report-ufos-reveals-hundreds-incidents-worldwide?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Nov 2024 03:46:26 +0000 A new Japanese parliamentary group, featuring a number of senior politicians including a potential future prime minister, has been formed to probe UFO sightings with the aim of moving research into the mysterious phenomenon more towards the mainstream. The Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Clarification League for Security-Oriented National Security will be officially founded at a meeting in the Diet on June 6. The group will be chaired by Yasukazu Hamada, head of parliamentary affairs for the... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3264559/japan-sets-parliamentary-group-probe-ufo-sightings-move-research-mainstream?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3264559/japan-sets-parliamentary-group-probe-ufo-sightings-move-research-mainstream?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 30 May 2024 00:48:11 +0000 A Pentagon office set up to investigate purported alien encounters dating back decades found no evidence to support claims that any of those incidents were actual sightings of extraterrestrials. The office also rejected the claim that US had or was covering up a programme to reverse-engineer alien technology. While some cases remain unexplained, in almost every instance the reports were fabricated or had more mundane explanations. Others stemmed from confusion over top-secret government... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3254777/pentagon-quashes-conspiracy-theories-says-no-evidence-secret-us-work-alien-technology?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3254777/pentagon-quashes-conspiracy-theories-says-no-evidence-secret-us-work-alien-technology?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 Mar 2024 04:10:37 +0000 It didn’t take long for the aliens to reveal themselves. Thailand’s first UFO music festival hadn’t even started when a shimmering vessel sailed through the twilight sky over a hilltop that’s become a transdimensional conduit for representatives of a galaxy-spanning alien federation. At least that’s the fast-held belief of those who trek to Khao Kala, where devotees believe an ancient stargate makes such encounters possible. As the sun dipped towards the sugar cane-field horizon on January 12,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3249062/thailand-hosts-ufo-music-festival-city-cult-claims-area-51-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/lifestyle-culture/article/3249062/thailand-hosts-ufo-music-festival-city-cult-claims-area-51-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Jan 2024 07:54:54 +0000 Residents of Beijing and other parts of China reported seeing a UFO on Sunday evening, with one astronomer suggesting it could have been the rocket launching the latest Starlink satellites. The unusual sighting caused a stir on Chinese social media – by noon on Monday it was the fifth most searched topic on Weibo, with more than 900,000 threads about it. Posts started appearing on social media after people saw and photographed an unidentified flying object in the sky just after 6pm on... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3248504/ufo-seen-over-beijing-could-have-been-spacex-rocket-astronomer-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3248504/ufo-seen-over-beijing-could-have-been-spacex-rocket-astronomer-says?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Jan 2024 10:00:41 +0000 There is no proof aliens exist, a Chinese space authority said on Thursday in a first official response to public questions about extraterrestrial life forms. It was the first time the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) had responded to questions from the public on the topic and followed a hearing at the Mexican congress earlier this week that was shown two purported alien corpses. Jaime Maussan, a journalist and UFO enthusiast, presented two frail humanlike “bodies”... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3234589/chinas-space-authorities-say-no-proof-aliens-exist-after-mexican-congress-shown-extraterrestrial?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3234589/chinas-space-authorities-say-no-proof-aliens-exist-after-mexican-congress-shown-extraterrestrial?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Sep 2023 01:00:30 +0000 Nasa said on Thursday that the study of UFOs will require new scientific techniques, including advanced satellites as well as a shift in how unidentified flying objects are perceived. The space agency released the findings after a year-long study into UFOs. In its 33-page report, an independent team commissioned by Nasa cautioned that the negative perception surrounding UFOs poses an obstacle to collecting data. But officials said Nasa’s involvement should help reduce the stigma around what it... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3234600/nasa-releases-ufo-report-after-year-long-study?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3234600/nasa-releases-ufo-report-after-year-long-study?