The conclusion of the US congressional hearing on UAPs, formerly known as UFOs, is an opportunity to take stock of where matters stand on a question that has captivated humankind for centuries: Have we been visited by aliens or not?

On this question, the hearing was by no means definitive. As unsatisfying as that may be, we did learn a few things — not the least of which is how to sharpen our thinking about this subject.

The first and most important lesson is that many cases of UAPs, which stands for Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, cannot be explained by observer error, at least not in any simple way. There do seem to be vehicles (“phenomena”?) going many times faster than US military craft, stopping and turning on a dime, showing no visible signs of propulsion and operating in ways that appear to violate standard understandings of aerodynamics.

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