FACT CHECK: No, These Images Are Not Evidence Of UFOs Hidden From The World
A post shared on Facebook purportedly shows images proving the existence of concealed UFOs.
Verdict: False
The images do not prove the existence of UFOs that have been hidden. The photos stem from a music video that uses digitally altered video clips.
Fact Check:
A June Pew Research Center poll showed that 40 percent of U.S. adult respondents said they thought UFOs reported by armed forces personnel were probably evidence of intelligent extraterrestrial life. Such reports were considered definite evidence of alien intelligence by 11 percent of those the poll surveyed.
A Dec. 8 Facebook includes a collage of images showing a helicopter seemingly carrying a metallic spherical object in a desert. The object then seems to shoot a burst of energy at a much smaller contraption on the ground nearby. The post reads: “Secret Materials: PHOTO Evidence Of UFOs That Hid From The World.” (RELATED: Does This Video Show The Helicopter Crash That Killed India’s Military Chief Bipin Rawat?)
The collage does not, however, show “photo evidence” of genuine UFOs. Through a reverse image search, Check Your Fact found that the images were part of a music video posted on YouTube in 2018 for composer Nigel Stanford‘s song “One Hundred Hunters.”
Stanford has incorporated real robots and other technological themes into his music and visual work, as seen in many of his YouTube videos. He confirmed in an email to Check Your Fact that the clips in the “One Hundred Hunters” music video that show the spherical UFO were created using computer-generated imagery (CGI). The video also includes manipulated versions of genuine government footage.
Some government officials are interested in furthering the study of UFOs. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 was recently passed by the House and mandates the creation of a Defense Department office to “address unidentified aerial phenomena,” a task the department was already engaged in, according to the bill’s text.