A series of new scientific papers detailing methods of detection and investigation into unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) has been published by a team of Harvard researchers.
The peer-reviewed papers were the first published offerings by the Galileo Project, an effort headed by Harvard Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science Avi Loeb that is searching for evidence of extraterrestrial technologies.
The seven scientific papers were accepted for publication in an upcoming special issue of The Journal of Astronomical Instrumentation.
Ranging from the detection and tracking of UAP through computation and satellite imagery to plans involving the use of multimodal ground-based observatories to aid in UAP detection, the papers “encompass the wide range of subject areas involved in the work, from new detection methodologies to novel instrumentation development targeting Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP), to theoretical considerations concerning a mission to intercept interstellar objects (ISOs) of unknown origin,” according to a statement announcing the publications.
“I am deeply proud of our Galileo Project team and what we have accomplished so far,” Professor Loeb said in a statement.
“These publications mark the beginning of a new era in the investigation of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs), Interstellar Objects (ISOs) and Interstellar Meteors (IMs),” he added.
Following their appearance online, the Galileo Project’s publications received praise from other members of the scientific community involved in the study of UAP.
Dr. Paul Kingsbury, a Board Member of the Scientific Coalition for UAP Studies (SCU), a nonprofit organization consisting of scientists, engineers, academics, and other professionals who advocate the open scientific study of UAP, said his organization is “thrilled to see papers the Galileo Project submitted for publication made it through the peer-review process and are now published.”
“The publication of these papers significantly helps to destigmatize research into the topic,” Kingsbury said in an SCU press release, “which we hope to see dramatically increase over the coming years.”
Earlier this year, another paper co-authored by Loeb and Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick, director of the Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), received widespread attention for its representation of scientific collaboration between the academic community and Department of Defense personnel actively involved in the study of UAP.
Following the submission of the new papers earlier this year, the Galileo Project says it has developed an array of sensors and other equipment that it has tested and calibrated for use in its ongoing efforts to collect data on UAP.
Several project members, including Dr. Loeb, are also preparing for an expedition this summer to Papua New Guinea that will attempt to locate and retrieve an interstellar meteor that fell into the ocean near Manus Island in 2014.
Loeb says that while the publication of the team’s first batch of papers is a significant milestone, the Galileo Project’s efforts are really just beginning and that future discoveries they are now equipped to make could yield promising new insights into the mysterious nature of unidentified aerial phenomena.
“Our researchers have worked hard to find new ways to apply the state-of-the-art methods across many disciplines,” Loeb added, “seeking to answer questions that could never be adequately answered before now.”
“With many of the instruments described in these papers now operational and producing data, I’m excited about the discoveries that lie ahead,” Loeb said.
The entire series of papers have been made freely available online at the Galileo Project’s website and will appear in a forthcoming edition of the Journal of Astronomical Instrumentation.
Micah Hanks is the Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder of The Debrief. He can be reached by email at micah@thedebrief.org. Follow his work at micahhanks.com and on Twitter: @MicahHanks.