The much-anticipated “preliminary assessment” of “unidentified aerial phenomena” has landed—not so much with a bang as with a flop.
Drawn up by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the top level of intelligence in the United States, the report, released on June 25, was required upon the passing of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, a bill which included a coronavirus relief and stimulus provision and which was signed into law by former President Donald Trump on Dec. 27, 2020.
The report gives “an intelligence assessment of the threat posed by unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP),” known commonly by the term “unidentified flying objects,” or UFOs, observed from November 2004 to March 2021. Of the 144 phenomena evaluated, 18 “appear to demonstrate advanced technology,” having the ability “to remain stationary in winds aloft, move against the wind, maneuver abruptly, or move at considerable speed, without discernable means of propulsion.” While “the majority of UAP data is from U.S. Navy reporting,” there are plans to add supplemental data from both the U.S. Air Force and the Federal Aviation Administration.
Significantly, the report also admits to “a collection bias,” given that its data “tended to cluster around U.S. training and testing grounds.” Its release is part of an ongoing congressional push to strengthen America’s defense against “ever-expanding threats from hostile foreign actors,” as Sen. Marco Rubio from Florida described. As an unclassified document, its contents are entirely available to the public.
Unfortunately, the report ends up falling short, successfully naming only one item (“a large, deflating balloon”). It then determines that better results would require “additional funding for research and development.” In other words, to know more, you’ve got to pay more.
Something’s Out There
According to the report, there are several possibilities for the phenomena. They could be “airborne clutter”; this would include the balloon, the one item identified. They could be “natural atmospheric phenomena,” such as “ice crystals.” They could be devices belonging to the USA, perhaps some experimental technology to which the lower levels of our government are not privy (yes, we’re looking at you, Area 51).
On a more alarming note, they could also be “foreign adversary systems.” The report describes this category as “technologies deployed by China, Russia, another nation, or a non-governmental entity.” And if indeed we have no idea what these “foreign adversary systems” are, then that doesn’t bode well for the United States. Of course, publicizing this information would hardly be sound intelligence strategy.
Lastly, these UAP could be something we haven’t even thought of. “A catchall ‘other’ bin” is what the document calls it. But for now, 143 items remain uncategorized.
Several media outlets expressed disappointment at the ambiguity of the report. As The Associated Press quipped in a throwback to The X-Files, “The truth is still out there.” The report, however, seemed to preemptively defend itself by including a list of “challenges,” such as the “sociocultural stigmas” associated with UAP. “Although the effects of these stigmas have lessened as senior members of the scientific, policy, military, and intelligence communities engage on the topic seriously in public, reputational risk may keep many observers silent, complicating scientific pursuit of the topic,” it read. In other words, tin foil hats are still not en vogue.
Identifying the Threat
So the government has basically divulged that it has data about which it knows next to nothing. Although it is quite clear that the mention of unidentified aerial phenomena does not necessarily portend flying saucers, little green men, and alien invasions, the report has nevertheless reignited an interest in them. Did you know that the Bible has the answer to the oft-asked question “Is There Life on Other Worlds?” Learn the truth from Pastor Doug Batchelor’s free presentation.
While there have been no Martian sightings, there does exist a very real threat to the human race. Our foreign adversary is Satan. Indeed, the very name means “adversary.” The Bible tells us that “Satan … was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him” (Revelation 12:9). These expatriates of the heavenly country infiltrated our ranks long ago and set up a kingdom to which many are already subject. “Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time” (v. 12), the prophecy warns.
Certainly, external threats exist and should not be discounted. Does not Luke 21:10 say that “nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom”? But Satan, the master of distraction, would also have us scanning the horizons when he is attacking from within.
“Keep your heart with all diligence. … Put away from you a deceitful mouth. … Let your eyes look straight ahead” (Proverbs 4:23–25), the Scriptures warn us. It is “the heart [that] is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9). It is the sin within us that proves to be our worst enemy; and it is when we submit to Satan’s temptations that we expose ourselves to the most dangerous threat in the universe.
There will someday soon be an aerial phenomenon, but He by no means is unidentified. His name is Jesus Christ, the rightful King of this planet; and “when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory” (Matthew 25:31). Learn all about this “Ultimate Deliverance” in our free Study Guide, so that when Christ does come, you will be certain to know Him not as your greatest threat but as your only Savior.