FBI Photo B18

Plain-English Summary

• What happened:The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) submitted a report of an unidentified anomalous phenomenon (UAP) to the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) consisting of a still image derived from a U.S. military system in 2025. The original imagery was altered with redactions before being submitted to AARO. An accompanying mission report was not provided. The operator reported that they were unable to positively identify the UAP. The date in the image is incorrect due to system date/time not being set. Narrative Description: The monochrome image displays a grainy texture with a simplified central crosshair. Two small, dark, elongated objects are visible near the center of the frame in the lower left quadrant. This narrative description is provided for informational purposes only. Readers should not interpret any part of this description as reflecting an analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination regarding the described event’s validity, nature, or significance.
• Who reported it:FBI
• What evidence exists:document
• What the government says:The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) submitted a report of an unidentified anomalous phenomenon (UAP) to the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) consisting of a still image derived from a U.S. military system in 2025. The original imagery was altered with redactions before being submitted to AARO. An accompanying mission report was not provided. The operator reported that they were unable to positively identify the UAP. The date in the image is incorrect due to system date/time not being set. Narrative Description: The monochrome image displays a grainy texture with a simplified central crosshair. Two small, dark, elongated objects are visible near the center of the frame in the lower left quadrant. This narrative description is provided for informational purposes only. Readers should not interpret any part of this description as reflecting an analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination regarding the described event’s validity, nature, or significance.
• What remains unclear:Not provided in source.

Key Facts

Title

FBI Photo B18

Release

Release 01

Release date

2026-05-08

Incident date

—

Agency

FBI

Location

Western United States

Location precision

region_only

Status

unknown

Source domain

war.gov

Source Documents

• pdf

  Source document
  Cached copy ↗Originalwww.war.gov↗

Media Gallery

• thumbnail
  Thumbnail
  View originalwww.war.gov↗

Skeptical / Mundane Explanations

Editorial draft pending.

What we still don't know

Editorial draft pending.

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