WASHINGTON — A Pentagon study released Friday that examined reported sightings of UFOs over nearly the last century found no evidence of aliens or extraterrestrial intelligence, a conclusion consistent with past U.S. government efforts to assess the accuracy of claims that have captivated public attention for decades.

The study from the Defense Department’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office analyzed U.S. government investigations since 1945 of reported sightings of unidentified anomalous phenomena, more popularly known as UFOs. It found no evidence that any of them were signs of alien life, or that the U.S. government and private companies had reverse-engineered extraterrestrial technology and were hiding it.

“All investigative efforts, at all levels of classification, concluded that most sightings were ordinary objects and phenomena and the result of misidentification,” said the report, which was mandated by Congress. Another volume of the report focused on more recent research will be out later.

U.S. officials have endeavored to find answers to legions of reported UFO sightings over the years, but so far have not identified any actual evidence of extraterrestrial life. A 2021 government report^[1] that reviewed 144 sightings of aircraft or other devices apparently flying at mysterious speeds or trajectories found no extraterrestrial links, but drew few other conclusions and called for better data collection.

The issue received fresh attention last summer^[2] when a retired Air Force intelligence officer testified to Congress that the U.S. was concealing a longstanding program that retrieves and reverse engineers unidentified flying objects^[3]. The Pentagon has denied his claims, and said in late 2022^[4] that a new Pentagon office set up to track reports of unidentified flying objects — the same one that released Friday's report — had received “several hundreds” of new reports, but had found no evidence so far of alien life.

The authors of Friday's report said the purpose was to apply a rigorous scientific analysis to a subject that has long captured the American public's imagination.

“AARO recognizes that many people sincerely hold versions of these beliefs which are based on their perception of past experiences, the experiences of others whom they trust, or media and online outlets they believe to be sources of credible and verifiable information,” the report said.

"The proliferation of television programs, books, movies, and the vast amount of internet and social media content centered on UAP-related topics most likely has influenced the public conversation on this topic, and reinforced these beliefs within some sections of the population," it added.

The Pentagon's independent watchdog will investigate the Navy^[1]'s ability to prevent and respond to suicides, a recently posted memo revealed^[2].

The memo, dated Feb. 27, says that investigators from the Pentagon's Office of Inspector General will try to "determine whether the Department of Navy effectively took actions to prevent and respond to incidents of deaths by suicide, suicide attempts, and suicidal ideation among members of the Navy assigned to sea duty or shore duty."

The investigation comes after the sea service experienced several suicide clusters aboard its ships that were undergoing maintenance at shipyards on both coasts, as well as an East Coast maintenance depot. The Navy's own audits have found the service's implementation of suicide prevention efforts to be lacking.

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The memo notes that investigators plan to visit most of the Navy's main base areas, specifically citing Norfolk^[4] Naval Air Station in Virginia; Naval Base San Diego^[5] in California; Naval Base Kitsap^[6] in Bremerton, Washington; and Naval Station Pearl Harbor^[7] in Hawaii.

The Navy has been plagued with high-profile suicide clusters and media coverage of the incidents for several years.

In 2022, Military.com first reported that the USS George Washington, an aircraft carrier that was undergoing a massive yearslong overhaul, had suffered at least nine suicides since November 2019.

Later, Navy investigations confirmed that quality-of-life issues^[8], along with poor leadership and a general failure to take care of sailors, basically left them fending for themselves and drove suicidal thoughts to become widespread^[9] on the ship.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt, an aircraft carrier that underwent a much shorter 18-month overhaul in Bremerton, also had at least three suicides aboard. The last of those occurred in January 2023^[10].

A Navy spokesperson told Military.com that they were "aware of the announcement, and we are standing by to support the evaluation."

"The Department of Navy remains committed to the well-being and mental health of our sailors and their families and will continue to prioritize suicide prevention efforts," the spokesperson added.

The Navy's investigation into a cluster of four suicides^[11] in the fall of 2022 at a regional maintenance center in Norfolk revealed that the command -- staffed in no small part by sailors who are undergoing mental health or other medical issues -- was not equipped to handle their needs.

The investigation also found that the command struggled to offer even basic suicide prevention, and its policies didn't have any guidance on dealing with sailors who demonstrated suicidal behaviors or what should be done in the aftermath of a suicide.

Investigators also found that the unit hadn't conducted an annual suicide prevention drill in three years.

That investigation also revealed that "the Navy, writ large, has failed to fully implement the suicide prevention program" as defined by its own rules.

Related: Navy Survey Shows Continued Problems with Stress, Burnout Among Sailors, But Progress on Culture^[12]