UFOs Becoming UAPs Is Helping Actual Science
For thousands of years, humans have attributed many things previously thought inexplicable, like auroras or solar eclipses, to divine signs and interventions. Many of these were later explained by science, but even today, dancing lights across the night sky become attributed to some other things—such as UFOs, which are now designated UAPs (Unidentified Aerial Phenomena). The name change has helped destigmatize reporting and researching unexplained phenomena.
Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy theorists among us will say that all the scientific research has been already conducted during the early 1950s and into the 1960s, following the Roosevelt crash, which the government supposedly covered up after its operatives recovered an extraterrestrial spacecraft and, quite possibly, its alien passengers.
Ever since then, UFOs have become an obsession of hobby groups, conspiracy theories, and sci-fi enthusiasts (if you haven’t already, see Paul), but now the government has dubbed them UAPs and has invited scientists to study the phenomena.
Reframing The Discussion
In the decade since the term UFO, an abbreviation of “Unidentified Flying Object,” was coined, the phenomenon has been dismissed by academia as a field that’s completely unworthy of any study, as the Fermi Paradox pretty much addresses the question of why we haven’t observed any signs of extraterrestrial life.
However, government bodies and their officials are now trying to change the attitude of the scientific communities and regular citizens by renaming UFOs into UAPs or “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena.”
Anything In The Sky
Admittedly, the terminology has a scientific ring to it, but the reason behind the change is actually quite clever. The term UAP refers to anything unusual people might see in the night sky, including phenomena that occur naturally in the atmosphere, visible celestial bodies, satellites, actual UFOs, or, more importantly—drones, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or other instance of a Chinese spy balloon.
By changing the terminology, those that we are looking to destigmatize reporting strange sightings simply because they may pose a threat in US air space.
It Seems To Be Working
Whenever something interferes with commercial flights, fighter pilots, people, or aerial cargo transport, that’s a problem, and people should report whatever suspicious they see in the night sky to the authorities. And the effort is taking effect.
Not only did the name change from UFOs to UAPs, but the people’s perception changed, too: NASA is now conducting a study to determine how it may be able to lend its scientific expertise to the study of UAPs, and pilots (both military and commercial), are now more comfortable reporting their sightings.
Out There
More importantly, the government has finally recognized the importance of investigating UAPs, regardless of whether they’re UFOs or something else entirely, stating that these strange phenomena deserve harsher scientific scrutiny. This also applies to areas that are close to airports or military installations, simply because experimental aerial vehicles tend to fly closer to the ground where they’re most likely to be seen.
In fact, research focused primarily on the reports’ data collected since 1945 seems to indicate that the majority of sightings were actually domestic experimental crafts.
Sadly, none of those UAP sightings proved to be UFOs, but we shouldn’t be discouraged because the truth is out there.
Source: Science News
