Decades
Browse incidents and key figures by decade.
2020s: 130 incidents, 71 figures
130 incidents
- Military encounter
- Mass sighting
- Abduction
- Crash and retrieval
- Radar and visual
- Humanoid encounter
- Photograph or film
- Physical trace
- Contact
- Sighting
- Other
- Documented
- Contested
- Fringe
- Debunked
71 figures
Credo Vusamazulu MutwaZulu sangoma and author who integrated alien abduction accounts into African oral tradition, linking UFO encounters to ancestral spiritual knowledge.Freeman DysonLegendary theoretical physicist who proposed Dyson spheres and revolutionized the search for extraterrestrial technosignatures.Paul HellyerFirst G7 defense minister to publicly advocate for extraterrestrial existence and government UFO disclosure.Jimmy CarterThe only U.S. president to file a formal UFO sighting report — a nuclear engineer who saw something over Georgia in 1969, promised disclosure as a candidate, and was quietly rebuffed by his own government once he had the office to deliver on it.Peter SturrockStanford solar physicist and founder of the Society for Scientific Exploration who applied rigorous scientific standards to the study of anomalous phenomena and UFO reports.Ann DruffelPioneering UFO researcher and abduction investigator who documented systematic case studies and defense techniques against alleged alien encounters.Frank BormanNASA astronaut and military pilot who commanded Gemini 7 and Apollo 8; reported unidentified spacecraft during December 1965 Gemini VII mission.Robert M. WoodAerospace engineer and UFO researcher who led classified propulsion research and authenticated Majestic-12 documents.Ted BloecherPioneering UFO historian and meticulous researcher who comprehensively documented the 1947 flying disc wave.R. Leo SprinkleCounseling psychologist who pioneered large-scale clinical work with UFO abductees using hypnotic regression therapy.Frank DrakeRadio astronomer who founded modern SETI and authored the Drake Equation, transforming the search for extraterrestrial intelligence into legitimate science.Paco RabanneRevolutionary fashion designer who publicly claimed extraterrestrial visitations and divine encountersMike GravelFormer Alaska senator and Pentagon Papers filibusterer who in 2013 argued at a National Press Club hearing that UFOs were being covered up by the US government.Thomas Patten StaffordApollo 10 commander and Pentagon aerospace development chief; experienced anomalies during crewed space missions.Ervin LaszloSystems theorist and philosopher who bridged quantum consciousness, non-local phenomena, and their implications for understanding non-human intelligence.Jean SiderFrench ufologist and systematic UFO researcher who documented five decades of French aerial phenomena and established rigorous investigative methodology.Carl Hart Jr.Texas Tech photographer whose 1951 Lubbock Lights images became the most famous UFO photographs of the early Cold War era.Len KastenUFO researcher and author who documented 30+ years of extraterrestrial contact evidence and classified military programsErich von DänikenSwiss author and ancient astronaut theory pioneer whose 1968 bestseller 'Chariots of the Gods?' transformed public discourse on extraterrestrial contact and human origins.Elisabet SahtourisEvolutionary biologist and systems theorist who integrated consciousness studies with extraterrestrial intelligence and Gaia hypothesis research.Illobrand von LudwigerGerman physicist and aerospace engineer who founded MUFON-CES in 1974 and led five decades of rigorous scientific UFO investigation across Central Europe, investigating over 600 anomalous cases and developing a theoretical framework for anomalous propulsion based on Burkhard Heim's field theory.Ray StanfordSelf-taught Texas UFO researcher known for controversial photographic evidence claims and Project Starlight International.Harry ReidNevada senator and Senate Majority Leader who pushed the Pentagon's secret UFO research program (AATIP) into existence in 2007 and later said he believed crashes of unknown objects may have occurredGildas BourdaisFrench ufologist and author who championed the extraterrestrial hypothesis and championed French government disclosure.Ira Einhorn1970s paranormal and UFO researcher who connected remote viewing, psychic weapons, and government conspiracy; later imprisoned for murder while claiming CIA frame-up.Larry KuscheArizona State University research librarian whose 1975 book, The Bermuda Triangle Mystery—Solved, became the classic debunking of the Bermuda Triangle legend.Ted PhillipsPioneering physical trace researcher who founded the Center for Physical Trace Research and catalogued over 4,000 UFO landing cases worldwide.Richard C. NiemtzowRetired USAF colonel and radiation oncologist who invented Battlefield Acupuncture and, in 1980, co-authored a paper on medical injuries from UFO close encounters.Bruce S. MaccabeeOptical physicist and Navy scientist whose rigorous analysis of photographic UFO evidence brought scientific credibility to UFO research.John Olsen LearCIA pilot and son of Learjet founder who became one of the most influential UFO conspiracy theorists of the 1980s–90s, claiming government contact with aliens and moon bases.Marcus AllenUK publisher of Nexus Magazine and pioneering alternative researcher investigating UFOs, crop circles, and space-program anomaliesPaul MuradAerospace engineer and Defense Intelligence Agency technology analyst who applied rigorous physics to UAP propulsion research.Wallace 'Wal' ThornhillPhysicist and co-founder of Electric Universe theory, whose plasma cosmology framework is cited by UAP researchers seeking naturalistic explanations for aerial phenomena.Rex GilroyAustralian cryptozoologist and UFO researcher who documented 50+ years of paranormal activity in the Blue Mountains and cataloged thousands of UFO sightings and cryptid encounters.Joe NickellWorld's first full-time