
By Kay Whatley, Editor
Across the United States each year, thousands of unidentified flying object (UFO) sightings are reported. UFO reports cover close encounters of various types, range from blinking lights in the sky to unusual aircraft to reports of contact.
In January 2018 alone, over 300 UFO sightings were reported to the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON), which collects citizen reports and catalogs them by date, location, description, and — when available — related photographs and videos.
- Alabama — 4
- Alaska — 2
- Arizona — 9
- Arkansas — 5
- California — 35
- Colorado — 5
- Connecticut — 4
- Delaware — 0
- Florida — 38
- Georgia — 5
- Hawai’i — 3
- Idaho — 1
- Illinois — 13
- Indiana — 5
- Iowa — 1
- Kansas — 1
- Kentucky — 4
- Louisiana — 5
- Maine — 3
- Maryland — 1
- Massachusetts — 3
- Michigan — 5
- Minnesota — 4
- Mississippi — 2
- Missouri — 7
- Montana — 3
- Nebraska — 0
- Nevada — 11
- New Hampshire — 0
- New Jersey — 4
- New Mexico — 5
- New York — 5
- North Carolina — 7
- North Dakota — 0
- Ohio — 11
- Oklahoma — 6
- Oregon — 8
- Pennsylvania — 12
- Rhode Island — 0
- South Carolina — 6
- South Dakota — 1
- Tennessee — 4
- Texas — 15
- Utah — 5
- Vermont — 0
- Virginia — 5
- Washington — 13
- Washington DC — 0
- West Virginia — 3
- Wisconsin — 4
- Wyoming — 0
These are the reported sightings. Note that sightings are sometimes reported months or years later, and these numbers may go up over time. MUFON’s reporting records not only the date of sightings, but the date reported, allowing for the fact that many people do not immediately share their experience.
To search the MUFON database and read details of these accounts, or to report your own sighting of a flying object you could not identify, visit www.mufon.com.
Close Encounter types include:
First Kind — Seeing a UFO within close enough proximity to see detail.
Second Kind — Observing changes to machinery/electronics, animals, feeling physical sensations, or finding trace evidence in the ground/environment.
Third Kind — Encountering an alien creature of some sort related to a UFO.
Fourth kind — An earthling reports being abducted by aliens/spacecraft.
For additional information on close-encounter research, one site to visit is www.cseti.org.