Aliases
Disambiguation
In this corpus, refers to the formal governmental and scientific classification of unidentified objects or observations in the air, sea, or space. Distinguished from the earlier UFO designation by explicit adoption of scientific methodology and reduction of cultural stigma.
Stats
Concept
Airborne, maritime, or transmedium objects or observations not immediately identifiable as known aircraft, natural phenomena, or conventional causes, formally investigated by U.S. Department of Defense and intelligence agencies.
Objetos aéreos, marítimos ou transmédio, ou observações não imediatamente identificáveis como aeronaves conhecidas, fenômenos naturais ou causas convencionais, investigados formalmente pelo Departamento de Defesa dos EUA e agências de inteligência.
Enrichment
- Unidentified flying objectWikipedia▎ high· 2026-05-14
- Term emerged in 1947 from USAF investigations requiring a broader category than 'flying saucer'
- Unidentified aerial phenomenon (UAP) first appeared in late 1960s as scientific alternative
- UAP became preferred terminology in 21st century to avoid cultural baggage of UFO
- What are UAPs, and why do UFOs have a new name?CBS News▎ high· 2026-05-14
- UAP encompasses objects detected in air, sea, and space that defy easy explanation
- Pentagon expanded terminology in December 2022 to include submerged and transmedium phenomena
- Stigma reduction was key driver: UFO term carried associations with conspiracy theories and silenced credible witnesses
- UAP - NASA ScienceNASA▎ high· 2026-05-14
- NASA defines UAP as observations of events in the sky that cannot be identified as aircraft or known natural phenomena
- NASA conducts independent scientific study of unidentified anomalous phenomena alongside DoD
AERIAL PHENOMENA
Description (EN)
Stub generated by entity dedup. Will be enriched in Phase 6.
Descrição (PT-BR)
Stub gerado pela deduplicação de entidades. Será enriquecido na Fase 6.
<!-- enrichment:start -->Enrichment (EN)
Disambiguation: In this corpus, refers to the formal governmental and scientific classification of unidentified objects or observations in the air, sea, or space. Distinguished from the earlier UFO designation by explicit adoption of scientific methodology and reduction of cultural stigma.
Aerial Phenomena is a formal governmental and scientific designation for airborne, maritime, or transmedium objects that cannot be immediately identified as known aircraft, natural phenomena, or conventional causes. The term evolved from the 1947 USAF designation for unexplained sightings and gained widespread official adoption in 2021 when the U.S. Department of Defense and intelligence community began using 'Unidentified Aerial Phenomena' (UAP). In December 2022, the acronym was expanded to encompass 'Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena' to include submerged and transmedium cases. The terminology shift was motivated by encouraging credible witness reporting and distancing investigations from sensationalist UFO associations.
Enriquecimento (PT-BR)
Desambiguação: In this corpus, refers to the formal governmental and scientific classification of unidentified objects or observations in the air, sea, or space. Distinguished from the earlier UFO designation by explicit adoption of scientific methodology and reduction of cultural stigma.
Fenômenos Aéreos Não Identificados é uma designação formal governamental e científica para objetos aéreos, marítimos ou transmédio que não podem ser imediatamente identificados como aeronaves conhecidas, fenômenos naturais ou causas convencionais. O termo evoluiu da designação da USAF de 1947 para avistamentos não explicados e ganhou adoção oficial generalizada em 2021, quando o Departamento de Defesa dos EUA e a comunidade de inteligência começaram a usar 'Unidentified Aerial Phenomena' (UAP). Em dezembro de 2022, o acrônimo foi expandido para abranger 'Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena' a fim de incluir casos submersos e transmédio. A mudança terminológica foi motivada por encorajar relatos de testemunhas críveis e distanciar investigações de associações sensacionalistas com UFOs.
External Sources
- Unidentified flying object · Wikipedia · reliability:
high— Term emerged in 1947 from USAF investigations requiring a broader category than 'flying saucer'; Unidentified aerial phenomenon (UAP) first appeared in late 1960s as scientific alternative; UAP became preferred terminology in 21st century to avoid cultural baggage of UFO - What are UAPs, and why do UFOs have a new name? · CBS News · reliability:
high— UAP encompasses objects detected in air, sea, and space that defy easy explanation; Pentagon expanded terminology in December 2022 to include submerged and transmedium phenomena; Stigma reduction was key driver: UFO term carried associations with conspiracy theories and silenced credible witnesses - UAP - NASA Science · NASA · reliability:
high— NASA defines UAP as observations of events in the sky that cannot be identified as aircraft or known natural phenomena; NASA conducts independent scientific study of unidentified anomalous phenomena alongside DoD