10 Takeaways from the UFO Congressional Hearing
Yesterday, the Enigma team took a break from building to tune into a significant UFO hearing in Congress. It was the second UFO hearing held by the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, entitled "Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth." There were four witnesses:
- Dr. Tim Gallaudet, retired Rear Admiral, U.S. Navy
- Luis Elizondo, former Department of Defense official
- Michael Gold, ex-NASA official and now with RedWire Space
- Michael Shellenberger, professor and journalist
You can watch the full video here.
Enigma is a neutral technology and data platform, focused on real-time UFO/UAP sightings and alerts, serving the public, aviators, and the scientific community. Our interest lies in studying UFO data – documenting object sightings, understanding behavioral patterns, characteristics, hotspots, and trends. As such, the things that interested us most related to UFO sightings and data. Below you'll find the 10 key takeaways we found most compelling.
1/ USOs were a big theme
Both Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) focused a lot of their questioning on USOs – unidentified submerged objects.
Michael Shellenberger: “Since my reporting on Immaculate Constellation last month, another source came forward he told me that they saw a roughly 13 minute long high-definition full color video of a white orb UAP coming out of the ocean approximately 20 miles off the coast of Kuwait — it was filmed from a helicopter... the orb was joined by another orb of that briefly comes into the frame from the left before rapidly moving again out of the frame.”
Dr. Tim Gallaudet: “Submersible objects... I've had no personal experience.. but I've had witnesses on submarines come to me and say they've seen them on sonar data. In one instance that was revealed to me… it was in the Eighties on a nuclear powered submarine… The object exhibited characteristics of a Russian torpedo, it slowed, followed the submarine slowly for a period of minutes... then rapidly exited the scene. Nothing that we know of in technology could replicate that.”
2/ There are ostensibly hotspot “exit” and “entry” points for where UAP appear
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) inquired about USO hotspots, asking Michael Shellenberger if the possibility of USO submerging into or emerging from the water indicates underwater bases. While Shellenberger said he did not know of any bases, he acknowledged reports of USO activity hotspots, but declined to share specific information, citing sources who were not comfortable revealing sensitive information.
3/ Sightings near sensitive facilities and nuclear energy sites are a serious concern
Rep. Williams Timmons (R-SC): “It seems a lot of these sightings occur near military installations. Do you think that these UAPs are intentionally targeting them or do you think we have increased abilities to monitor these installations?” Luis Elizondo responded, “We have no idea.”
Rep Andy Ogles (R-TN): "Would it be fair to say UAP are especially common near nuclear sites... and why might they be interested in those sites?... and what role might the DOE and its affiliates have in possessing this type of technology?"
Luis Elizondo: "Yes there is actually documentation that has been submitted... they're not just around Oakridge National Labs, but also Savannah River Site and Los Alamos. A lot of our sensitive R&D sites appear to be under some sort of surveillance and monitoring. Why? Because a lot of innovation comes out of those areas, a lot of new technologies and disruptive technologies that we use for our national defense originates out of those locations, and advanced physics concepts as well."
Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI) also referenced the Langley Air Force Base incursion of December 2023, and asked Elizondo about the frequency of UAP sightings at sensitive military locations. Elizondo responded, “Trends and data show a clear pattern linking UAPs to sensitive military installations, nuclear equities, and department of energy sites.”
4/ Machine Learning and AI could be a powerful tool to sort through untapped data
Michael Gold emphasized the potential of AI and machine learning to help sift through the vast amount of UAP-related data, stating, “For little cost and effort NASA could create an AI or ML algorithm to search the agency's archives for anomalous phenomena.” See his written statement below.
5/ Witnesses alleged there is a trove of “thousands of high quality images of UAPs”
Michael Shellenberger: “We are sitting on a huge visual dataset of UAPs… I've been told hundreds, maybe thousands… some of these are shot from helicopters, over oceans…” and he added that, “it is a very large amount of data collected over many decades.”
6/ Metallic orbs have been a trend, even disrupting F-22 formations
Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) recounted an alleged UAP encounter where, “multiple metallic orbs accelerated at rapid speed toward a F-22 performing a routine mission… the F-22 was unable to establish radar locks on the UAP. The aircraft was boxed in by approximately three to six UAPs."
7/ UAPs can allegedly move at speeds of up to 1000-3000 G-force
Luis Elizondo: “Some UAPs are allegedly capable of moving at up to 1000-3000 G-force. To put that in context, one of our most highly maneuverable aircraft, the F-16, can only perform 17-18 G-forces before it experiences structural failure.”
8/ The Langley AFB incursion in Dec 2023 was alarming
Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI): “I’m deeply alarmed by the report of a massive drone swarm that flew over Langley Air Force Base in Virginia last December. Langley is the home of the 1st Fighter Wing, which maintains half of the F-22s in the U.S. Airforce Inventory. Reports of this incident indicate these drones were roughly 20 feet long, flying more than 100 miles an hour, at altitudes of over 3000 feet. Yet the origins of these drones and their operator remains a mystery.”
9/ Half the witnesses said they thought UFOs are Non-Human Intelligence
Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA) asked witnesses to state what they believe UFOs to be. Half said non-human intelligence, half were unsure:
- Dr. Tim Gallaudet: “Strong evidence that they’re non-human higher intelligence, sir.”
- Luis Elizondo: “I echo my colleagues' comment sir. NHI.”
- Michael Shellenberger: “I genuinely don’t know.”
- Michael Gold: “I don’t know, but we must find out.”
10/ The attendance at and coverage of this hearing was atypical. It reflects intense public interest in this issue
The public interest in UFOs/UAPs is massive, and attendance and scrutiny on this hearing was noticeable. There were over 100,000 live viewers on YouTube alone.
Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN) “This is an important hearing… It is clear that there is something out there. The question is, is it ours? Someone else's? Or otherwordly?"
As the interest in the issue continues to grow, the need for scientific inquiry and data-driven answers has never been more urgent. We’ll be watching closely and sharing more insights as they emerge.
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Further Resources:
- April 2023 Senate Armed Services Hearing on UFOs. Hearing video and AARO statement
- July 2023 Congressional Oversight Committee - Hearing on UFOs, transcript
