Eye on the Sky: A UAP Research and Field Study off New York’s Long Island Coast

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INTRODUCTION

“Eye on the Sky” was a year-long investigative field research study of significant importance. It was conducted at Robert Moses State Park (RMSP), a barrier island (Fire et al.). It began in July 2022 and continued to July 2023 off the south shore of Long Island, NY. This location is known for its unique environmental conditions and potential for discovering unexplained aerial phenomena based on a significant number of retrospective UAP cases reported off America’s coastline. Sightings of unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) by the military and civilians alike are becoming increasingly common. Encounters with unknown aerial objects detailed in such prominent military-related cases as Gimbal and Nimitz (Mizokami, 2019) [1] (U.S. Navy, 2020) [2] (Cooper, 2019) [3], among others, are now embedded in the UAP lexicon with the growing reports of unknown objects viewed by commercial airline pilots only adding to the volume. While these and other UAP reports inspired this paper, it is true that initiatives driven by the U.S. Congress and put in place by the Pentagon also spurred motivation. The recent establishment of the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), charged with investigating hundreds of trans-medium UAP incidents, both legacy and new (Department of Defense, 2022) [4], provided added credibility and gravitas to the existence and exploration of mystery objects in our skies. Since much of the official data on unknown objects is kept classified, it is vital that the private sector also step up efforts of inquiry into these phenomena, which could pose a risk to our national security, geographical integrity, and passenger aviation safety.

DISCUSSION

The Nightcrawler “Eye on the Sky” field research study was the culmination of multiple months of intensive observations from sunset to sunrise, which extended into ten months on coastal Long Island. The regions included the south shore, Fire Island National Seashore at RMSP, and the north shore, Cedar Beach area. We included the Corey Beach/Great South Bay inland region as a comparative baseline. Our study’s findings, meticulously gathered and analyzed using two instrumented mobile sensor platforms for data collection, point to an exotic phenomenon that is not reducible to straightforward explanations and remains largely unexplained.

During this period, we observed odd displays of light that frequented the coastlines, especially more abundant on and off the south shore. Whether they are more of a coastal phenomenon or if there are equal numbers of incursions inland remains to be seen, pending further studies. These findings open up exciting possibilities for future research and discovery. We have observed more extraordinary displays over or near the coast of Long Island. One cautionary aspect of visual sightings from human observers on the ground is perceptual errors in judging precise location and position. For instance, we observed aircraft and unknown objects that appeared overland. When attempts were made to correlate that location with radar tracks and triangulation methods, the actual position was near or off the coast rather than inland. Depth of field can be distorted, depending on unknown size variation, minimal detail of physical attributes, and foreground/background landmark contrasts. The objects can appear closer or farther than they are. This is not to say that land incursions do not occur, but we must remember that according to USGS data, Long Island’s landmass is only 23 miles at maximum width. So, what may appear to hover over land may be a relatively short distance on the coast. Most alleged sightings may be a coastal phenomenon with occasional incursions over land.

As we began noticing these unknown objects/luminosities through enhanced instrumented means, we performed our due diligence to eliminate the known quantities from the unknowns. We followed the scientific method and process through stringent field protocols to collect data and evaluate possible evidence. We speculated and hypothesized about what other natural explanations might make sense, and we explored and investigated the possibility of maritime surveillance drones or drones that might be used for dredging operations or coastal and sea-floor mapping operations. We also considered DoD/military or foreign adversarial activities. These became the least likely explanations for us.

The unknown objects appear to be elusive, and they frequently remain just outside of the spectral range of human sensory perception. They are primarily seen within the infrared bandwidth and may occasionally be observed in the visible spectrum when their albedo/luminosity is sufficiently intense to be seen. We have observed a barely perceivable low Lux to high Lux light output from such objects. On rare occasions when these objects and luminosities were perceptible in the visible spectrum, they assumed variations in color frequency, such as white, blue (occasionally iridescent), orange, and red. The unknown objects have displayed quantifiable features so that we could assign some tentative taxonomic and morphometric details for referencing the differing forms, as discussed in the body of the paper (such as four to five general variations in shape geometries, and consistencies in the relative size of 1.5 meters to 3.0 meters in diameter). Their behaviors were transitory, random, indifferent, and purposeless at times, and there were moments when these objects demonstrated an awareness of us and some level of organization, intelligence, and even interaction. There were instances where we observed more bizarre features, such as luminous objects suddenly appearing and rising from or out of the ground, where none had been seen previously. Occasionally, we would see them sitting on the ocean surface or passing beneath it without disturbing that medium and any sounds. We then wondered if these objects had any solid, loosely dense, or non-physical mass. We have noted some interesting outliers in spectrum analyses during presentations of this phenomenon. Measurements of E-M field power flux densities (the sum product of electrical and magnetic fields) have detected 1.79 GHz and 4.066 GHz signals. We also found a correlational relationship between our Emf measurements and the unusual ultrasonic signals we detected multiple times during the coastal light phenomenon presentations. Both the Emf and acoustics displayed 40 KHz block separations between signals.

CONCLUSIONS

The fieldwork of the Nightcrawler and its engineering team is an invaluable contribution to the burgeoning on-the-ground observational science of UAP. The work furthers the serious, evidence-based research that must be done to lay the foundation for real progress, understanding what UAP could be and how they may operate and behave as observations suggest. Without the careful, instrumented observations conducted throughout this investigation, there would be no foundation for determining the substantial, coherent, and consistent methodology for the observational science of UAP. The engineering team brings decades of engineering and practical, hands-on technical experience to bear on their research, yet another valuable contribution to a field that can benefit not only from academic scientists, who aim to secure confirmatory observations under stricter laboratory conditions but also from the more foundational field experience of those having to negotiate the complexities of observation of UAP in authentic contexts. Because UAP is observed in real-life situations rather than under laboratory conditions, the work of field scientists is key for progress in the scientific study of UAP. Indeed, because of this kind of work, we can have science in the first place.