DOW-UAP-PR053 is a Department of War video record released in PURSUE Release 02 on May 22, 2026. The Department of War lists the incident year as 2022 and the incident location as CENTCOM.12
How The Record Surfaced
The provenance note attached to this record states that on March 6, 2026, eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives requested access to 51 potentially UAP-related records allegedly held by the Department of War and the Intelligence Community. AARO identified a collection of responsive materials held on a classified network and cautions that many of them lack a substantiated chain-of-custody.1
What AARO Assesses The Clip Shows
AARO assesses that this video, whose uploader-defined title is "Cigar Shaped or Fast Spherical UAP clip 15 OCT 22," is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in October 2022. A user uploaded it to a classified network in June 2024. The release note states the media was digitally altered prior to upload and is presented as received. In the 21-second clip an area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view from left to right between 00:01 and 00:04, after which the footage replays at a slower speed from 00:06 to 00:14 and again at an even slower speed from 00:15 to 00:21. DVIDS hosts the matching public video entry and a direct MP4 rendition of the clip.34
What The Record Supports
DOW-UAP-PR053 documents a brief, slowed-down infrared clip and its release path, not a resolved identification. Even the uploader-supplied title hedges between a cigar shape and a fast sphere, the media was digitally altered before upload, and the description states it is informational only and not an analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination. With an unsubstantiated chain-of-custody, the record remains unresolved rather than identified.