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Sep 2023 18:57:14 +0000 Mexican lawmakers heard testimony that “we are not alone” in the universe and saw the alleged remains of non-human beings in an extraordinary hearing marking the Latin American country’s first congressional event on UFOs. In the hearing on Tuesday on FANI, the Spanish acronym for what are usually now termed Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP), politicians were shown two artefacts that Mexican journalist and long-time UFO enthusiast Jaime Maussan claimed were the corpses of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3234464/alleged-non-human-bodies-shown-mexico-congress-hearing-aliens-and-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/americas/article/3234464/alleged-non-human-bodies-shown-mexico-congress-hearing-aliens-and-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Sep 2023 21:09:14 +0000 Americans like to blame China for everything. But UFOs? Seriously, this is no joke. China may be behind at least some UFO sightings, Dr Thomas Zurbuchen claimed, according to a report in The Telegraph newspaper. The retired Nasa chief, who was responsible for some of the agency’s biggest space projects in the past decade, said “unidentified flying objects are real and may be ‘unfriendly’ advanced technology”. Zurbuchen said it was important to question whether Chinese spy balloons might be to... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3232711/us-about-blame-ufo-phenomena-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3232711/us-about-blame-ufo-phenomena-china?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 29 Aug 2023 13:00:15 +0000 The spy balloon incident that roiled US- China relations earlier this year was Exhibit A on Wednesday at a Congressional hearing about UFOs when the committee chairman used it as an example of the federal government’s lack of transparency and preparedness on the subject. In his opening remarks, Representative Glenn Grothman, chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Security, the Border and Foreign Affairs, demanded clarity from the White House on the government’s investigations into... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3229059/spy-balloon-featured-us-congressional-hearing-about-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3229059/spy-balloon-featured-us-congressional-hearing-about-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Jul 2023 21:54:16 +0000 Earlier this month, The Debrief, which describes itself as a platform dedicated to credible reporting on science, tech and defence news published an article about a whistle-blower who says he gave the US Congress and the Intelligence Community Inspector General extensive classified information about deeply covert programmes that he says possess retrieved craft of non-human origin. The whistle-blower is David Charles Grusch, a former combat officer in Afghanistan and veteran of the US National... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3224288/us-whistle-blower-raises-ufo-question-perhaps-its-time-world-looked-answers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3224288/us-whistle-blower-raises-ufo-question-perhaps-its-time-world-looked-answers?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jun 2023 16:30:14 +0000 Big, shiny eyes. Towering nearly 10 feet tall. 100 per cent not human. Aliens. That’s the 911 emergency call that came into dispatchers last month from a Las Vegas area resident reporting extraterrestrial life in his backyard, just about an hour after local police witnessed an object falling from the sky. The paranormal investigation by police did not turn up any answers. “On May 1, 2023, at approximately 12.29am. LVMPD dispatch received a call about a suspicious situation,” the Las Vegas Police... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3223643/las-vegas-police-investigate-reports-ufo-sightings-after-resident-says-aliens-crashed-his-backyard?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3223643/las-vegas-police-investigate-reports-ufo-sightings-after-resident-says-aliens-crashed-his-backyard?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 10 Jun 2023 08:23:59 +0000 The European Space Agency’s Juice space probe successfully took off on Friday for a mission to discover whether Jupiter’s icy moons are capable of hosting extraterrestrial life in their vast, hidden oceans. The launch on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, came after a previous attempt on Thursday was called off due to the risk of lightning. Despite cloudy skies, the rocket lifted off as planned at 9.14am on Friday, as guests including Belgium’s King Philippe... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3217151/european-spacecraft-blasts-jupiter-and-its-icy-moons?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3217151/european-spacecraft-blasts-jupiter-and-its-icy-moons?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 14 Apr 2023 18:31:58 +0000 Astronomers have discovered what appear to be massive galaxies dating back to within 600 million years of the Big Bang, suggesting the early universe may have had a stellar fast-track that produced these “monsters”. While the new James Webb Space Telescope has spotted even older galaxies, dating to within a mere 300 million years of the beginning of the universe, it’s the size and maturity of these six apparent mega-galaxies that stun scientists. They reported their findings this week. Lead... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3211312/australian-space-telescope-uncovers-mind-blowing-monster-galaxies-near-cosmic-dawn?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/australasia/article/3211312/australian-space-telescope-uncovers-mind-blowing-monster-galaxies-near-cosmic-dawn?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Feb 2023 15:17:25 +0000 Is the US military’s decision to shoot down four objects that suddenly showed up in North American airspace the beginning of the end of UFO speculation? Beyond the first object, an alleged surveillance balloon owned by China, the US has released few details about the aerial objects. It fell to the White House press secretary on Monday to announce earnestly that there was no indication of “aliens or extraterrestrial activity”. Pentagon officials say they only detected three of the objects after... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3210104/do-us-object-shootdowns-herald-end-ufo-sightings?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3210104/do-us-object-shootdowns-herald-end-ufo-sightings?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Feb 2023 00:00:21 +0000 South Korea’s military confirmed it test-fired a solid-fuelled rocket on Friday after its unannounced launch triggered brief public scare of a suspected UFO appearance or a North Korean missile launch. The Defence Ministry said in a statement that the rocket launch was part of its efforts to build a space-based surveillance capability and bolster its defence posture. It said it did not notify the general public of the launch in advance because it involved sensitive military security... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3205143/im-scared-south-koreas-unannounced-rocket-launch-causes-ufo-scare?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3205143/im-scared-south-koreas-unannounced-rocket-launch-causes-ufo-scare?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Dec 2022 14:40:09 +0000 A new Pentagon office set up to track reports of unidentified flying objects has received “several hundreds” of new reports, but no evidence so far of alien life, the agency’s leadership told reporters on Friday. The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) was set up in July and is responsible for not only tracking unidentified objects in the sky, but also underwater or in space – or potentially an object that has the ability to move from one domain to the next. The office was established... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3203659/pentagon-has-received-several-hundreds-new-ufo-reports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3203659/pentagon-has-received-several-hundreds-new-ufo-reports?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Dec 2022 22:13:51 +0000 Nasa is officially joining the hunt for UFOs. The US space agency on Thursday announced a new study that will recruit leading scientists to examine unidentified aerial phenomena – a subject that has long fascinated the public and recently gained high-level attention from Congress. The project will begin early this fall and last around nine months, focusing on identifying available data, how to gather more data in future, and how Nasa can analyse the findings to try to move the needle on... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3181115/nasa-joins-hunt-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3181115/nasa-joins-hunt-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Jun 2022 21:10:49 +0000 Two senior US defence intelligence officials said the Pentagon is committed to determining the origins of what it calls “unidentified aerial phenomena” – commonly termed UFOs – but acknowledged many remain beyond the government’s ability to explain. The two officials, Ronald Moultrie and Scott Bray, appeared before a House of Representatives intelligence subcommittee on Tuesday for the first public US congressional hearing on the subject in a half-century. It came 11 months after a government... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3178130/us-lawmakers-hold-rare-hearing-ufo-investigation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3178130/us-lawmakers-hold-rare-hearing-ufo-investigation?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 May 2022 19:11:31 +0000 Islamabad on Friday warned New Delhi of “unpleasant consequences” over what it said was an Indian-originated, but unidentified high-altitude supersonic object that crashed in Pakistani territory. Pakistan foreign office said in a statement it summoned on Friday India’s charge d’affaires in Islamabad to lodge a protest over what it said was the unprovoked violation of its airspace. Pakistan called for an investigation of the incident, which it said could have endangered passenger flights and... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3170046/pakistan-seeks-answers-india-after-crash-mystery-flying-object?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3170046/pakistan-seeks-answers-india-after-crash-mystery-flying-object?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 10 Mar 2022 22:00:16 +0000 The world’s biggest, most powerful space telescope arrived at its observation post 1 million miles from Earth on Monday, a month after it lifted off on a quest to behold the dawn of the universe. On command, the James Webb Space Telescope fired its rocket thrusters for nearly five minutes to go into orbit around the sun at its designated location, and Nasa confirmed the operation went as planned. The mirrors on the US$10 billion observatory still must be meticulously aligned and the infrared... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3164599/james-webb-space-telescope-reaches-final-stop-1?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3164599/james-webb-space-telescope-reaches-final-stop-1?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Jan 2022 23:45:34 +0000 The Pentagon is creating a new office to investigate unidentified flying objects amid concerns that after broad probes it cannot explain mysterious sightings near highly sensitive military areas. Deputy Secretary of Defence Kathleen Hicks, working with the US director of national intelligence, ordered the new investigatory body to be established in the US Defence Department’s intelligence and security office, the Pentagon said late on Tuesday. The order came five months after a classified US... