MQ-9 "Middle East orb"

Shown by AARO director Sean Kirkpatrick at the April 19, 2023 Senate Armed Services hearing: an MQ-9 Reaper’s sensor briefly tracks a silver orb crossing its field of view — typical of the many reports AARO receives with minimal data.

Explanation

AARO: the object did not show anomalous behaviour but remains unidentified for lack of data.

What was seen

Shape: Silver, orb-like object
Witnesses: MQ-9 sensor operators
Duration: Seconds

Browse

• 2020s
• Unresolved
• Photo and video cases
• Official government documents
• Video footage
• Infrared or other sensor data
• Spheres and orbs

Similar cases

• AC-130J “cold orbs” over the Gulf of Oman 8 September 2021
• MQ-9 records object with "wake" — South Asia 15 January 2023
• The teardrop with a pole — United Arab Emirates 1 June 2024
• The “misshapen ball of white light” over Syria 1 October 2024