More than 26,000 unidentified flying objects were seen soaring through the skies over the US in the past five years, data shows.
A map, which pulls from National UFO Reporting Center (NUFORC), shows the number of sightings in each state, with California ranking at the top with 2,661, then Florida, followed by New York.
While the government has yet to inform Americans about the unidentified objects, the top states are home to major Air Force bases that routinely test new winged technologies.
This comes as three UFOs were shot down over Alaska, Canada and Montana this weekend, and the Pentagon is not ruling out a possibility that the objects are linked to extraterrestrials.
A maps reveals the number of UFO sightings in each US state. This comes after three unidentified objects were shot down over Alaska, Canada and Montana last week
The object detected on Sunday is described as an unmanned ‘octagonal structure’ with ‘potential surveillance capabilities’ and strings attached to it.
An F-16 fighter jet shot it down from around 20,000 feet over the Great Lakes at 2:42 pm – after two other crafts were destroyed over Alaska and Canada on Friday and Saturday.
A Chinese balloon was also shot down on February 4 over South Carolina, meaning the US air force has now downed four objects in just eight days.
The map suggests if you want to see a UFO, head to California – there have been 15,457 reports since 1998.
The number may also be due to the large population in the state.
One of the most recent sightings in The Golden State was reported to NUFORC on December 17, 2022 by a person who snapped an image of a ‘long rectangle light moving very fast’ over Halfmoon – a city located south of San Francisco.
‘Sitting on a bench at the moss beach distillery at Halfmoon Bay California. Around 6:50 pm. My girlfriend noticed a large rectangular shape that appeared out of nowhere moving very fast. I was amazed and took a photo,’ the person shared.
California has the highest number of UFO sightings in the US. One of the most recent sightings in The Golden State was reported to NUFORC on December 17, 2022 by a person who snapped an image of a ‘long rectangle light moving very fast’ over Halfmoon
Another sighting, reported on November 30, came from Campbell. The person saw ‘lights on the object’
‘I didn’t think I captured it but after looking at the picture, I did get it on film. Also looking at the picture, I noticed there is another shape I caught below it in the right.
‘And that appears to be a round light and in the center, the circle is divided with light like you cut 8 pieces of pie. I have both objects in two pictures.’
Another sighting, reported on November 30, came from Campbell.
The person saw ‘lights on the object.’
‘There was an aura or haze around the object and the object emitted other objects,’ the shared in a post on NUFORC.
Florida ranks second in the US, with 7,870 reports of unidentified objects in the skies since 1998 and and 1,797 in the last five years.
On December 19, a resident of Orlando saw five gold-colored orbs in the night sky, which turned white and came together to form a cylinder shape.
‘Cylinder. Golden orbs over Orlando turning white heading from Orlando to the south towards hunters creek and possibly the Disney area,’ the post reads.
‘I enlarged one of the photos to find a cylinder-shaped object in the white lights. The first sighting was two lights maybe 30 minutes later, three more came in from the same area.
‘The first two objects that I saw over Orlando a little after 12 AM one had left and flew off to the north, the other one flew towards my area heading south.’
Washington state has also had its fair share of encounters – a total of 6,932 since 1998 and 1,297 in the last five years.
Florida has had at least 1,797 unidentified object reports over the past five years. On December 19, a resident of Orlando saw five gold-colored orbs in the night sky, which turned white and came together to form a cylinder shape
Washington state ranked third in the most UFO sightings. Pictured is one captured on June 24, 2022 over Lake Forest Park
One was captured on June 24, 2022 over Lake Forest Park.
‘After me and my friend Bruce were done playing pickle ball and walking home I noticed several orbs above the lake and it was still light,’ reads the post.
‘There were approximately five stationary orbs it was still light out and there was definitely something different about these.’
While each state has claimed to encounter an alien craft, it may be surprising to some that New Mexico, where Roswell is located, has only had 833 reports.
Also, Nevada, which is home to Area 51, has just 742 reports.
The map comes just days after the US has been looking for UFOs after an F-16 fighter jet shot down an ‘octagonal’ object over the Great Lakes on Sunday.
Two other crafts had been discovered and destroyed over Alaska and Canada on Friday and Saturday – the US government has yet to recover the debris.
The shape of two objects recalls the famous ‘Tic Tac’ UFO – a white oblong spotted by the US Navy in 2004.
British UFO expert Nick Pope, formerly with the UK’s Ministry of Defense, told MailOnline that he ‘can’t rule out a connection with the Tic Tac sighting’ but cautioned that an overall explanation is ‘still to be determined.’
This followed a spherical Chinese balloon being shot down on February 4 over South Carolina, meaning the US air force has now downed four objects in just eight days.
China has admitted ownership of the balloon, although it insisted it was an unmanned weather surveillance aircraft that had veered off-course.
In comparison, the three aircraft that followed at the weekend are unidentified and their nature and origin are far less clear.
The Pentagon has refused to rule out the possibility that the collection of unidentified objects could be linked to extraterrestrials.
US Air Force General Glen VanHerck said intelligence services were exploring all avenues and would not yet rule out aliens or any other explanation.
‘I’ll let the intel community and the counterintelligence community figure that out. I haven’t ruled out anything,’ VanHerck said.
‘At this point we continue to assess every threat or potential threat, unknown, that approaches North America with an attempt to identify it.’
