Start with the official release record
Begin at the government page that published the material. For current PURSUE releases, the Department of War portal is the release authority. For AARO case videos or reports, use the AARO record page. For archival transfers, use the National Archives Catalog or Record Group 615 index. The hosting page establishes provenance, release date, agency attribution, and any explanatory text that may be lost when a file is reposted elsewhere.
Probed mirrors the research structure around those sources, not the authority of the sources themselves. Open a Probed file page to see the official identifier, media type, release context, incident metadata, direct source links, and any source-located findings. Then use the official link to verify the underlying document or media. If a social post or secondary article lacks an official identifier, search the distinctive title or file code in the tracker before relying on it.
View and download without losing context
Documents may open in an embedded viewer or download directly as PDFs. Video and audio can be hosted on an agency media system, a direct file endpoint, or a government video platform. Save the landing-page URL along with the direct media URL because direct files can move while the release record remains the best citation. When a release offers a large archive, use its individual records first to understand naming and folder structure before downloading gigabytes of material.
For reproducible research, record the access date, publisher, release number, official identifier, file name, and page or timecode. Preserve the original file rather than a recompressed social copy. If the agency supplies a checksum or metadata export, keep it beside the media. Probed findings link to exact pages or timecodes when those locators exist, but researchers should still verify the cited passage in the official file.
- PDF: cite the document identifier and page number printed in the file or shown by the viewer.
- Video or audio: cite the official identifier and a start–end timecode.
- Image: retain the original file name and the release page that describes it.
- Dataset or archive: preserve the release date, version, file list, and any included metadata manifest.
Verify what a file actually says
Read headings, stamps, distribution markings, dates, signatures, and attachment references before extracting a claim. A government file can document that a statement was received without endorsing the statement. Likewise, “unresolved” can mean the available data was insufficient for attribution; it is not automatically a finding of extraordinary technology. Note whether the language belongs to a witness, investigator, later analyst, or release-page editor.
Cross-check related material by official identifier, incident date, location, and agency. A document and video may describe the same occurrence while using different titles. Conversely, similar descriptive titles can refer to unrelated cases. Probed exposes these fields separately and connects records only when the production data supports the relationship.
When a file is missing, redacted, or unavailable
A missing attachment is not evidence that it was necessarily withheld for a particular reason. It may not have been digitized, transferred, linked correctly, or included in that release. Check the agency’s reading room, AARO records, the NARA collection, and bulk-download indexes. NARA guidance recognizes records released in full, released in part, or withheld in full, and its catalog descriptions may exist even when a digital object is unavailable online.
If the record still cannot be found, use FOIA.gov to identify the correct agency component. Describe existing records rather than asking the agency to answer a question. Include known offices, custodians, date ranges, identifiers, subject terms, and preferred electronic format. Keep the request focused and save the tracking number, correspondence, and final response with the research record.
Curated records
Explore the source files
DOW-UAP-D098, Film Analysis of Unidentified Objects, 1953
A 1953 Naval Photographic Interpretation Center progress report analyzes motion-picture footage recorded in Utah and Montana in 1952. It documents photogrammetric and densitometric methods, describes blue-white disk-like images, and reports calculated motion while retaining assumptions and limits in the analysis.
FBI-UAP-D025, Rendering, “Airborne Triangle,” 2002
The rendering depicts a large, unlit black triangular silhouette occluding a star field. This is an FBI artistic reconstruction rather than a photograph of the reported event; this image is based upon a first-hand description provided by a former military service member, as described in FBI-UAP-D024.
FBI-UAP-D027, Rendering, “Dark Translucent Triangle,” 2023
A five-frame digital reconstruction depicts a dark, low-contrast triangular aerial object crossing a residential night sky. The sequence shows the object at changing positions and orientations but does not establish scale, distance, speed, or physical composition.
FBI-UAP-D029, Rendering, “Dark Triangle with Lights,” 2011
The rendering depicts a dark triangular form with three diffuse white corner lights above a residential night scene. This is an FBI artistic reconstruction rather than a photograph of the reported event; this image is based upon a first-hand description provided by two former U.S. military service members, as described in FBI-UAP-D028.
FBI-UAP-D031, Rendering, “Large Triangle with Red Lights,” 2023
The rendering depicts a dark triangular form with three red corner lights above a lit parking area. This is an FBI artistic reconstruction rather than a photograph of the reported event; this image is based upon a first-hand description provided by a U.S. Person, as described in FBI-UAP-D030.
