The U.S. Department of War on May 22 released a second tranche of declassified files on unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAPs, including more than 50 videos and documents detailing military encounters and historical sightings that officials say remain largely unexplained.
The release adds 64 files to materials made public earlier this month under President Donald Trump's directive for greater transparency on UAPs, the official term for what are commonly known as UFOs. It includes roughly 51 videos, six PDFs, and seven audio files.
“This is an unprecedented, historic undertaking that requires coordination between dozens of agencies and the review of tens of millions of records, many existing only on paper, spanning many decades,” a Department of War statement accompanying the release said. Officials added that additional records will be released “every few weeks” as materials are discovered and declassified.
The site has received more than 1 billion visits since the first release on May 8.
Among the new videos are infrared footage from 2022 showing four UAPs flying in formation over water near Iran, and 2021 footage captured by a U.S. Air Force Reaper drone near the Jordan-Syria border depicting a UAP with apparent instantaneous acceleration and abrupt directional changes. Officials noted the object showed no traditional propulsion or strong thermal signature.
Also included in the files is a written account from a senior U.S. intelligence official describing observing orange "orbs" near a helicopter in the Western U.S. in 2025. The orbs reportedly flared up, formed patterns including a triangle, and appeared to interact with military aircraft before vanishing.
Older records in the release include a 116-page document detailing 209 sightings of green orbs, discs, and fireballs near Sandia Base in New Mexico from 1948 to 1950, a 1973 CIA report on Soviet UAP activity, and audio from a 1969 Apollo 12 mission medical debriefing.
The department said the files involve unresolved cases in which officials could not determine the nature of the phenomena, often because there was not enough data available.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the department is working alongside President Trump to expand public transparency surrounding the government’s knowledge of unidentified anomalous phenomena.
“These files, hidden behind classifications, have long fueled justified speculation — and it’s time the American people see it for themselves,” Hegseth added. “This release of declassified documents demonstrates the Trump Administration’s earnest commitment to unprecedented transparency.”
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a third Department of War statement that the department "is actively working on the third release of UAP files, which will be announced in the near future.”