20 October 2020 Observes UAP — Department of War Video
AARO assesses that this video, whose uploader-defined title is, “20 October 2020 [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP,” is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S.
Incident Overview
In 2020, in the CENTCOM area of responsibility, the Department of War preserved a sensor video that was declassified and published on May 22, 2026 as part of the second tranche of the Department of War’s Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters (PURSUE). These records were identified by AARO in response to a March 6, 2026 request from eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives for potentially UAP-related material; AARO notes that many of the items lack a substantiated chain of custody.
What the government released
AARO assesses that this video, whose uploader-defined title is, “20 October 2020 [CALLSIGN] [CALLSIGN] Observes UAP,” is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020. A user uploaded this video to a classified network in October 2020.
Video Duration: 00:04:54 Video Description: 01:17-01:21: An area of contrast enters the sensor field-of-view from the top right of the screen. The sensor pans toward the object, then pans away. 02:45-02:46: An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view across the bottom right quarter to the bottom middle edge of the screen. 03:12-03:13: An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view from the top right quarter to the bottom left quarter, after which the sensor changes modes and attempts to track the area of contrast. 03:20-03:21: An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view from the top right quarter to the bottom left quarter, after which the sensor changes modes and attempts to track the area of contrast. 03:35-03:36: An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view across the bottom right quarter, after which the sensor attempts to track the area of contrast. 03:40-03:41: An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view across the bottom right quarter to the bottom middle edge of the screen, after which the sensor attempts to track the area of contrast. 04:02-04:03: An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view across the bottom right quarter to the bottom middle edge of the screen, after which the sensor attempts to track the area of contrast. 04:22-04:23: An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view across the bottom left quarter.
This video 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.
Status of the case
Records released under the PURSUE program are designated unresolved by the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, which means the federal government has not concluded the events were anomalous, has not concluded they were conventional, and has not ruled out either possibility. Where AARO has offered a likely source for an item — an infrared sensor aboard a military aircraft, a commercial camera, or a known optical effect — that attribution is the agency’s working assessment rather than a final determination. Conventional candidates such as drones, balloons, flares, satellites, parallax and forced-perspective artifacts, and ordinary aircraft remain on the table for any unresolved case absent better data than a single sensor pass or a witness recollection.