Back in August, when a significant part of the world was diverted by the constant walk of the pandemic, a declaration by the Pentagon that would in ordinary occasions have ruled worldwide features caused scarcely a wave.
Following quite a while of hypothesis and a huge number of reports of close and illogical experiences with the obviously other-common, the US was authoritatively and straightforwardly exploring proof that we here on Earth are in good company.
In divulging the new Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force (UAPTF), appointee Defense Secretary David Norquist gave more authority belief to sightings of unidentified flying items (UFOs) than at any other time.
It came to a while after the US military declassified three recordings wherein naval force warriors had caught unexplained flying wonders and based on the energy that had been developing for near 10 years to legitimize the quest for extraterrestrial life.
“The aeronautical wonders saw in the recordings remain portrayed as ‘unidentified,'” the Pentagon said in an explanation at that point.
Under the umbrella of public safety, the quest for answers moved from web visit rooms, cosplay shows, and paranoid fears to the most significant levels of the US government.
“The Department of Defence established the UAPTF to improve its understanding of, and gain insight into, the nature and origins of UAPs,” the Pentagon announced.
“The mission of the task force is to detect, analyze and catalog UAPs that could potentially pose a threat to US national security.”
Former navy pilot Ryan Graves has described seeing fast and oddly shaped flying objects “every day for a couple of years” off the coast of Florida, and added his voice to calls for a full and public investigation.
“I am worried, frankly,” Lt Graves recently told America’s 60 Minutes.
“If these were tactical jets from another country that were hanging out up there, it would be a massive issue. But because it looks slightly different, we’re not willing to actually look at the problem in the face.
“We’re happy to just ignore the fact that these are out there, watching us every day.”
Given a deadline of next month to produce its first report, exactly what the task force will present to Congress in June is now the subject of fierce conjecture.
Experts doubt this first report will clearly determine if the objects are secret weapons from a foreign adversary or indeed the product of another planet.
But the release of formerly top-secret US navy footage and the upcoming hearing in Congress has added much-needed gravitas to the question millions of people have been asking for decades: are we alone?
And it has offered vindication for many whose stories of their encounters have seen them marginalized or ignored, including a band of unwavering believers in Australia.
Among them is Anthony Goodall, who feels like a weight has been lifted from his shoulders.
“It’s well overdue,” Mr. Goodall said.
