UFO report: US says can identify 1 of 144 flying objects with 'high confidence'

The report, called 'Preliminary Assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena', was released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

The United States on Friday released a report on unidentified flying objects to characterise the potential threat posed by them and it showed that the government was only able to explain one of the 144 cases of unidentified flying objects reported by military planes with "high confidence".

While UAPs could be airborne clutter or natural atmospheric phenomena, they could also be part of the industry developmental programs or foreign adversary systems. (Getty Images/iStockphoto for representation)

"We were able to identify one reported Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) with high confidence. In that case, we identified the object as a large, deflating balloon. The others remain unexplained," the report read.

The report, called 'Preliminary Assessment: Unidentified Aerial Phenomena', was released by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

UFO report's objective

Its objective was to provide an overview for policymakers of the challenges associated with characterising the potential threat posed by UAPs. It also aimed to provide "means to develop processes, policies, technologies and training for the US military and other US government (USG) personnel" when they encounter UAPs, "so as to enhance the Intelligence Community’s (IC) ability to understand the threat".

Not enough data

There was wide variability in the reports and the dataset that was available on UAPs. Though the data was too limited to allow for detailed pattern analysis, some clustering of UAPs was observed based on their shape, size, and, particularly, propulsion.

Some UAPs demonstrate advanced technology

The report also says that "unusual activities" were reported on several occasions, but mentions that this may be due to sensor errors. "In 18 incidents, described in 21 reports, UAP reportedly appeared to exhibit unusual flight characteristics. These observations could be the result of sensor errors, spoofing, or observer misperception and require additional rigorous analysis," the report said.

UAPs lack a single explanation

While UAPs could be airborne clutter or natural atmospheric phenomena, they could also be part of the industry developmental programs or foreign adversary systems such as technologies deployed by China, Russia, another nation, or a non-governmental entity.