Category Space Odyssey

What are UFOs?

Hundreds of new UFO reports, but…there is still no evidence of aliens. The Pentagon, the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, has set up a new office to track reports of UFO sightings and collect data.

What are UFOs?

A new Pentagon office set up to track reports of unidentified flying objects (UFOS) has received “several hundreds” of new reports. What are UFOS? Over the centuries, people have reported seeing strange airborne objects or unusual optical phenomena in the sky. These are called UFOS. Over the years, the belief that UFOs are the spaceships of aliens from other planets has gained ground – though without any concrete evidence. Are there possibilities of extraterrestrial life? Shouldn’t the sightings be tracked systematically? Well, that’s why the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) was formed.

2. What is AARO?

The AARO was set up in July 2022 to track unidentified objects in the sky, underwater and in space. It was established following more than a year of attention on unidentified flying objects that military pilots have observed.

It focusses on unexplained activity around military installations, restricted airspace and “other areas of interest” and is aimed at helping identify possible threats to the safety of U.S. military operations and to national security.

3. Scientific approach

Sean Kirkpatrick, director, AARO, did not rule out the possibility of extraterrestrial life and said he was taking a scientific approach to the research. Since the launch of the AARO, there have been several hundred new reports.

“We are structuring our analysis to be very thorough and rigorous. We will go through it all. And as a physicist, I have to adhere to the scientific method.”

4. No alien life

The U.S. military officially calls the 144 sightings observed between 2004 and 2021 as “unidentified aerial phenomena.”

But they have seen nothing that indicates alien life. “I have not seen anything that would suggest that there has been an alien visitation, an alien crash or anything like that,” said Ronald Moultrie, Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security.

5. Quick facts

* The Air Force conducted an investigation into UFO activity called ‘Project Blue Book’. It ended in 1969 with a list of 12,618 sightings, 701 of which involved objects that officially remained “unidentified.”

* In 1994, it concluded that the 1947 famous “Roswell incident” in New Mexico, was not an UFO but a crashed balloon, the military’s long-standing explanation.

Picture Credit : Google 

It’s my dream and the aim of my life to join ISRO.

It’s my dream and the aim of my life to join ISRO; I am in Std XII and have opted for PCM + computer applications. I am an average student and got 84% in ICSC. What are the various career options in ISRO, the fields of engineering to get into ISRO and the requirements and colleges from which I can pursue these courses? Also what are the advantages of joining this stream?

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) conducts a written test every year for final year engineering students of streams like electronics, electrical, computer science or mechanical engineering. On the basis of this exam, the selected applicants are then called for an interview which decides the final selection of candidates for the post of Scientist/Engineer SC. The other option is to join Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram for B.Tech. (Aerospace Engineering/Avionics). Admission is through JEE. After completing the course all students are absorbed in ISRO.

 

Picture Credit : Google