UAP / UFO Glossary
Explanations of key terms in the archive — from PURSUE Release 1 to Foo Fighters.
- AARO
- All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office - The U.S. Department of Defense's official UAP investigation agency, established in 2022.
- AATIP
- Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program - A classified Pentagon program for UAP research, active 2007-2012, predecessor of AARO.
- AAWSAP
- Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications Program - Classified DIA program preceding AATIP, active 2008-2010.
- Buzz Aldrin
- Apollo 11 astronaut (1969). Reported sighting a "hollow cylinder" during the lunar mission.
- David Grusch
- Former senior USAF/NRO intelligence officer, testified to Congress in July 2023 about a classified program for UAP retrieval and reverse engineering.
- DoW
- Department of War - The renamed U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) since 2025.
- Foo Fighters
- Light phenomena observed by Allied pilots during World War II (1944-1945). Documented by SHAEF and unexplained.
- GIMBAL/GOFAST/FLIR1
- Three official US Navy video recordings (2004, 2015) showing UAPs. Released 2017-2020 and authenticated by the Pentagon.
- INDOPACOM
- U.S. Indo-Pacific Command - Source of UAP reports from China, Japan, East China Sea.
- MISREP
- Mission Report - Standardized military reporting form including UAP sightings during operational activity.
- Project BLUE BOOK
- USAF UFO investigation program active 1952-1969, recorded 12,618 sightings.
- Project SIGN
- The USAF's first UFO research project (1948), predecessor to Project BLUE BOOK.
- PURSUE
- Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters - The declassification framework launched by the President in 2026 to release 160 UAP documents.
- Range Fouler
- An incident where a UAP enters operational airspace or training area and disrupts the activity. Common term in USNAVY and DoW reports.
- Roswell Incident
- The Roswell Incident of 1947 - alleged crash of unidentified object in New Mexico, July 1947. Considered the founding event of the modern UFO era.
- Strait of Hormuz
- Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf - region with documented UAP incidents in 2020 (DoW d62, d63).
- Tic Tac UFO
- The famous USS Nimitz incident of November 2004, where David Fravor and crew observed a Tic-Tac shaped object. Official FLIR1/GIMBAL/GOFAST video documentation.
- Twining Memo
- September 1947 memo by General Nathan Twining, head of Air Materiel Command, stating "the phenomenon is real and not visionary." Significance 9.8/10.
- UAP
- Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (formerly Unidentified Aerial Phenomena) - The modern official term used by the U.S. military, AARO, and the Pentagon since 2022.
- UFO
- Unidentified Flying Object - The classical term coined after the Kenneth Arnold sighting of 1947 and used officially by the USAF for decades.
- USAFE
- United States Air Forces in Europe - U.S. Air Force command in Europe. The November 1948 USAFE TOP SECRET cable is among the strongest evidence in the archive.
- USCENTCOM
- U.S. Central Command - U.S. command covering Middle East, Central Asia, and surrounding regions.
- USPER
- United States Person - U.S. citizen or resident. Technical term in federal reports, designates anonymous witness.
- USS Nimitz
- U.S. aircraft carrier where the famous November 2004 incident occurred with crew sightings of Tic Tac UFO.