Mysterious lights in the sky: drones or just airplanes?

Mysterious lights in the sky: drones or just airplanes?

Skies over the US East Coast are arousing interest: For days, reports have been circulating about mysterious drones that are causing turmoil in the airspace over the Atlantic and especially over New Jersey. A combination of social media and unconfirmed sightings has led to spectacular speculation. The U.S. government and FBI are now trying to calm the nervous population, stressing that many of these supposed drone sightings are likely actually manned aircraft that have been misidentified, like this Portal crown reported.

So far, around 5,000 tips have been received, which is further inflaming the situation. But the authorities remain calm: only around 100 of these reports were classified as relevant. A senior Department of Homeland Security official said the majority of sightings come from the ground and are rarely reported by aircraft. Most of the clues also appear to have appeared near major airports. This phenomenon began back in November when an unmanned aerial vehicle was spotted near a military facility, sparking a wave of reports, according to this Mercury.

Mysterious theories and public concern

The sightings have led to a flourishing speculation business on the Internet, where hypotheses about espionage activities, secret military exercises and even possible extraterrestrial visitations are circulating. Even future US President Donald Trump spoke out on the issue and called for more transparency from the government. "Inform the public - immediately. Otherwise they will shoot you," he said worriedly. As the debate continues, it remains unclear what is really behind the lights in the sky and whether or not initial concerns about drones will evaporate.