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3157290/pentagon-creates-new-office-probe-ufo-reports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3157290/pentagon-creates-new-office-probe-ufo-reports?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Nov 2021 21:33:33 +0000 Has the FBI solved the mysterious case of the “jet pack man”? Multiple sightings of what some said looked like a man flying in a jet pack in the skies of Los Angeles prompted a federal investigation. This week authorities offered some details about the probe. “The FBI has worked closely with the FAA to investigate reported jet pack sightings in the Los Angeles area, none of which have been verified,” read an FBI statement. “One working theory is that pilots might have seen balloons.” KNBC-TV... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3154633/who-was-jet-pack-man-flying-over-la-fbi-floats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3154633/who-was-jet-pack-man-flying-over-la-fbi-floats?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Nov 2021 21:16:26 +0000 Nasa’s Perseverance Mars rover has now collected two rock samples, with signs that they were in contact with water for a long period of time boosting the case for ancient life on the red planet. “It looks like our first rocks reveal a potentially habitable sustained environment,” said Ken Farley, project scientist for the mission, in a statement Friday. “It’s a big deal that the water was there for a long time.” The six-wheeled robot collected its first sample, dubbed “Montdenier” on September... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3148382/mars-rocks-collected-perseverance-rover-boost-case?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3148382/mars-rocks-collected-perseverance-rover-boost-case?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Sep 2021 21:54:16 +0000 A research team in western China has unveiled a drone capable of travelling through air and underwater. Although it is not the first “transmedium” drone the world has seen, the Chinese prototype uses a design with improved underwater mobility. Water is 800 times more dense than air, and stickier. Similar drones developed in Western countries must rotate their blades at a slow speed while underwater or risk snapping. But the Chinese drone used two kinds of blades with one designed to spin 3,600... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3141856/how-chinas-flying-submarine-drone-could-change-way-sea-battles?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3141856/how-chinas-flying-submarine-drone-could-change-way-sea-battles?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jul 2021 20:00:17 +0000 The highly anticipated US government report on sightings of mysterious craft has reignited interest in the perennially enigmatic subject of unidentified flying objects, long popularised by Hollywood in films such as E.T., the Alien series, Cloverfield and the Men in Black franchise. The notion that there is extraterrestrial life in outer space fuels writers’ and filmmakers’ imaginations and makes for an abundance of tantalising conspiracy theories about aliens out there monitoring us. Earthlings... https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3138623/call-ufos-because-proof-out-there?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/letters/article/3138623/call-ufos-because-proof-out-there?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Jun 2021 16:30:11 +0000 A major US government report on UFOs released on Friday said defence and intelligence analysts lack sufficient data to determine the nature of mysterious flying objects observed by military pilots including whether they are advanced earthly technologies, atmospherics or of an extraterrestrial nature. The report, submitted to Congress and released to the public, encompasses 144 observations of what the government officially refers to as “unidentified aerial phenomenon”, or UAP, dating back to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3138842/us-government-report-pentagon-documented-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3138842/us-government-report-pentagon-documented-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 25 Jun 2021 21:26:59 +0000 This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Andrew Desiderio on politico.com on June 23, 2021. US lawmakers used to laugh when asked about UFOs. Now they have real questions – and they’re eager for the rare answers they will get this week. After decades of relegation to laughing-stock status, Congress is finally giving serious consideration to what are now officially known as Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs). Outlandish fears of an impending... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3138543/ufos-catch-congress-interest-weve-got-get-answer?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3138543/ufos-catch-congress-interest-weve-got-get-answer?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Jun 2021 04:48:32 +0000 As the Pentagon prepares its report into UFOs, due later this month, Chinese military researchers have turned to artificial intelligence to track and analyse the increasing number of unknown objects in China’s airspace. To the People’s Liberation Army, they are “unidentified air conditions” – a phrase which echoes the US military’s “unidentified aerial phenomena” – but to the public they are better known as unidentified flying objects, or UFOs. Pentagon watchdog opens new probe into US... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3136078/china-military-uses-ai-track-rapidly-increasing-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3136078/china-military-uses-ai-track-rapidly-increasing-ufos?