FBI-UAP-D038, Rendering 1, “Multiple Red Lights,” 2026
A single digital rendering depicts two small red lights above a desert mountain ridge at dusk, viewed from beside a parked vehicle. The image is an illustrative reconstruction and does not independently establish the lights’ distance, altitude, size, or source.
FBI-UAP-D039, Rendering 2, “Multiple Red Lights,” 2026
Three digital renderings present a bright circular light through a binocular or night-optics field, with concentric halo rings and a mountainous horizon. The repeated frames illustrate an optical appearance rather than independently measuring the light’s range, size, or motion.
FBI-UAP-D041, Rendering 1, “Multiple Red Lights,” 2026
A six-frame digital sequence depicts red lights appearing in increasing numbers above a desert mountain ridge while an observer stands beside a vehicle. The rendering illustrates the reported arrangement and progression but cannot establish physical distance, altitude, or object identity.
FBI-UAP-D042, Rendering 2, “Multiple Red Lights,” 2026
A single digital rendering shows a narrow luminous streak rising above a mountainous horizon within a binocular or night-optics field. It is an illustrative reconstruction and does not independently determine the streak’s source, trajectory, distance, or duration.
CIA-UAP-D022, Unidentified Flying Object Reported near Puerto Rico, 1965
A 1965 intelligence memorandum reviews radar photography and pilot observations connected to unidentified-aircraft reports near Puerto Rico in November 1964. It rejects a high-altitude ultra-high-speed interpretation for one track while assessing the November 19 object as probably a high-performance delta-wing fighter.
CIA-UAP-D023, Briefing Notes for Mr. Walter Elder
Briefing notes summarize radar and pilot observations near Puerto Rico during November 1964. They describe a radar contact involving USS Gyatt, a Crusader pilot’s view of a delta-shaped object, and reported performance estimates while noting that naval intelligence had no further information.
DOS-UAP-D001, Diplomatic Cable, Brazil, November 14, 1963
A November 14, 1963 State Department cable relays an unverified telephone report from Bahia concerning a large metal object, an alleged dead crewman, and an impact crater. The cable requests cooperation from air and science attaches and records onward passage to Defense and NASA.
DOS-UAP-D002, Diplomatic Cable, Brazil, November 20, 1963
A November 20, 1963 diplomatic dispatch reports that local inquiries found no support for the alleged object near Conde, Bahia. It cites a consul’s telegram and two newspaper accounts, including a categorical denial by the Ministry of Aeronautics, and characterizes the original story as fabricated.
DOW-UAP-D099, Intelligence Review of “Ghost Rocket” Incidents, 1947
A January 1947 War Department intelligence review assesses the 1946 Scandinavian “ghost rocket” reports. It contrasts highly variable witness accounts with official investigations, notes the absence of recovered direct evidence, and concludes that only a small number may have involved low-flying V-1-type missiles while many high-altitude reports were likely meteors or fireworks.
DOW-UAP-D100, Air Materiel Command Report on Unidentified Flying Objects
This 245-page historical file assembles 1947-1948 Air Force correspondence, sighting reports, investigative requests, policy memoranda, and analytical papers associated with flying-disc inquiries and Project SIGN. It documents how Air Materiel Command gathered reports, coordinated intelligence collection, evaluated possible explanations, and considered the problem unresolved despite identifying some reports as balloons or astronomical objects.
DOW-UAP-D101, Unresolved UAP, Gulf of Oman, 2021
A declassified intelligence information report describes approximately 25 infrared observations during an AC-130 live-fire training mission over the Gulf of Oman on September 8, 2021. It records cold-orb appearances, formation and maneuver observations, crew speed estimates, missing propulsion indicators, and the failure of the aircraft recorder to preserve all footage.
Primary sources
- 01Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters — U.S. Department of War
- 02Official UAP imagery — All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office
- 03UAP report documents — All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office
- 04Record Group 615: UAP Records Collection — National Archives
- 05Federal agency guidance for the UAP Records Collection — National Archives
- 06Bulk downloads for UAP records — National Archives
- 07How to make a FOIA request — U.S. Department of Justice
- 08UAP Independent Study and final report — NASA