Washington: The administration of US President Donald Trump has released a fourth batch of documents under the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters (PURSUE), commonly referred to as the UFO Files initiative.
The latest release contains 40 documents, including 19 videos, from agencies such as the Pentagon, NASA, CIA, FBI and the US Department of Energy. The records document reported Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) incidents from the late 1940s through 2025, but do not provide evidence confirming extraterrestrial activity.
Fourth batch includes reports from multiple agencies
The newly released records include reports, videos and historical documents compiled by several US government agencies.
US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the disclosure is intended to increase transparency regarding the government’s understanding of unidentified anomalous phenomena.
Officials said many of the files had previously remained classified and cover incidents involving military personnel, scientific facilities and aerial observations over several decades.
Diamond-shaped object reported near nuclear facility
One of the documents describes an incident near the Pantex nuclear weapons facility in Texas on September 1, 2015.
According to the report, security personnel responded after an unidentified object entered restricted airspace around the installation.
Witnesses described the object as diamond-shaped with a rounded top, measuring approximately four feet in height and two feet wide at its base.
The object reportedly moved silently at an estimated speed of 10 to 15 mph, with no visible propulsion system. Officers observed it through binoculars for one to two minutes before it moved north and disappeared from the facility’s airspace.
The report does not identify the object or explain its origin.
Military report documents unidentified aerial object
Another file contains a 2019 US Navy Range Fouler Debrief, documenting an encounter involving an unidentified object observed by five military-affiliated personnel.
According to the report, the object travelled rapidly in a straight line opposite the direction of the aircraft involved.
Several experienced military observers stated that they were unable to identify the object based on its reported flight characteristics.
However, the report emphasises that the observations reflect eyewitness accounts and do not establish the object’s identity or capabilities.
2025 infrared footage under review
The documents also include footage recorded in 2025 by an infrared sensor aboard a US military platform operating over the Indo-Pacific region.
The sensor detected an area of thermal contrast resembling a six-pointed star over the Yellow Sea.
The footage was submitted to the Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) for further analysis.
Officials have not released any conclusion regarding the nature of the observed phenomenon.
Historical documents revisit earlier sightings
Among the oldest files is a 1949 US Air Force intelligence report analysing flying object incidents across the United States.
The study concluded that while some sightings remained unexplained, they could potentially involve domestic technology or foreign aircraft, particularly in the context of Cold War security concerns.
Another 1949 document discusses unexplained “green fireballs” reported near Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory in New Mexico.
Scientists attending a conference at the time considered several possibilities, including meteors entering Earth’s atmosphere, but no definitive explanation was reached.
NASA images included
The release also contains several files from NASA.
One document relates to photographs taken during the STS-80 Space Shuttle Columbia mission in 1996, showing an unidentified object in low-Earth orbit.
The photographs indicate the object appeared to rotate while travelling through space, but investigators concluded there was insufficient information to determine its identity or origin.
Transparency efforts continue
The latest release follows three earlier batches of UAP-related documents issued since May 2026.
The US government has increasingly used the term Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) instead of UFO and has established dedicated mechanisms to examine such reports.
Researchers continue to caution that unexplained sightings should not automatically be interpreted as evidence of extraterrestrial life. Many incidents remain unresolved because of limited data, image quality or the inability to conclusively identify distant objects.
While supporters say the disclosures improve transparency, critics argue that many of the documents add little new information and that several cases have already been publicly discussed.
The release has also generated political debate, with some critics alleging it distracts attention from other domestic issues, while others view it as an important step towards greater public access to government records.