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Jun 2021 15:00:14 +0000 US intelligence officials found no evidence that unidentified aerial phenomena observed by US Navy aviators in recent years were alien spacecraft, but the sightings remain unexplained in a highly anticipated government report, The New York Times said on Thursday. The report also found the vast majority of incidents documented over the past two decades did not originate from any American military or other advanced US government technology, the Times said, citing senior administration officials... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3136032/us-government-has-no-evidence-mystery-ufos-were?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3136032/us-government-has-no-evidence-mystery-ufos-were?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Jun 2021 05:46:49 +0000 This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Bryan Bender on politico.com on May 4, 2021. The Pentagon's inspector general is looking into the actions the military has taken to address the spate of UFO sightings in recent years involving high performance aircraft that have violated military airspace. The probe comes as Congress awaits a public report, due next month, from a host of national security agencies on the issue, and as advocates complain... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3132274/pentagon-watchdog-opens-new-probe-us-militarys?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3132274/pentagon-watchdog-opens-new-probe-us-militarys?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 May 2021 23:48:18 +0000 Scientists have spotted a planet orbiting a star relatively near our solar system that may offer a prime opportunity to study the atmosphere of a rocky Earthlike alien world – the type of research that could aid the hunt for extraterrestrial life. The researchers said on Thursday the planet, called Gliese 486 b and classified as a “super-Earth”, is not itself a promising candidate as a refuge for life. It is thought to be inhospitable – hot and dry like Venus, with possible rivers of lava... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3124158/nearby-super-earth-could-give-scientists-boost-search-alien-life?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3124158/nearby-super-earth-could-give-scientists-boost-search-alien-life?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Mar 2021 20:04:36 +0000 Astronomers spotted an interstellar visitor to our solar system for the first time on October 19, 2017. But it wasn’t an alien life form – it was an object. Even so, the surprise visitor, which was named “‘Oumuamua”, caused a stir in the world of astronomy and astrobiology, the discipline that investigates the possibilities of extraterrestrial life.  The excitement arose because scientists were unable to explain what ‘Oumuamua was. Our interstellar visitor – the term “interstellar” here means... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3122732/do-we-finally-have-proof-aliens-exist-interstellar-object-oumuamua-first?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3122732/do-we-finally-have-proof-aliens-exist-interstellar-object-oumuamua-first?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 23 Feb 2021 18:30:07 +0000 Nasa’s science rover Perseverance, the most advanced astrobiology laboratory ever sent to another world, streaked through the Martian atmosphere on Thursday and landed safely on the floor of a vast crater, its first stop on a search for traces of ancient microbial life on the red planet. Mission managers at Nasa’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory near Los Angeles burst into applause and cheers as radio signals confirmed that the six-wheeled rover had survived its perilous descent and arrived within its... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3122277/nasas-perseverance-rover-makes-historic-mars?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3122277/nasas-perseverance-rover-makes-historic-mars?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Feb 2021 21:14:44 +0000 The latest in a series of mystery monoliths to capture the imagination of science-fiction fans around the world met a fiery end in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Wednesday when it was torched at a roundabout in the capital. The 12-foot (3.7-metre) metallic structure first appeared in Kinshasa’s Bandal neighbourhood over the weekend on Sunday morning. On Wednesday morning, a crowd of curious onlookers snapped selfies and debated its possible origins. Videos posted on social media later in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3122112/silver-monolith-torched-congo-after-mysterious-appearance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3122112/silver-monolith-torched-congo-after-mysterious-appearance?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Feb 2021 19:47:17 +0000 Researchers said on Wednesday they had observed water vapour escaping high up in the thin atmosphere of Mars, offering tantalising new clues as to whether the red planet could have once hosted life. The traces of ancient valleys and river channels suggest liquid water once flowed across the surface of Mars. Today, the water is mostly locked up in the planet’s ice caps or buried underground. But some of it is vaporising, in the form of hydrogen leaking from the atmosphere, according to the new... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3121386/scientists-detect-water-vapour-emanating-mars?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3121386/scientists-detect-water-vapour-emanating-mars?