NASA has announced that it is putting together a special team to look into UFOs.
The space agency revealed this week that work was underway to look deeper into 'unidentified aerial phenomena', which it says need to be taken seriously.
The task force is being headed up by David Spergel, a scientist who previously led Princeton University's astrophysics department, and Daniel Evans, a senior researcher at NASA's Science Mission Directorate.
The team will meet later this year and will spend nine months delving into the unexplained, which it will then provide a detailed report on.
Advert
Despite the announcement, though, if you're sat there expecting them to pull out E.T., think again.
Scientists at NASA have made it clear that there is 'no evidence' as of yet that any of the phenomena spotted are extraterrestrial.
Thomas Zurbuchen, the associate administrator for science at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said: "NASA believes that the tools of scientific discovery are powerful and apply here also.
"We have access to a broad range of observations of Earth from space – and that is the lifeblood of scientific inquiry.
Advert
"We have the tools and team who can help us improve our understanding of the unknown.
"That’s the very definition of what science is. That’s what we do."
NASA has also made it clear that the new body is not part of the Department of Defense's Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force or its successor, the Airborne Object Identification and Management Synchronization Group.
Discussing the announcement, Spergel said: "Given the paucity of observations, our first task is simply to gather the most robust set of data that we can.
"We will be identifying what data – from civilians, government, non-profits, companies – exists, what else we should try to collect, and how to best analyze it."
Advert
Evans added: "Consistent with NASA’s principles of openness, transparency, and scientific integrity, this report will be shared publicly.
"All of NASA’s data is available to the public – we take that obligation seriously – and we make it easily accessible for anyone to see or study."
This comes after a British hacker revealed what he found after breaking into NASA files two decades ago.
The US tried to extradite Gary McKinnon after he gained access to NASA files, and threatened the 56-year-old hacker with 60 years behind bars.
Advert
Following lengthy appeals, then-home secretary Theresa May blocked McKinnon’s extradition, and he recently opened up about exactly what he found on NASA computers.
McKinnon gained access to the images between February 2001 and March 2002 and is certain the space agency is ‘covering up evidence of alien life’.
Dominic Smithers