Has the U.S. government officially acknowledged UFOs?

Yes. The Pentagon has confirmed the existence of multiple UAP investigation programs (AATIP, UAPTF, AARO), authenticated military UAP footage, and released a DNI assessment acknowledging unidentified objects in military airspace. Congressional hearings have further expanded the official record.

What is the difference between UFO and UAP?

UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena) is the current official terminology, replacing UFO (Unidentified Flying Object). The change reflects a broadening of scope beyond aerial objects to include underwater and transmedium phenomena, and an effort to reduce the stigma associated with the term 'UFO'.

Are claims about alien spacecraft verified on They Knew?

We verify claims based on available evidence. Government UAP programs, authenticated military encounters, and official disclosures are documented as verified when primary sources confirm them. Claims about the nature or origin of UAP — including extraterrestrial hypotheses — are tracked separately based on available evidence.

Why were UFO reports suppressed for so long?

The documented record suggests a combination of national security concerns, fear of public panic, scientific stigma, and institutional incentives to maintain secrecy. The Robertson Panel in 1953 explicitly recommended debunking UAP reports to reduce public interest, and this policy influenced government and military approaches for decades.

UFO & Unexplained Cover-Ups Proven True — 87 Documented Claims

For decades, expressing serious interest in unidentified aerial phenomena was a career-ending move in government, military, and scientific circles. The stigma was deliberate and effective — it suppressed reporting, discouraged investigation, and kept one of the most significant questions in human history confined to the margins of public discourse. Then the evidence started becoming undeniable.

In December 2017, the New York Times revealed the existence of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP), a Pentagon program that had been investigating UAP encounters since 2007. The program's existence contradicted decades of official statements that the U.S. government had no interest in UFOs after the closure of Project Blue Book in 1969. Along with the program's revelation came three Navy fighter pilot videos — FLIR1, Gimbal, and GoFast — showing objects performing maneuvers that appeared to exceed known aeronautical capabilities. The Pentagon subsequently confirmed the videos were authentic.

In June 2021, the Director of National Intelligence released a preliminary assessment on UAPs that acknowledged 144 reports from U.S. government sources between 2004 and 2021, of which only one could be identified with high confidence. The report stated that UAP "clearly pose a safety of flight issue and may pose a challenge to U.S. national security." This was the U.S. intelligence community officially acknowledging that unidentified objects were operating in restricted military airspace and that they couldn't explain them.

The subsequent establishment of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) and congressional hearings featuring testimony from military pilots, intelligence officials, and former Pentagon personnel brought UAP disclosure into the mainstream. Navy Commander David Fravor's testimony about the 2004 USS Nimitz encounter — describing a Tic Tac-shaped object that demonstrated instantaneous acceleration, hypersonic velocity without visible propulsion, and the ability to operate across air and water — was corroborated by multiple radar operators and pilots.

Congressional legislation has pushed for further disclosure. The UAP Disclosure Act, backed by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, sought to establish a review board with authority to declassify UAP-related records — modeled on the JFK Records Act. The legislation's existence acknowledged, at the highest levels of government, that significant information about UAP was being withheld from the public and from congressional oversight.

Whistleblower David Grusch, a former intelligence official, testified under oath before Congress that the U.S. government possesses retrieved non-human craft and biological materials. While these claims remain unverified through publicly available evidence, Grusch's testimony was deemed credible by the Intelligence Community Inspector General, and he submitted classified evidence to congressional committees with appropriate clearances.

What makes the UAP category unique is the speed at which claims have moved from "conspiracy theory" to "congressional hearing topic." The trajectory of disclosure — decades of denial followed by grudging acknowledgment driven by leaked evidence and congressional pressure — mirrors the patterns documented across every other category on this platform.

Top Claims in UFO & Unexplained

UAP Scientist Amy Eskridge Texted 'My Life Is in Danger' Before Dying at 34

Senate Testimony: Pentagon Whistleblower Says He Personally Handled Non-Human Materials

Mass UAP sighting over Helsinki, Finland — multiple witnesses captured video of unidentified objects

RAF Cosford UFO Incident Was Investigated Despite Claims Nothing Unusual Occurred

Pentagon missed the Congressional deadline to release 46 classified UAP videos — Rep. Luna threatened subpoena

Frequently Asked Questions

All UFO & Unexplained Claims

UAP Scientist Amy Eskridge Texted 'My Life Is in Danger' Before Dying at 34

Senate Testimony: Pentagon Whistleblower Says He Personally Handled Non-Human Materials

