Pentagon releases 72 UFO files describing spinning discs and glowing orbs

The Pentagon released 72 UFO files Friday as part of the Trump administration's directive to give the public full disclosure about what the government knows regarding alien life and mysterious objects in the sky. The third such release does not include blockbuster revelations—no conclusive evidence of alien life or government cover-ups—but details new accounts of recent sightings and the government's efforts to explain the unexplained.

One striking case involved five U.S. Army members at Fort Carson, Colorado. On a February morning in 2022, they observed something hovering over Cheyenne Mountain, a few miles west. The object was "potato" shaped with distinct edges, painted in a "creamy/whitish opalescent color," according to an FBI document. It appeared to be made of "articulating fish scales or panels that were non-symmetrical, non-overlapping and irregular shaped." The men watched it shimmer motionless for about two minutes before it vanished. None had phones to record it.

Authorities investigating the episode found, with "low confidence," that it may have been "backscattering of sunlight"—light from the rising sun reflecting off the mountain's snow and illuminating low clouds. The men insisted it was a clear, cloudless day. No aircraft or balloons were believed to be in the area. The four-page report, heavily redacted, concluded it did not appear to be foreign adversary technology. The case remains unsolved.

A second report examined sightings in October 2023 by six federal law enforcement agents who multiple times saw a bright orange orb appear above a ridgeline and spawn two to four smaller red orbs. The orbs disappeared quickly most of the time, though in one instance an orb hovered motionless for several hours. No video or photo evidence exists.

The files suggest ongoing challenges in explaining aerial phenomena and the government's limited tools for investigation.