F1. Videos released by the Pentagon depicting UFOs
Some mysterious things began occurring in the spring and summer of 2020, but were quickly overshadowed by the pandemic happening. On April 27th, the U.S. Pentagon released three videos of “unexplained aerial phenomena.” The videos were taken in 2004 and 2015. The video from 2004 was taken by two Navy fighter pilots who were dispatched to investigate an unidentified aircraft in the Pacific Ocean. The aircraft can be seen to be 40 feet long hovering above the water before spotting the pilots and quickly flying away. One of the pilots, Commander David Fravor said “It accelerated like nothing I’ve ever seen,” of the aircraft. The videos from 2015 depict objects moving at immense speeds as well as rotating in mid air. The release of these videos by the Pentagon indicates the credibility of the videos. In the statement released along with the videos, the Pentagon explains that it chose to release the videos to clear up any confusion as to if the videos were real. The videos were previously leaked in 2017 by an independent company. To me, the Pentagon releasing the videos raises more questions than it answers. Why does the Pentagon care if there was confusion about these videos when they do not care about the confusion as to what Area 51 holds? Why are they releasing them now? What does the Pentagon gain from releasing them? As of August 13th, the Pentagon decided to form a task force to investigate unidentified aircrafts that have been observed by U.S. military with Deputy Secretary of Defense David Norquist overseeing the project. With the pandemic in full effect, the release of footage did not make headlines as it normally would.
F2. Depiction of the Asian Giant Hornet compared to the common bumblebee
Other crazy things happened during 2020 including the rise of murder hornets. Murder hornets are actually called Asian Giant Hornets. They were spotted for the first time in late 2019. The Asian Giant Hornets are the world’s largest species of hornets as they can grow to be 2 inches in length. The hornets earned the name murder hornets as they seek out other beehives and decapitate all the bees there. They then claim the hive as there own and use the food stored there to fee their young and their queen. Once the food runs out, they have to find another beehive to invade. They are very detrimental to not only the already dwindling bee population but also agriculture as bees help to pollinate crops. Unlike most bees, murder hornets have incredibly long stingers which carry more toxin. Being stung by murder hornets is rare, but is still possible as they are very territorial and capable of multiple stings. Multiple stings from a murder hornet can kill even nonallergic people. The murder hornets became prominent during July of 2020 as they entered their “slaughter phase” where they attack as many hives as possible to be able to collect enough food for winter. It is unknown how they got to the U.S. but Washington state officials are setting up traps as well as launching an app to report sightings. Like the UFO videos, the news of the murder hornets feels like it was swept under the rug as the pandemic occupied everyone’s attention. Other unusual things happened in 2020, but most are forgettable in comparison to the coronavirus pandemic.
These are two important pieces of news, however I wonder how much kairos effects their popularity. Would everyone really be that interested in a species of wasp if we weren’t stuck in our houses with nothing to do or experience? Or was it like the Tiger King show which was the definition of right place at the right time? I wish there was more of a followup on the UFO sighting that seems like such an important development in our history as humans and there was no further elaboration on the topic.
It is insane to me how the Pentagon practically confirmed some sort of extraterrestrial life and people just did not seem to care. We now live in a world where the possibility of aliens is not even that important due to everything else going on. The murder hornets were and still are very bad but they seemed to come and go so quickly. One day they were all over the internet with everyone practically terrified and the next it was as if they never even existed. They seemed like a weird collective dream as they just really never seemed real.
That’s crazy, I’m going to be honest and say I didn’t even know the UFO sitings happened, let alone were confirmed. This year just keeps getting weirder and weirder. I haven’t heard anything else about the murder hornets since it blew up a few months ago. I’m sure they are still invading bee hives and threatening ecosystems, I hope they will take a greater spotlight in the future and be dealt with.