Establishing the Study
NASA assembled a panel of scientists in 2022 to review available civilian and military UAP data.
Report and Follow-Up
The team delivered recommendations in September 2023 urging standardized data collection and more open collaboration. 12345
Team
David Spergel President, Simons Foundation Led NASA's independent UAP study as chair and founded the Flatiron Institute for Computational Astrophysics. A MacArthur Fellow who established the standard model of cosmology through measurements of the universe's age, shape, and composition.
Anamaria Berea Associate Professor, George Mason University Research investigator focused on communication patterns in complex living systems and data science applications in astrobiology. Specializes in computational methods for analyzing biosignatures and technosignatures as a SETI Institute affiliate.
Federica Bianco Professor, University of Delaware Cross-disciplinary scientist studying the universe through data science and urban solutions. Deputy Project Scientist for the Vera C. Rubin Observatory with over 100 peer-reviewed publications.
Paula Bontempi Dean, Graduate School of Oceanography at URI Biological oceanographer with 25 years of experience and former NASA Earth Science Division acting deputy director. Led NASA's research on ocean biology and marine science satellite missions.
Reggie Brothers Operating Partner, AE Industrial Partners Former CEO of BigBear.ai and undersecretary for Science and Technology at DHS. Served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Distinguished Fellow at Georgetown's Center for Security and Emerging Technology.
Jen Buss CEO, Potomac Institute of Policy Studies National authority on science and technology trends analysis and policy solutions. Worked extensively with NASA on policy issues for astronaut medical care and cancer research.
Nadia Drake Contributing Writer, National Geographic Award-winning science journalist specializing in astronomy and planetary sciences. Holds a doctorate in genetics from Cornell University and has received multiple prestigious astronomy journalism awards.
Mike Gold Executive Vice President, Redwire Former NASA associate administrator who led the creation of the Artemis Accords and lunar Gateway agreements. Awarded NASA's Outstanding Leadership Medal and chaired the Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee.
David Grinspoon Senior Scientist, Planetary Science Institute Research focuses on comparative planetology and climate evolution on Earth-like planets. Awarded the Carl Sagan Medal and serves on multiple interplanetary spacecraft mission teams.
Scott Kelly Former NASA Astronaut Commanded multiple International Space Station expeditions and set records for accumulated days in space. Former test pilot and U.S. Navy captain who pioneered F-14 digital flight control systems.
Matt Mountain President, Association of Universities for Research and Astronomy Oversees a consortium managing major NASA observatories including Hubble and James Webb Space Telescope. Serves as Webb telescope scientist and former director of multiple major observatories.
Warren Randolph Deputy Executive Director, FAA Aviation Safety Leads implementation of safety management systems and data-driven assessment of aviation risks. Former aerodynamicist for U.S. Coast Guard and Air Force flight simulations.
Walter Scott Executive Vice President and CTO, Maxar Founded DigitalGlobe and leads technology strategy for space-based earth intelligence systems. Recognized leader in space commerce and former Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory executive.
Joshua Semeter Professor, Boston University Directs the Center for Space Physics researching Earth's ionosphere-space environment interactions. Develops optical and magnetic sensor technologies for space environment analysis.
Karlin Toner Acting Executive Director, FAA Office of Aviation Policy Led FAA's international strategy and managed threats to civil aviation. Former NASA Airspace Systems Program director and recipient of the NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal.
Shelley Wright Associate Professor, UC San Diego SETI researcher specializing in galaxies and supermassive black holes. Leads the UC San Diego Optical Infrared Laboratory developing advanced telescope instruments.
Mission Requirements Analysis
To convert unidentified aerial phenomena into well-characterised data, a study team needs at minimum:
Sensor & Calibration Science Radar, optical, infrared, RF, ADS-B, and satellite imagery expertise for reliable data collection.
Advanced Data & Signal Analytics Anomaly detection, Bayesian inference, AI/ML, and data fusion capabilities for processing complex datasets.
Aerospace Flight Physics Deep knowledge of aerodynamics, propulsion, materials, and electronic-warfare signatures.
Environmental Context Understanding of atmospheric optics, ionospheric effects, meteorology, and space weather.
Human Factors Expertise in perception, cognition, eyewitness reliability, and cockpit workload analysis.
Operational Intelligence Capabilities in threat assessment, counter-UAS, adversary capabilities, and security clearance management.
Governance & Policy Experience with reporting standards, inter-agency coordination, data-rights, and international norms.
Team Composition Evaluation
Current Strengths
The current NASA UAP Study Team demonstrates strong coverage in sensor and calibration science, advanced data analytics, and governance and policy, with multiple members bringing deep expertise in these areas. Aerospace flight physics is moderately represented, while operational intelligence and environmental context have partial coverage. Human factors expertise is limited, with only informal experience in witness interviewing and no formal cognitive science background. This distribution highlights the team's technical and policy strengths, while also indicating areas where additional expertise could further enhance the team's ability to analyze and interpret UAP data.
Identified Gaps
Atmospheric & Meteorological Optics Many sightings involve mis-identified meteors, bolides, sprites, mirages, or sensor artifacts linked to boundary-layer physics. The team would benefit from a dedicated atmospheric-physics or meteorology researcher from NCAR or NOAA.
Electronic Warfare / RF Counter-UAS Modern UAP reports often resolve to adversary drones or spoofed RF signatures. The team lacks specialists in EW, L-band/S-band seeker phenomenology, or directed-energy test instrumentation.
Human Perception & Cognitive Bias Pilot testimonies and visual sightings depend heavily on motion parallax, brightness constancy and stress-induced perception. A cognitive psychologist or vision-science expert would strengthen the team.
Machine Learning at Scale While the team includes data scientists, it lacks engineers experienced in deploying neural pipelines on streaming sensor stacks comparable to NORAD's cross-domain feeds.
Foreign Aerospace Threat Analysis The team would benefit from DIA or ONI veterans versed in hypersonic, drone-swarm, and balloon programs for enhanced provenance assessments.
Acoustic / Infrasound Sensing Some events produce non-electromagnetic signatures. The team lacks specialists in infrasound or acoustic detection networks.
Recommended Additional Expertise
To further strengthen the team, it would be valuable to add expertise in several key areas. This includes a senior atmospheric scientist with experience modeling upper-tropospheric and lower-stratospheric light propagation, as well as a cognitive psychologist who specializes in aviation vision.
The addition of an electronic warfare engineer with operational military experience would address gaps in understanding adversary technologies, while a large-scale machine learning platform architect—ideally with a background in programs like NORAD Pathfinder or similar command and control initiatives—would enhance the team's data analysis capabilities.
Bringing in an analyst from the Defense Intelligence Agency or Office of Naval Intelligence who focuses on adversary hypersonic and drone signatures would improve threat assessment.
An infrasound network scientist from organizations such as NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Lab would contribute valuable knowledge in detecting non-electromagnetic signatures.