8,000 Orbs Sighted Over the US.

Between late 2022 and mid-2025, a crowdsourced UFO app called Enigma logged more than 8,000 sightings of strange aerial objects across the US. Of those, 422 were specifically reported as metallic orbs, the kind that hover, zip, or vanish with all the grace of a screensaver from the 1990s. Most were spotted in the small hours of the night, often near military bases in California, Arizona, and New York. Nothing says “sleep easy” like unexplained spheres hanging over missile silos. (The Express)

Eyewitnesses range from civilians to military personnel. Some describe silent hovering; others, orbs darting off at physics-breaking speeds. A few encounters were caught on video or radar. The rest? Reduced to blurry dots in the sky, perfect fuel for both sceptics and conspiracy theorists.

The Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) has, of course, stepped in with its favourite phrase: “probably mundane.” Birds, balloons, drones, atmospheric quirks, pick your flavour of boring. Out of 757 official reports between May 2023 and June 2024, only 21 remained unresolved, usually because the footage was too shaky or the radar data inconclusive. That’s government-speak for “we don’t know, and frankly, we don’t want to.”

One famous clip, shared by former AARO head Dr Sean Kirkpatrick, showed a metallic sphere caught by a US MQ-9 Reaper drone over the Middle East. Official conclusion: “did not exhibit anomalous behaviour.” Translation: “still a mystery, but please stop asking.” (News.com.au)

So where does that leave us? With thousands of orbs logged, hundreds unexplained, and the Pentagon gently herding the conversation back toward drones. The irony is that metallic orbs are among the most common UAP shapes worldwide, and some even show up where you’d least like them: near sensitive military infrastructure. Which is either deeply concerning, or a prank by some very dedicated balloon enthusiasts.

Final thought: If history is any guide, most of these orbs will turn out to be something dull. But the handful that don’t? Those will keep the late-night Reddit threads alive for decades. Until then, the Pentagon remains politely baffled, and the rest of us are left wondering if the sky really is just full of balloons, or if someone’s been watching us with very shiny eyes.