War.gov PURSUEDepartment of War
GovernmentAug 31, 2020Analysis complete

DOW-UAP-PR088, "31 AUG [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP"

AARO assesses that this video is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020. File: DOW-UAP-PR088, "31 AUG [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP". DOW-UAP-PR088, "31 AUG [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP" combines an official, playable video, 4 extracted claims, 1 evidence record, and 3 timeline entries, and file-level provenance that can be compared with related release records.

File
Video · Release 02
Date
Aug 31, 2020
Location
CENTCOM
Agency
Department of War

Probed Assessment

AARO assesses that this video is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020. File: DOW-UAP-PR088, "31 AUG [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP".

Key takeaways

  • The released record says on March 6, 2026, eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives requested access to 51 potentially UAP-related records allegedly held by the Department of War and the Intelligence Community.
  • The released record says the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) identified a collection of responsive materials held on a classified network.
  • The released record says many of these materials lack a substantiated chain-of-custody.

Why it matters

DOW-UAP-PR088, "31 AUG [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP" combines an official, playable video, 4 extracted claims, 1 evidence record, and 3 timeline entries, and file-level provenance that can be compared with related release records.

Corroboration

For DOW-UAP-PR088, "31 AUG [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP", the release establishes official provenance but does not independently verify the record's statement that AARO assesses that this video is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020.

Open questions

  • Do an original-generation recording, complete transcript, or sensor metadata survive outside the released artifact?

Probed separates this editorial assessment from the source claims below. It summarizes what the released artifact supports; it is not independent verification.

Official Description from War.gov

On March 6, 2026, eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives requested access to 51 potentially UAP-related records allegedly held by the Department of War and the Intelligence Community. The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) identified a collection of responsive materials held on a classified network. Many of these materials lack a substantiated chain-of-custody. AARO assesses that this video, whose uploader-defined title is, “31 AUG 2020 [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP,” is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020. A user uploaded this video to a classified network in August 2020. Video Duration: 00:04:58 Video Description: 00:00-01:21: No content. 01:22-01:55: An area of contrast enters the field-of-view in the upper left corner of the screen, transits the frame, and exits the bottom of the screen. 01:56-02:47: The sensor cycles its zoom level several times. An area of contrast becomes visible in the lower half of the screen. 02:48-03:08: Another area of contrast enters the field-of-view from the left side of the screen. 03:09-03:29: The sensor pans to track the second area of contrast. The first area of contrast exits the field-of-view at the left edge of the screen. 03:30-04:58: Several areas of contrast enter and exit the field-of-view. The sensor remains focused on the second-appearing area of contrast. This video description is provided for informational purposes only. Readers should not interpret any part of this description as reflecting an analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination regarding the described event’s validity, nature, or significance.

Preserved verbatim as source metadata. This wording is separate from Probed’s file-specific description and assessment.

File Context

Related entities

6
Research Map relationships require row-level claim or timeline references.

Tracker findings

1

AARO assessed infrared video from U.S. military platform in CENTCOM (2020)

The record states: AARO assesses that this video is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020.

Release provenance

Release
Release 02
Official ID
release-02-file-045-dow-uap-pr088-31-aug-callsign-callsign-observes-uap
Cleared
May 22, 2026
Official release source

Related coverage

12

Sighting Context

Stored occurrence and enrichment data for this released artifact. Missing or regional data stays explicit rather than being inferred.

Shape model

light

Static reduced-motion summary

Observation profile

Recorded occurrence details

Occurrence
CENTCOM · Aug 31, 2020
Location
CENTCOM
Classification
light

Environmental, lunar, orbital, satellite, airport, and nearby-infrastructure context loads when this section approaches the viewport.

Referenced Timeline

  1. Incident involving UAP observation

    A video likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform was recorded.

  2. Request for UAP-related records

    Eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives requested access to 51 potentially UAP-related records.

  3. Cleared for release

    The video was cleared for release by the Department of War.

Source Claims

Claims are attributed to the released source and remain distinct from Probed’s assessment and tracker findings.

Reported by source3Source inference1
Source reportedAsserted

On March 6, 2026, eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives requested access to 51 potentially UAP-related records allegedly held by the Department of War and the Intelligence Community.

On March 6, 2026, eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives requested access to 51 potentially UAP-related records allegedly held by the Department of War and the Intelligence Community.

Source reportedAsserted

The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) identified a collection of responsive materials held on a classified network.

The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) identified a collection of responsive materials held on a classified network.

Source reportedAsserted

Many of these materials lack a substantiated chain-of-custody.

Many of these materials lack a substantiated chain-of-custody.

InferenceAsserted

AARO assesses that this video is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020.

AARO assesses that this video, whose uploader-defined title is, “31 AUG 2020 [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP,” is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020.

Source Material & Evidence

video

Video titled '31 AUG 2020 [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP'

Department of War

Research Map

6 entities · 4 grounded links

Lines appear only when two entities share a row-level source claim or dated timeline event. Unconnected nodes remain visible without implying a relationship.

UAP/Disclosure Graph
6 nodes4 links