Ex-NASA astronaut spots ‘two metallic spherical’ UFOs at 9,000ft

Former NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao has shared a mysterious and unsettling encounter involving “metallic orbs” during a flight in his light aircraft.

Chiao, who has served on multiple space missions and was the 311th human to fly in space, described the incident in an interview with NewsNation. He recounted that “two spherical metallic orbs”, approximately three feet in diameter, flew past his plane at an altitude of around 9,000 feet.

Chiao, a seasoned pilot, was flying back to Houston, Texas, in August when the incident occurred. “It’s just kinda dumb luck that they didn’t hit me. It could’ve been a bad result if they had actually hit me. It happened so quick, there wasn’t even a chance to get scared,” he recounted. The objects passed within 20 feet of his aircraft, leaving him stunned.

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“It wasn’t on radar, air traffic control certainly didn’t alert me,” he explained. “[And] it wasn’t on my display that shows other aeroplanes that are participating with the [Federal Aviation Administration] FAA-required transponders. I don’t know what it was.”

“My first guess is that it’s some kind of military program, a drone of some kind, but you know it’s hard to say, right?” he told NewsNation. “Frankly, I think whoever was operating the drone wasn’t aware that I was there.”

NASA has a theory for the reported UFO sightings

NASA, which investigates unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs), has noted that many such sightings can often be attributed to natural or man-made objects.

Dave Prosper of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific explained that planets such as Venus, Sirius, and Jupiter are frequently mistaken for UFOs, especially when they appear near the horizon.

“Venus is one of the most confused objects in the sky, especially when it is low to the horizon. Sirius and Jupiter are also often reported as UFOs, as well as Mercury. When bright planets are in alignment near the horizon they can appear to be a formation of ‘strange lights’,” he explained.

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“Other 'UFOs' can be rocket launches, comets, military jets, weather balloons, satellites, meteors, experimental craft, or even lens flare,” he added.