professional paranormal investigator and critical skeptic.Enrique BarriosVenezuelan author and UFO contactee whose Ami book series conveyed extraterrestrial messages of universal love to millions.Sheldan NidleAmerican Sirian contactee and founder of the Planetary Activation Organization; channeled messages about galactic first contact for three decades.Dennis StacyTexas-born UFO journalist who edited the MUFON UFO Journal for twelve years and co-founded the fortean magazine The Anomalist.Nigel KernerBritish UFO theorist who argued Grey aliens are bio-mechanical probes engaged in 40,000-year genetic and consciousness manipulation of humanity.Paul A. LaViolettePhysicist and systems scientist whose electrogravitics research connected classified antigravity programs to potential UAP propulsion mechanisms.Timothy Green BeckleyProlific UFO publisher and editor who shaped discourse on extraterrestrial phenomena for over 50 years.David MacDonaldMUFON Executive Director (2012–2026) and aviation entrepreneur with lifelong UFO research commitment.Edd DamesU.S. Army Star Gate remote viewer, founder of Matrix Intelligence Agency, and vocal proponent of catastrophic solar-flare predictions.Robert "Bob" OechslerNASA robotics contractor turned UFO investigator whose Gulf Breeze photo analysis and claimed high-level government contacts made him a fixture of early-1990s ufology — and a lightning rod for skeptics.Karen HudesWorld Bank whistleblower who later became prominent in UFO and alien conspiracy circles, claiming extraterrestrial control of global finance and institutions.Lee SpeigelPioneering American broadcast journalist whose four-decade career — from a 1975 CBS documentary to decades at HuffPost — helped move UFO reporting from tabloid fringe toward mainstream news.Clifford StoneRetired Army sergeant who claims involvement in classified UFO crash retrieval operations and communication with non-human beings.Mark McCandlishAerospace illustrator and Disclosure Project witness who drew the 'Flux Liner' antigravity craft and died under disputed circumstances weeks before a planned Senate briefing.Tsuruhiko KiuchiJapanese astronomer and UFO researcher who founded Japan Flying Saucer Research Association and developed mathematical methods for UFO trajectory analysis.Calvin Parker Jr.American abductee and co-witness to the legendary 1973 Pascagoula UFO incident; later authored memoir and produced UFO documentaries.Sean David MortonParanormal researcher, UFO documentarian, and Coast to Coast AM fixture whose remote-viewing claims and apocalyptic predictions led to federal conviction for investment fraud.Kenn ThomasParapolitical researcher and Steamshovel Press founder who connected UFO incidents to JFK assassination via Fred Crisman.Carl GrillmairCaltech astrophysicist fatally shot in 2026; pulled into UFO conspiracy theories about missing scientistsChristopher O'BrienInvestigative journalist and paranormal researcher who documented over 1,000 unexplained events in Colorado's San Luis Valley.Angelia JoinerStephenville journalist who broke one of the most well-documented UFO cases and sacrificed her career for investigative truthAdemar José GevaerdBrazilian ufologist, editor of Revista UFO, founder of CBPDV, CBU, and IBEXO; chronicler of the Varginha case and Brazil's most influential researcher of his generationMassimo FratiniItalian medical radiologist and pioneering UFO researcher who founded Rome's first ufological research group and organized landmark international conferences.Michael S. HeiserBiblical scholar who bridged academic theology with paranormal discourse, critiquing ancient astronaut theories through Hebrew textual analysisFrank MaiwaldNASA JPL Principal researcher and spectral imaging expert whose mysterious death in 2024 became part of a federal investigation into deceased and missing scientistsNick PopeFormer British MoD UFO investigator who became the public face of government disclosure advocacy for 30 years.James "Tony" MoffattNASA aerospace engineer and Army aviation officer whose April 2026 death became part of a UFO disclosure-era missing scientists narrative.David WilcockNew York Times bestselling author, Ancient Aliens personality, and major UFO disclosure advocate whose media presence brought ET narratives to mainstream audiences.Melissa CasiasLos Alamos administrative assistant whose 2025 disappearance and 2026 death became focal point of federal investigation into cluster of missing scientists tied to classified research.Aidan ShafferNew Mexico UFO researcher and aerospace enthusiast who died in custody in March 2026, amid broader investigations into deaths of scientists linked to UAP research.Nuno LoureiroMIT plasma physicist and PSFC director killed in 2025; retrospectively linked to UFO-era "missing scientists" narrative.Jason ThomasNovartis pharmaceutical chemist whose 2025-26 disappearance became central to federal investigation into cluster of scientist deaths tied to classified research.Robbie GrahamFilm scholar and UFO researcher who examined how Hollywood and popular culture shaped narratives of contact and disclosure.Matthew Alan LivelsbergerU.S. Army Master Sergeant and Green Beret who alleged classified UAP programs used gravitic propulsion systems, made public in manifesto one day before his death in the 2025 Las Vegas Cybertruck explosion.Matthew James SullivanAir Force veteran whistleblower who planned congressional testimony on classified UFO programs, died under disputed circumstances in May 2024.Amy EskridgeExotic scientist and gravity modification researcher whose 2022 death under contested circumstances has been linked to broader investigations into deceased researchers with ties to advanced propulsion and UAP programs.Joshua LeBlancNASA aerospace engineer working on nuclear propulsion who died under suspicious circumstances in 2025, part of a broader cluster of scientist deaths connected to classified programs.