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 10 Feb 2021 20:41:07 +0000 Two Colorado parents jailed for falsely claiming their six-year-old son Falcon had floated away in a home-made balloon shaped like a flying saucer have been granted pardons by the western US state’s governor. Richard and Mayumi Heene pleaded guilty in 2009 to the “balloon boy” hoax, which became a worldwide media sensation with millions watching live as the silver helium balloon drifted through the skies for 70 miles (110km). The October 2009 incident ended after five hours when the grounded... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3115319/us-parents-pardoned-bizarre-balloon-boy-hoax-fooled?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3115319/us-parents-pardoned-bizarre-balloon-boy-hoax-fooled?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Dec 2020 20:09:15 +0000 A massive radio telescope at Puerto Rico’s Arecibo Observatory – one of the world’s largest – collapsed on Tuesday after sustaining severe damage since August, officials said, following 57 years of astronomical discoveries. The deteriorating telescope’s 900-tonne instrument platform, suspended by cables 137 metres above a 305-metre-wide bowl-shaped reflector dish, fell on Tuesday morning, the US National Science Foundation said. No injuries were reported, it added. The telescope – which received... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3112205/massive-arecibo-radio-telescope-featured-james-bond?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3112205/massive-arecibo-radio-telescope-featured-james-bond?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 02 Dec 2020 03:26:48 +0000 A mysterious metal “obelisk” found buried in the remote western United States desert has inflamed the imaginations of UFO spotters, conspiracy theorists and Stanley Kubrick fans around the world. The shiny, triangular pillar – which protrudes around 12 feet (3.6 metres) from the red rocks of southern Utah – was spotted last Wednesday by baffled local officials counting bighorn sheep from the air. Landing to investigate, Utah Department of Public Safety crew members found “a metal monolith... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3111225/mysterious-gleaming-monolith-discovered-us-desert?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3111225/mysterious-gleaming-monolith-discovered-us-desert?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Nov 2020 19:40:47 +0000 A week after President Donald Trump told Fox Business host Lou Dobbs that he would follow the conspiracy theory-peddling host’s lead on investigating UFOs, CNN is reporting that the Pentagon is forming a UFO task force. According to that report, the task force is being headed by Deputy Secretary of Defence David Norquist and will be announced soon. Other entities with sway in Washington – arguably more so than Dobbs – have recently pushed for the nation’s intelligence apparatus to address the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3097486/pentagon-forming-ufo-task-force-after-trump-told?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3097486/pentagon-forming-ufo-task-force-after-trump-told?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 14 Aug 2020 20:47:50 +0000 A UFO researcher in Japan has expressed surprise at the announcement by Defence Minister Taro Kono that military pilots have not previously encountered an unidentified flying object (UFO), but that a plan will be drawn up on how best to respond in such a scenario. Kono was on Tuesday responding to a question in a press conference about the release of videos taken by US Navy pilots that allegedly show a series of encounters with UFOs. The Japanese Ministry of Defence will ask its counterparts at... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3082119/japans-military-pilots-have-never-encountered-ufos-defence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3082119/japans-military-pilots-have-never-encountered-ufos-defence?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 29 Apr 2020 08:45:50 +0000 The US Department of Defence has been watching, and recording, the skies. The Pentagon released three videos on Monday that depict unexplained “unidentified aerial phenomena” which were recorded by pilots between 2004 and 2015. In each of the reconnaissance videos, a flying aircraft manoeuvres strangely before emitting a bright light and flying away at great speed. The Pentagon released the videos “to clear up any misconceptions by the public on whether or not the footage that has been... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3081830/three-ufo-videos-us-navy-released-pentagon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3081830/three-ufo-videos-us-navy-released-pentagon?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2020 22:22:01 +0000 Dino Michael has spent a lot of time looking up at the stars in the night sky, ruminating on the possibilities of life out there. If there were extraterrestrial life forms, what would they look like? What would they be doing? And, maybe most importantly, when would they make contact with humans? “Then I thought, maybe they already did and we just didn’t realise it. After all, there are historical notes that indicate this is the case,” he muses. Michael, a 49-year-old Indonesian office worker, is... https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3050459/ufo-fans-indonesia-why-extraterrestrial-life-should-be-taken-seriously?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3050459/ufo-fans-indonesia-why-extraterrestrial-life-should-be-taken-seriously?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 15 Feb 2020 21:00:10 +0000