CENTCOM UAP Encounter, 2022 — Department of War Video
AARO assesses that this video, whose uploader-defined title is, “[CALLSIGN] (Mission) HD_20220613,” is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S.
Incident Overview
In 2022, 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, “[CALLSIGN] (Mission) HD_20220613,” is likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating in the United States Central Command area of responsibility in June 2022. A user uploaded this video to a classified network in June 2022.
Video Duration: 00:04:45 Video Description: 00:00-00:10: The sensor pans from right to left tracking an area of contrast moving towards the center of the field-of-view, before losing distinctiveness against the background. 00:11-00:14: The sensor zooms in. An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view, entering from the right and exiting from the left side of the frame. 00:15-00:43: The sensor zooms out to track an area of contrast. 00:44-00:47: The sensor zooms in. An area of contrast transits the sensor field-of-view, entering from the right and exiting from the left side of the frame. 00:48-01:05: The sensor cycles its zoom settings multiple times. 01:06-01:13: A small area of contrast transits from the right to the center of the sensor field-of-view. 01:14-01:18: The sensor zooms in on an area of contrast. The area of contrast transits from the right to the center of the frame while the sensor pans up. 01:19-02:05: The sensor zooms and pans to track the area of contrast until it exits the field-of-view at the top of the display. 02:06-03:42: No content. 03:43-03:47: Several areas of contrast become visible near the center of the sensor field-of-view. 03:48-03:50: No content. 03:51-04:00: Four small areas of contrast become visible in the center of the sensor field-of-view. The sensor pans to track the areas of contrast. 04:01-04:21: The sensor cycles its zoom level out and pans to the right to track an area of contrast in the bottom right of the field-of-view. 04:22-04:39: The sensor cycles its zoom level to focus on an area of contrast multiple times. 04:40-04:43: The sensor switches modalities and refocuses on an area of contrast centered in its field-of-view.
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.