An unidentified aerial phenomenon (UAP), as captured by the sensors of a U.S. Navy jet.(Image credit: DoD/US Navy)
We now know who will conduct NASA's highly anticipated study on unexplained phenomena.
The space agency announced in June that it had commissioned a panel to investigate unexplained flying objects. NASA officials said at the time that the study would cost less than $100,000 and take about nine months to complete.
The study's start date has been pushed back due to the fall. The panel will begin work on Monday.
NASA is hoping a new study will help bring UFO research into the mainstream.
The study doesn't want to be the final word on the subject. It will focus on how the unclassified UAP observations can be better organized and analyzed in the future to shed more light on mysterious sky sights.
"Exploring the unknown in space and the atmosphere is at the heart of who we are at NASA," said Thomas Zurbuchen in today's update.
Understanding the data surrounding unidentified aerial phenomena is crucial to helping us draw scientific conclusions about what is happening in our skies. The data is the language of scientists.
We know that the study team will be chaired by David Spergel, president of the Simons Foundation, and that the NASA official orchestrating the effort is Daniel Evans.
Today's update showed the full team. There will be 16 investigators from a variety of fields. A former NASA Astronaut is in the group.
The team members are alphabetical.
Anamaria Berea, associate professor of computational and data science at George Mason University, research affiliate with the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, and research investigator with Blue Marble Space Institute of Science in Seattle;
Federica Bianco, joint professor at the University of Delaware in the Department of Physics and Astrophysics, the Biden School of Public Policy and Administration and the Urban Observatory;
Paula Bontempi, dean of the Graduate School of Oceanography at the University of Rhode Island (URI) and a professor of oceanography at URI;
Reggie Brothers, operating partner at AE Industrial Partners in Boca Raton, Florida and formerly CEO and board member of BigBear.ai in Columbia, Maryland;
Jen Buss, CEO of the Potomac Institute of Policy Studies in Arlington, Virginia;
Nadia Drake, freelance science journalist and contributing writer at National Geographic;
Mike Gold, executive vice president of Civil Space and External Affairs at Redwire in Jacksonville, Florida and previously NASA associate administrator for Space Policy and Partnerships;
David Grinspoon, senior scientist at the Planetary Science Institute in Tucson, Arizona, and a frequent advisor to NASA on space exploration;
Scott Kelly, former NASA astronaut, test pilot, fighter pilot and retired U.S. Navy captain;
Matt Mountain, president of The Association of Universities for Research and Astronomy and a telescope scientist for NASA's James Webb Space Telescope;
Warren Randolph, deputy executive director of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Accident Investigation and Prevention for Aviation Safety department;
Walter Scott, executive vice president and chief technology officer at the space technology company Maxar;
Joshua Semeter, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Boston University and director of the school's Center for Space Physics;
Karlin Toner, acting executive director of the FAA's Office of Aviation Policy and Plans and formerly director of the FAA's global strategy;
Shelley Wright, associate professor of physics at the University of California, San Diego's Center for Astrophysics and Space Studies.
Today's NASA update has shorter versions of the thumbnail bios. The full version can be found in that post.
Evans said that NASA brought together some of the world's leading scientists, data and artificial intelligence practitioners, and safety experts to tell them how to apply the full focus of science and data to UAP.
When the study is over, the findings will be released to the public.
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