UNCLASSIFIED // PUBLIC RELEASERELEASE 01 · MAY 8, 2026
PENTAGON UFO FILE · VIDEO · DOW-UAP-PR049Unresolved UAP Report, Department of the Army, 2026
This is one of the most recent recordings in the PURSUE release and one of the few from the Army. The Department of the Army submitted 1 minute and 49 seconds of infrared video from a U.S. military platform, recorded in 2026, to AARO, along with no description at all from the person who reported it. The location is given only as North America, and the file is partly redacted.
What the sensor does
For the first few seconds the camera is fixed on something else, which AARO calls an initial area of interest. It then breaks off and swings from right to left to pick up two separate patches, zooming in as it pans so they stay near the center. The operator then widens the view for most of a minute while keeping both in frame.
Around 1:04 the zoom jumps rapidly between settings, so the two patches appear to balloon and shrink in quick succession. AARO’s wording makes clear this is the zoom, not the objects. For the rest of the clip the sensor holds them roughly in the center while switching contrast settings from time to time.
Limits of the record
With no narrative, no speed or altitude, and only a continent-wide location, the clip on its own cannot show what the two patches were, and AARO does not offer a view. Its description is explicitly not an analytical judgment. For the terms, see UAP and FLIR.
The official description
From war.gov/UFO, released May 8, 2026, quoted in full
The Department of the Army submitted a report of an unidentified anomalous phenomenon to the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) consisting of one minute and 49 seconds of video from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform in 2026. The reporter did not provide any oral or written description of the observation.
Video Description: 00:00-00:08: The sensor tracks an initial area of interest. 00:09-00:16: The sensor disengages from its previous area of focus and pans from right to left to track two areas of contrast, narrowing the field-of-view to zoom in while panning to maintain the objects' positions generally within the center of the frame. 00:17-01:03: The sensor widens its field-of-view to zoom out, keeping the areas of contrast generally centered within the display. 01:04-01:08: The sensor field-of-view rapidly cycles between levels of zoom, causing the areas of contrast to appear to rapidly increase and decrease in size. 01:09-01:48: The sensor tracks the areas of contrast while maintaining a generally centered position, intermittently cycling between contrast settings.
This video description is provided for informational purposes only. Readers should not interpret any part of this description as reflecting an analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination regarding the described event’s validity, nature, or significance.