Mass UAP sighting over Helsinki, Finland — multiple witnesses captured video of unidentified objects

RAF Cosford UFO Incident Was Investigated Despite Claims Nothing Unusual Occurred

Pentagon missed the Congressional deadline to release 46 classified UAP videos — Rep. Luna threatened subpoena

Rendlesham Forest Incident Witnesses Were Officially Silenced by US Air Force

NASA Astronaut Gordon Cooper's UFO Encounters Were Suppressed by Agency

Congress demands the Pentagon release 46 secret UFO videos: 'You're gonna see some weird f--king sh-t'

The Pentagon ran a secret $22M UFO investigation program (AATIP) hidden from Congress and the public

Navy pilots encountered a 'Tic Tac' UFO that defied physics off San Diego in 2004 — Pentagon confirmed the footage

The Air Force's first UFO study (Project Sign) concluded UFOs were extraterrestrial — the report was ordered destroyed

Thousands witnessed a massive V-shaped craft over Phoenix in 1997 — the governor later admitted he saw it too

US military personnel at RAF Woodbridge encountered a UFO in Rendlesham Forest — radiation levels were 10x normal at the landing site

A disc-shaped UFO hovered over Gate C17 at O'Hare Airport in 2006 — the FAA dismissed it without investigation

Project Blue Book Systematically Debunked UFO Reports Despite Internal Evidence

Navy warships were swarmed by UFOs off California in 2019 — confirmed by the Chief of Naval Operations

Navy Pilots Encountered Unidentified Craft Off USS Nimitz in 2004

The DIA secretly funded a $22M paranormal investigation program (AAWSAP) based at Skinwalker Ranch

The CIA ran a secret $20M psychic spy program (Stargate Project) for 20 years — declassified in 2017

Former AATIP director Luis Elizondo resigned from the Pentagon to expose UAP secrecy — his book debuted #1 on the NYT bestseller list

Former Deputy Assistant SecDef Christopher Mellon became a leading voice demanding UAP transparency from the government he once served

Aerospace billionaire Robert Bigelow said on '60 Minutes' he is 'absolutely convinced' of alien presence on Earth

Rear Admiral Gallaudet testified that a UFO video was emailed to Navy commanders then mysteriously deleted from their accounts

Multiple insiders allege Lockheed Martin possesses recovered UFO crash materials and has been reverse-engineering alien technology

SXSW documentary 'The Age of Disclosure' features 34 military and intelligence veterans with direct UAP knowledge

The White House quietly registered alien.gov and aliens.gov as official government domains

AATIP Pentagon UFO Program Existed Despite Official Denials Until 2017

Japanese Airlines Flight 1628 UFO Encounter Was Dismissed by FAA

USS Nimitz Tic Tac UFO Encounters Were Classified Until Whistleblower Disclosure

While many crop circles are proven hoaxes, some formations exhibit anomalies that defy simple human creation explanations

The UAP Disclosure Act would give the government eminent domain over recovered non-human technology held by private corporations

Mercury astronaut Gordon Cooper filmed a UFO landing at Edwards AFB in 1957 and testified the footage was confiscated by the government

French Government Hid Details of Trans-en-Provence UFO Landing Case

Belgian Air Force Tracked UFOs on Radar But Initially Denied Public Reports

Kecksburg UFO Crash Debris Was Removed by Military Despite Official Denials

VP JD Vance says he's 'obsessed' with UFOs and wants to go to Area 51 and New Mexico to 'get to the bottom of this'

Intelligence officer David Grusch testified under oath that the US government has recovered non-human craft and biologics

A JAL cargo pilot reported a massive UFO over Alaska in 1986 — the FAA confirmed radar contact then suppressed the case

The Pentagon deliberately planted UFO disinformation to conceal classified weapons programs — now confirmed by DoD review

The FBI investigated a nationwide wave of cattle mutilations in the 1970s-80s, finding evidence of surgical precision and unknown chemicals

French COMETA Report Acknowledged UFO Reality Despite Government's Public Skepticism

Japan Airlines Flight 1628 UFO Encounter Was Officially Investigated Despite Denials

Phoenix Lights Military Flares Explanation Came Five Months After Initial Denials

Brazil Officially Released UFO Files After Decades of Claiming No Records Existed

Malmstrom Air Force Base Nuclear Missiles Allegedly Disabled During UFO Incident

Belgian Air Force Tracked UFO Triangle During 1990 Wave But Downplayed Findings

Stephenville UFO Sightings Radar Data Contradicted Military's Initial Denials

Soviet Union Covered Up Massive UFO Research Program Until 1991

Related Categories