The United States Department of Defense made public three photographs captured by NASA astronauts of an unidentified flying object (UFO). These images were released on Friday (10) and were recorded during mission STS-80, which took place between November 19 and December 7, 1996.
Analysis of the Released Images
According to the analysis presented by the American agency, the photos indicate that the UFO maintained its flight path between the Space Shuttle Columbia, where the astronauts were located, and Earth. It is important to note that the US government has not provided proof that this UFO originated from outside of Earth.
These images are part of the fourth phase of the Pursue archives, a system established to compile and make available government documents related to unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP).
New Archives and Records
This fourth release, conducted by the US government on Friday, consisted of a set of 40 files on UAPs. This material covers 14 documents, 19 videos, four audio recordings, and three images, all collected by agencies such as the Pentagon, NASA, the CIA, and the FBI.
Among the most notable records is a report concerning an incident in September 2015, involving the Pantex nuclear weapons facility located in Texas. In this event, two ground personnel followed an object that was silent and showed no visible propulsion system, forcing the military base to activate a full security protocol.
Recent Archive Content
Most of the files in this new batch date from 2010 or later, having been primarily captured through infrared sensors and cameras from military aircraft. The videos document encounters of difficult explanation in operational zones of the US Armed Forces, covering the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic, and the Middle East. Furthermore, they contain testimonies from Navy crew members about objects exhibiting rectangular shapes and being deformed, moving at high speed.
According to Department of Defense spokesperson Sean Parnell, this fourth round of publications is in compliance with a presidential executive order signed by Donald Trump in early 2026. The US government communicated that this will not be the last cycle, promising to gradually publish new investigations and documents regarding the history of anomalous phenomena in controlled airspace.