NASA, UFO? US agency shocks and awes

NASA is gearing up to conduct a study regarding the existence of “Unidentified Flying Objects”, commonly known as UFOs. Here’s more about it.

NASA is aiming to conduct a thorough study to prove the existence of UFOs, if any. (Pixabay)

NASA is commissioning an independent team to study the existence of UFOs. UFOs are unidentified objects in space often referred to as alien spaceships. They are part of what NASA calls “UAP” – Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, which refers to any unidentified aerial object in space.

According to astrophysicist David Spergel, “Given the paucity of observations, our first task is simply to gather the most robust set of data that we can. We will be identifying what data – from civilians, government, non-profits, companies – exists, what else we should try to collect, and how to best analyze it.”

Spergel, who is president of the Simons Foundation in New York City, is leading this independent team in this new NASA study. He will be joined by Daniel Evans, the assistant deputy associate administrator for research at NASA Science Mission Directorate and will serve as the NASA official responsible for carrying out the study.

People all across the world have claimed to be the witness to UFO sightings. They are said to have seen flashing lights across the sky looking like UFOs. Although numerous people have witnessed them, there is hardly any concrete evidence which could confirm UFO visits to Earth.

However, NASA is aiming to change that. Thomas Zurbuchen, the associate administrator for science at NASA Headquarters, Washington said, “NASA believes that the tools of scientific discovery are powerful and apply here also.”

Notably, he added, “We are not shying away from reputational risk”. In effect, NASA is looking to step into an area that is not, as yet, defined by any scientific theory, and is, in fact, dominated by hearsay and unconfirmed reports.

“We have access to a broad range of observations of Earth from space – and that is the lifeblood of scientific inquiry. We have the tools and team who can help us improve our understanding of the unknown. That's the very definition of what science is. That's what we do,” he further added.

This new study is part of NASA's vision to search for signs of life on other planets as well as research any signs of extraterrestrial life on Earth. The agency is already using its various satellites and telescopes to find signs of life on other planets. From Hubble Telescope, Transiting Exoplanetary Survey Satellite to its brand-new James Webb Space Telescope, it seems NASA will not rest until it finds evidence of life on other planets.