On September 14, 2023, the NASA Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Independent Study Team published its final report. The document runs to 36 pages and contains specific recommendations for NASA’s future role in UAP data collection and analysis. A media briefing was broadcast the same day. The report is freely downloadable at science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/uap-independent-study-team-final-report.pdf.
What the Report Found
The study team’s core finding was that UAP data collection is currently inadequate to draw scientific conclusions about the nature or origin of reported phenomena. The report identified several specific data gaps: most UAP reports come from sensors designed for other purposes; calibration data is often absent; the stigma around reporting means that many events are never documented; and existing datasets from NASA and other civilian agencies have not been systematically analysed for UAP-relevant signals.
Key Recommendations
The report recommended: that NASA develop a data collection strategy specifically for UAP; that NASA leverage its existing Earth-observing, atmospheric, and space weather assets for UAP monitoring; that a standardised UAP reporting mechanism be developed for civilian aviation; that artificial intelligence and machine learning tools be applied to existing datasets to search for anomalous signatures; and that NASA engage the scientific community to reduce stigma around UAP research.
What the Report Deliberately Did Not Say
The report did not conclude that UAP are alien craft. It also did not conclude that they are not. It explicitly framed the absence of this conclusion as a consequence of inadequate data rather than a substantive negative finding. The study team stated that its work was a beginning, not a conclusion — that the scientific infrastructure needed to evaluate UAP does not yet exist in the civilian science sector, and that building it is the necessary next step.
Current Status
The NASA UAP page at science.nasa.gov/uap remains active. UAP-related enquiries go to Daniel.A.Evans@nasa.gov. The report’s recommendations have not yet produced publicly visible institutional changes in NASA’s operational data collection mandate. The study’s work — and the gap between its recommendations and their implementation — represents the current state of civilian science engagement with the UAP question.
Source: science.nasa.gov/uap/. Final report PDF: science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/uap-independent-study-team-final-report.pdf. Published September 14, 2023.