The search for unidentified flying objects took a new turn in recent weeks as mysterious drones were spotted flying over cities and military bases in the United States and Europe. The U.S. Department of Defense has responded to concerns from citizens and lawmakers, aiming to assure the public that the drones are not the work of a foreign adversary.

Since mid-November, New Jersey has experienced a series of mysterious drone sightings, with reports indicating up to 180 drones observed in a single night. These drones, described as larger and louder than typical hobbyist models, have been spotted over military installations, power lines, and suburban areas across multiple counties, including Morris, Hunterdon, and Ocean.

Governor Phil Murphy has acknowledged the sophistication of these drones, noting that “the minute you get your eyes on them, they go dark.” Despite the concerns, he assured the public that there is no known threat to safety.

The drone sightings come at a time when the dialogue around UFOs is at an all-time high, with U.S. officials having multiple hearings around unidentified anomalous phenomena.

“At this time, we have no evidence that these activities are coming from a foreign entity or the work of an adversary,” Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters on Wednesday. “We're going to continue to monitor what is happening. But you know, at no point were our installations threatened when this activity was occurring.”

Singh’s comments come after U.S. Representative Jeff Van Drew, a member of the House Judiciary and Transportation Committee, suggested on Wednesday that the drones may be launching from a mothership in the Atlantic Ocean, allegedly sent to the region by Iran.

“Iran launched a mothership probably about a month ago that contains these drones,” Drew told Fox News, citing very high, very qualified, and very responsible sources. “It's off the east coast of the United States of America.”

“Whether it was some crazy hobbyist that we can't imagine, or whether it is Iran, and I think it very possibly could be. They should be shot down,” Representative Drew added. “We are not getting the full deal, and the military is on alert with this.”

Although Representative Drew maintains his claims about the drones' origins, Singh and U.S. military officials have unequivocally dismissed the notion of a supposed mothership.

“There is not any truth to that,” Singh said emphatically. “There is no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States, and there's no so-called mothership launching drones towards the United States.”

Earlier this month, the Florham Park Police Department in Morris County, New Jersey, acknowledged the sighting in a Facebook post. In the post, the FPPD said they are working with State and Federal officials to locate the drones' origins.

UFO experts like Mitch Horowitz, author and host of the HBO Max series "Alien Encounters: Fact or Fiction," are also skeptical of Iranian "mothership" claims or other exotic military technology, saying the most intellectually serious observers are "completely befuddled" about the nature of these phenomena.

“It's so highly speculative. I think we're using the term drones because it's reassuring to employ a familiar term; it stands to reason that if we put a familiar name on bizarre phenomena, it's reassuring in a certain way,” Horowitz told Decrypt. “I haven't met anybody of any quality of intellect who professes any degree of confidence in what is going on.”

Horowitz also pushed back on the notion that the drones could be Iranian. He did, however, say that this was the first time he had seen this level of sighting of unidentified aerial phenomena, or UAPs, equating it to a liminal moment in human history.

“I've never experienced a mass sighting of this type in the news where every responsible person is bereft of explanation,” he said. “The only people who seem confident are the people who seem to have the most extremist ideas, whether it's an ultra-skeptic who embraces a knee-jerk denial, or whether it's somebody who looks upon UFOs with almost some kind of religiosity, but certainty seems to exist only on the most extreme fringes.”

The drone sightings do appear to align with key military sites, including Picatinny Arsenal in Morris County, which is a major research facility, and Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst near Ocean County, a key defense hub.

Despite the growing concern around UAPs in American airspace, the U.S. Northern Command, which is tasked with monitoring the area, said it has not received any request to take action against the drones flying over New Jersey but is aware of and monitoring the reports of unauthorized drone flights.

“U.S. Northern Command conducted a deliberate analysis of the events in consultation with other military organizations and interagency partners, and at this time, we have not been requested to assist with these events,” a U.S. Northern Command spokesperson told Decrypt.

The Command further noted that reports put the drones in the vicinity of military installations in New Jersey, including Picatinny Arsenal and Naval Weapons Station Earle.

Even though it has not received an order to act, the spokesperson said US Northern Command is ready to respond should the situation warrant it.

“USNORTHCOM, in conjunction with our interagency partners, will continue to assess further information and is prepared to respond when asked or should the situation escalate to threaten any DoD installations,” the spokesperson said.

Edited by Andrew Hayward