UFOs and Extraterrestrials

UFOs, or Unidentified Flying Objects, and extraterrestrials are perennial favorites in science fiction, but to date there have been no confirmed encounters on Earth. Still, strange sights in the night sky have been attributed to UFOs or aliens over the decades, most famously in Roswell, New Mexico, where many believers claim an alien craft crashed on a farm in 1947. In 2017, the existence of a secret U.S. government program that tracked "UFO" sightings by military pilots, which shut down in 2012, was brought to light in a New York Times report.

Related Topics: Alien Planets, Incredible Space Tech, Multiverse, Interstellar Travel

Latest Updates

In 2017, a video of the Nimitz UFO encounter was publicly released.

Top-secret UFO files could 'gravely damage' US national security if released, Navy says

By Brandon Specktor published

The US Navy confirmed they have secret, classified documents regarding a 2004 UFO encounter, but releasing them could 'gravely damage' national security.

An up-close look at the "tiger stripes" on Saturn's moon Enceladus, which is thought to harbor a big ocean of liquid water beneath its icy surface.

If We Find Life on Europa or Enceladus, It Will Probably Be a '2nd Genesis'

By Mike Wall published

If there are creatures swimming in the buried oceans of the outer solar system, they're probably not related to us, new research suggests.

A man in Canada says he was attacked by a UFO in 1967. (Not this one.)

Thousands of Government UFO Reports Now Available at Canadian University

By Brandon Specktor published

A private UFO enthusiast has donated his collection of 30,000 documents to the University of Manitoba in Canada. The truth is in there.

Artist's illustration on NASA's 2020 Mars rover on the Red Planet.

How NASA's Next Mars Rover Will Hunt for Alien Life

By Mike Wall published

Spotting signs of long-dead life is a tall order for a lonely robot on a faraway world, but NASA's next Mars rover should be up to the challenge, mission team members said.

The Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST) in southwest China's Guizhou Province.

China's Huge, Alien-Hunting Radio Telescope Is Finishing Its Testing Phase

By Leonard David published

China's giant, alien-hunting radio telescope is finishing its testing-and-commissioning phase, which has occurred over the past three years.

The Allen Telescope Array in northern California is dedicated to astronomical observations and a simultaneous search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).

Will 2020 Be the Year We Find Intelligent Alien Life?

By Leonard David published

Is 2020 the celestial payoff year, in which astronomers finally confirm a "technosignature" coming from an advanced alien civilization?

In 2017, a video of the Nimitz UFO encounter was publicly released.

Navy Officers Say 'Unknown Individuals' Made Them Erase Evidence of 2004 UFO Encounter

By Yasemin Saplakoglu published

The signals were erratic and didn't seem to match those given off by known aircraft.

Jupiter's ocean-harboring moon Europa, as imaged by NASA's Galileo spacecraft.

NASA Europa Mission Could Potentially Spot Signs of Alien Life

By Mike Wall published

If there's life on Jupiter's ocean moon Europa, an upcoming NASA mission might be able to sniff it out.

Artist's illustration of HD 21749c, the first Earth-size planet found by NASA's Transiting Exoplanets Survey Satellite, as well as its sibling, HD 21749b, a warm sub-Neptune-sized world. In a new study, a research team led by Björn Benneke, a professor at the Institute for Research on Exoplanets at the Université de Montréal, discovered water vapor and likely even raining clouds in the atmosphere of the exoplanet K2-18 b.

NASA's Planet-Hunting Probe Joins the Search for Intelligent Aliens

By Mike Wall published

Scientists with the TESS mission will work with the Breakthrough Listen project.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk reveals new details about Starship Mk, the company's enormous reusable launch system, and talks aliens in Boca Chica, Texas on September 28, 2019.

Elon Musk Doesn't Know Where the Aliens Are (So, Stop Asking)

By Chelsea Gohd published

At a recent event in Boca Chica, Texas, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk confirms that, to his knowledge, we haven't yet discovered aliens.

Would-be alien-hunters gather to "storm" Area 51 at an entrance to the military facility near Rachel, Nevada, on September 20, 2019.

Area 51 Gate Crashing: Storm of Controversy

By Leonard David published

Aliens of all stripes are zeroing in on the secretive Area 51 this weekend.

This artist's illustration depicts a hypothetical dust ring orbiting KIC 8462852, also known as Boyajian's Star or Tabby's Star.

'Alien Megastructure' Star May Not Be So Special After All

By Charles Q. Choi published

More mysteriously dimming stars have been spotted.

a grainy black and white video taken by the navy that shows two dark splotches that are thought to be ufos

UFOs Are Real — and You Were Never Supposed to See Them, Military Official Says

By Brandon Specktor published

Remember those viral UFO videos you saw last year? The government would like you to forget them, please.

"End Times" by Brian Walsh.

What Does the End of the World Look Like? A Q&A with the Author of 'End Times'

By Meghan Bartels published

Step right up and pick your doomsday — and then figure out what we could theoretically do, if we tried to avoid meeting that fate.

The artist's concept depicts Kepler-62f, a super-Earth exoplanet in the habitable zone of a star smaller and cooler than the sun, located about 1,200 light-years from Earth in the constellation Lyra.

Biodiversity on Some Alien Planets May Dwarf That of Earth

By Mike Wall published

Earth's dazzling biodiversity may not be so remarkable in the cosmic scheme of things, a new study suggests.

An artist's depiction of biofluorescence countering harmful radiation from a star.

Glowing Aliens Could Turn Harsh UV Radiation into Beautiful Radiance

By Samantha Mathewson published

Life on alien planets may produce a protective glow to buffer the dangerous flares of nearby stars.

An artist's illustration of a massive impact on earth. Some single-celled organisms may be able to survive extreme impacts such as these, scientists say.

Life May Be Common in the Milky Way, Thanks to Comet Swapping

By Mike Wall published

Life has had plenty of opportunities to spread throughout the Milky Way galaxy over the eons — and our own Earth could be one of the key dispersal points.

U.S. Senator and presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, shown here at a press conference in June 2019, has pledged to share any details about UFOs if he wins the 2020 election.

Bernie Sanders Pledges to Release Any Information About Aliens If He's Elected in 2020: Report

By Elizabeth Howell published

Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders (D-VT) says he's prepared to disclose government information about UFOs if he wins in 2020.

An artist's illustration of the potentially habitable exoplanet GJ 357 d.

E.T. Hunt Shouldn't Be Limited to Earth-like Life, Scientists Say

By Sarah Wells published

Assuming that alien life will be similar to what evolved here on Earth could severely limit the potential for big discoveries, researchers said.

Scientists are on the hunt for signals from intelligent aliens.

If Aliens Are Flashing Laser Beams at Us, We Now Have a Way to Detect Them

By Tim Childers published

Are aliens using super powerful flashlights to get our attention? Astronomers think there's a chance they are.