SCU ENDORSES OUTLINE FOR SERIOUS STUDY OF UAP PRESENTED BY NASA IN HISTORIC OPEN MEETING; AFFIRMS ANOMALOUS DATA DO EXIST
SCU affirms NASA panelists’ calls for establishing a permanent NASA UAP program office to provide funding for unclassified studies; destigmatization of research and reporting; public outreach and integration with STEM education; and public access to unclassified resources such as FAA radar data; notes that data currently exist that show anomalous behavior.
June 6 – The Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU) released the following statement:
The May 31st public meeting of NASA’s UAP Independent Study Team (UAPIST) represented an important milestone in the history of unclassified scientific research into UAP. SCU’s members note the importance of one of the USA’s flagship public science agencies taking the UAP topic seriously – something we’ve long understood was needed to address the full complexities of the UAP enigma. We implore, as did some of the panelists, that the efforts and momentum of the UAPIST not be forfeited and that NASA establishes a permanent UAP program office to ensure the group’s work does not end up “sitting on the shelf.”
SCU urges the U.S. Congress to fund NASA to support UAP research throughout the scientific community, including the collection, storage, and public release of FAA radar data. NASA’s proven record of open science, engineering solutions to complex problems, and public engagement make them ideally suited to oversee such funding. SCU believes this kind of ongoing investigative work should not exclusively fall under the auspices of DoD, which, as multiple presenters noted, has a different set of fundamental interests that do not include open data and public science.
Likewise, SCU echoes NASA’s strong call for further destigmatization around UAP. This includes encouraging standardized reporting from all government agencies and sanctioning open, official, and competitive research funding so scientists can seriously engage in UAP research without harassment within their organizations.
SCU does take issue with some of the statements made during the meeting. It should not be stated that “No data exist that show anomalous behavior” or that there is “No evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence” until we define such words as “anomalous” and “extraterrestrial intelligence” and specify what data and evidence are needed to make such determinations. These aspects of the scientific study of UAP have yet to be prescribed, so these statements are incomplete and thus misleading. Existing peer-reviewed studies show evidence of anomalous behavior based on instrument and eyewitness data (Knuth et al., 2019; Powell et al., 2019; Faruk, 2022); more are needed. We thank the panelists for their important work and look forward to the upcoming written report to NASA.
***
SCU promotes and encourages the rigorous scientific examination of UAP, commonly known as Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs). SCU comprises scientists, engineers, members of the high-tech and defense industries, former military, and other professionals, utilizing scientific principles, methodologies, and practices to advance the study of UAP observed and reported around the globe.
The Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. Contributions to SCU are tax-deductible.
###
