New Council Led by Avi Loeb Launches Federal UAP Study

The Trump Administration established a new Scientific Advisory Council to investigate Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, appointing Harvard astronomy professor Avi Loeb as its chair. The body includes former U.S. Navy pilot Ryan Graves and other experts who aim to analyze data released by the government over the past eight months. Loeb stated that his role is to act as a detective, a position that requires access to high-quality data to avoid poor deliberations. He noted that without sufficient information, the council cannot effectively determine the origin of these objects.

The council is working through a substantial archive of first-person accounts, photographs, and video footage. The government has released seven tranches of this material, totaling more than 155,000 pages. Graves, who gained national attention in 2023, said the current releases are not satisfactory. He argued that the available clips are often from infrared sensors and lack the sophistication needed for pilots to make critical decisions about hostile threats or decoys. He described the current state of evidence as leaving the public with more ambiguity.

Graves recounted a specific incident during a 2023 training mission ten miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. He described a dark grey or black cube inside a clear sphere that came within 50 feet of his lead aircraft. The object split two F-18 Super Hornets during the encounter. Graves said the experience was difficult to discuss in standard safety briefs, but the availability of images and calm testimony from military personnel has made the phenomenon seem less controversial to the public.

The interest in these sightings has grown steadily, fueled by a rise in podcasts and documentaries. Matthew Szydagis, a physics professor at the State University of New York at Albany and a member of the council, noted that the possibility of non-human intelligence is no longer irrational. He emphasized that while definitive proof such as a dead alien body is missing, indirect evidence suggests the existence of such intelligence is a reasonable hypothesis. Szydagis said that extraordinary claims in this field require extraordinary evidence.

The topic remains politically charged, particularly after former Air Force intelligence officer David Grusch testified to Congress. Grusch stated that he was told of recovered craft and that biologics came with some of these recoveries. When Representative Nancy Mace asked if possession of a crashed craft included the bodies of its pilots, Grusch confirmed that biologics were present. Critics within the community have labeled such claims as relying on trust, though the data supporting them remains classified.

Loeb aims to identify whether these objects are human-made technologies from adversarial nations or something else. He stated that as an American citizen, he is helping the Pentagon and intelligence community fulfill their mission. The council plans to start its work with publicly released information while seeking access to more data. Loeb compared his work to that of a detective who is starved of data, noting that only in politics can one make a huge story with very little information.

Graves started an organization called Americans for Safe Aerospace to encourage pilots and commercial aviators to share their experiences. He said almost everyone is now willing to talk about these events, indicating a shift in the conversation over the past few years. Graves expressed confidence that he will see answers within his lifetime, predicting that the public will eventually receive confirmation that something truly strange is happening in the sky.