BETHLEHEM, Pa. — After back-to-back federal hearings last month on unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAPs, it’s clear legislators are taking the topic more seriously, Kathleen B. Covalt said.
“There were many more representatives on both sides of the aisle who were present, asking good questions — many more than last year's,” said Covalt, who teaches online classes through Northampton Community College for adults interested in learning about UAPs. “So, what I like to think is that they represent the growing public interest in this topic in a serious way.
“And that, to me, was the biggest takeaway — that the public is taking it seriously, that the representatives are taking it seriously, in a much bigger way than ever before.”
More than a year after the federal government held its first hearing on UAPs, two more were held within a week in November. The hearings focused on government transparency and spending, as well as introducing the new director of the government office tasked with investigating reported sightings, respectively.
No shocking revelations or stunning new information were revealed and verified at either hearing. However, for those actively researching and investigating UAPs, they illustrated the next step forward in lessening the stigma associated with the field, and there’s hope that that momentum will only continue to grow.
" ... I think people are really beginning to open up their minds and realizing something is happening out there.”Stan Gordon, a paranormal researcher
“Now people are much more open-minded to taking reports more seriously,” said Stan Gordon, a paranormal researcher based in western Pennsylvania. “ … I think, overall, that the hearings are getting more serious attention. They're indicating that they're taking the subject more seriously.
“And, I think people are really beginning to open up their minds and realizing something is happening out there.”
‘Birds, balloons and unmanned systems’
The House of Representatives’ Committee on Oversight and Accountability on Nov. 13 held a hearing called “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth.” The hearing, which lasted more than two hours, included testimony from Michael Gold, a former NASA Associate Administrator of Space Policy and Partnerships and member of the NASA UAP Independent Study Team.
While arguing how NASA relies on data for its findings, Gold said the agency could be integral in helping to lessen the stigma of UAP research by participating in academic panels, reviewing archival data and using its “global reach” to solicit reports from across the world, among other strategies.
“Instead of vilifying or ridiculing those who dare to study the phenomena, NASA and the scientific community as a whole should seize this singular opportunity to engage the public in a high-profile demonstration of the scientific method,” Gold said. “Information should be gathered, results should be studied, hypotheses made and conclusions tested.”
Other speakers included Luis Elizondo, an author and former Department of Defense official; Tim Gallaudet, a retired rear admiral in the U.S. Navy; and Michael Shellenberger, who founded “Public,” a Substack publication “reporting on free speech, civilization, and humanity.”
U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology and Government Innovation, asked direct questions.
“Has the government conducted secret UAP crash retrieval programs, yes or no?”
“Yes,” Elizondo responded.
“Were they designed to identify and reverse engineer alien craft, yes or no?”
“Yes,” he said.
This information isn’t new — Elizondo in August published his book, “Imminent: Inside the Pentagon's Hunt for UFOs.” He was also interviewed for a New York Times article, published in December 2017, which has been credited with pushing the government to be more transparent about its research of UAPs.
“For the people who follow this closely, Luis Elizondo is the main guy who came forward,” Covalt said. “So everybody knows him. He wrote his book. I read his book. It's fantastic.
“ … But, people who have read his book know him, they’re kind of like, ‘Oh, we want somebody new. We want some other information.’”
Less than a week later, on Nov. 19, the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities held closed hearings to examine the activities of the federal All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, or ARRO. It lasted just over 30 minutes.
It came just days after ARRO officials delivered the office’s annual report.
Between May 1, 2023, and June 1, 2024, AARO received 757 UAP reports, according to a news release. As of June 1, AARO has been reviewing more than 1,600 reports.
"You'll see that many reports resolve to commonplace objects like birds, balloons and unmanned systems, while others lack sufficient data for comprehensive analysis."Jon T. Kosloski, director of ARRO
Jon T. Kosloski, ARRO’s new director, said the office “has not discovered any verifiable evidence of extraterrestrial beings, activity or technology.
“You'll see that many reports resolve to commonplace objects like birds, balloons and unmanned systems, while others lack sufficient data for comprehensive analysis,” Kosloski said. “Although only a small percentage of reports received by AARO are potentially anomalous, these are the cases that require significant time, resources and a focused scientific inquiry by AARO and its network of partners.”
Last year’s hearing
Neither of the hearings held last month is the first UAP hearing at the federal level. That happened last year.
The House of Representatives’ Committee on Oversight and Accountability on July 26, 2023, held a hearing called “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Implications on National Security, Public Safety and Government Transparency.”
The 2½-hour meeting made history — marking the first public hearing on UAPs to include testimony from military pilots alongside a whistleblower.
Weeks after the hearing, the Pentagon launched ARRO, where officials plan to release details about resolved UAP cases. Through the website, members of the military and other government officials can submit sighting reports.
Sightings in the Lehigh Valley
Pennsylvania has for decades been a hotspot for UAP sightings — the National UFO Reporting Center has collected more than 5,100 reports from across the commonwealth.
And, the Lehigh Valley isn’t immune to sightings.
Last year, residents reported bright strings of lights streaming through the clouds. It turned out they were Starlink internet satellites orbiting Earth.
One recent report from the National UFO Reporting Center details an Oct. 20 sighting in Allentown: “2 craft noted. One triangular with white lights. One more circular with orange and white lights.”
Another details an August sighting in Bethlehem: “UAP was flying slow, stopped then moved laterally.”
Seeing a pattern
Gordon has been investigating reports for more than 65 years from across the state. In 1969, he started a hotline for the public to report UFO sightings.
“I've never personally seen a UFO myself, believe it or not,” Gordon said. “I've interviewed thousands of witnesses. I've seen various types of physical evidence during investigations.
“Over the years, I've talked to many people who've had incredible incidents and sightings going on, and there's no doubt there's something out there we just don’t have an explanation for.”
From collecting reported sightings for so many years, a pattern has begun to emerge.
“Many close range, low-level UFO sightings, and sometimes other anomalies, occur in the vicinity of energy sources,” he said. “So, especially UFO sightings — you have a lot around high tension power lines, power plants, bodies of water, all types of radio communication antennas, like cell phone broadcast towers, communication towers, gas wells, gas lines, I could go on and on and on.
“There's definitely an energy connection with a lot of these incidents that are being reported.”
