The origins of the modern UFO phenomenon began during WWII and really kicked off with what's known as The Roswell Incident in 1947. Around the same time thousands of people across Scandinavia were reporting missile-like objects in the sky. Over the intervening decades an entire culture has emerged, from books and films to declassified documents and even recently Congressional hearings. In July 2023 there were Congressional hearings featuring three witnesses, including a man named David Grusch who was former National Reconnaissance Office representative to the U.S. Government's UAP Task Force. UFOs (unidentified flying objects) have been recently rebranded as UAPs (unidentified aerial phenomena.)
The other two witnesses at those hearings were retired Navy pilots: Commander David Fravor, he’s the pilot involved in the famous 2004 so-called "Tic Tac" incident off the coast of California. And Lt. Ryan Graves, who flew F-18s. They both testified that UAP sightings were "not rare or isolated." David Grusch testified that the United States government is operating a long-term, secret "crash retrieval and reverse-engineering program" and he alleged that this program has recovered "non-human" spacecraft and, in some cases, dead pilots, which are being hidden from public and congressional oversight. You can read the full hearing transcript here.
This testimony happened before Congress and was widely reported on, including by NPR and other major news outlets.
Then President Trump recently posted “Based on the tremendous interest shown, I will be directing the Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies, to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters."
Some people believe there is evidence that can be produced that proves the existence of non-human life or intelligence present on planet Earth. Others believe this whole idea is either delusion or misinformation designed to distract.
In 1969, a group was formed called MUFON (Mutual UFO Network) with a goal of turning a fact-based, skeptical eye to claims of UFO encounters, but also with an open-minded approach that takes reports seriously enough to seek evidence to support or disprove claims. We talk with a member of MUFON's Florida branch to learn about the work they do, and get her take on the times we're in.
Guest:
Rusty Hester, Assistant state director for MUFON Florida
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