Introduction
In recent years, very few Australian professionals have expressed views on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP.) This article takes a look at three individuals, who have publicly commented about the subject.
Adam Dodd - Queensland academic
In March 2018, Dr. Adam Dodd, an academic tutor in Communication and Writing, in the School of Communication & Arts, the University of Queensland, authored a paper titled "Strategic Ignorance and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence: Critiquing the Discursive Segregation of UFOs from Scientific Inquiry" in the Journal "Astropolitics."
The abstract of the paper read:
"Since the late 1940's, a tenacious disconnect between popular interest and professional disinterest in unidentified flying objects (UFOs) has typified the controversy surrounding the subject. Numerous high-profile scientists have seen the topic of UFOs as an opportunity to denounce and rectify a popular, yet allegedly misguided conviction - that some UFOs are physical anomalies indicating the existence of extraterrestrial intelligence - and thus to advance the explanatory authority of science.
Rather than constituting rigorous, informed, and effective assessments, however, the ways in which many prominent scientists publicly address the UFO question often exemplify both the problematic "boundary-work" of scientific discourse in this area, and more specifically, the role that logical fallacy can play in the rhetorical construction of scientific authority in public domains.
Through a critical discourse analysis, this article argues that ignorance of UFO phenomena is socially and discursively constructed in ways that are conducive to the public faces of individuals and institutions. More broadly, it suggests that the rudimentary standard of science communication attending to the extraterritorial intelligence (ETI) hypothesis for UFOs, inhibits public understanding of science, dissuades academic inquiry within the physical and social sciences, and undermines progressive space policy initiatives."
Jonti Horner - Queensland astrobiologist
In an article, dated 1 July 2021, author Malcolm Sutton of ABC Radio Adelaide, reported on the UAP views of a Queensland astronomer, Jonti Horner. Professor Horner, is an Australian astronomer and astrobiologist, at the University of Southern Queensland's Centre for Astrophysics.
In the article, Professor Horner was commenting on the release and contents of the June 2021 UAP report from the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence, especially declassified videos and sightings.
He commented:
"As soon as you take these out of the top-secret locker and make them public, you suddenly open them up to scrutiny of a much wider variety of people with very different expertise."
Horner went on to say that in this way you can find explanations for some of the cases, and perhaps find novel explanations; citing the research on atmospheric "elves" and "sprites," previously doubted to exist.
"So, I think a release like this is a really positive thing, because it encourages people to voice the things, they see without feeling embarrassed about it."
"I think it's really good fun, because almost all of them - if not all of them - will end up having an explanation and we'll figure it out...But the beauty will be the ones you can't explain, because they're sometimes a window into new physics and new science."
However, Horner stated that it was highly unlikely that any of the ODNI cases were due to ET, although he would not rule that out entirely.
Dr. Malcolm Davis - analyst on Defence matters
Dr. Malcolm Davis is a Senior Analyst at an independent "think tank," the Australian Strategic Policy Institute with a focus on Defence Strategy and Capability issues, including Space Policy and Space Security, based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia. I found three occasions on which Dr. Davis has commented on UAP.
In late 2021, the Australian TV channel; Channel 9's "Under Investigation" program featured an hour-long episode focusing on UAP. Dr. Davis appeared on that show. In an article written by Lauren McWilliams on the show's website, Dr. Davis explained to the panel, that in his opinion, the mystery objects they had been discussing were most likely advanced military aircraft:
"...created by a hostile foreign power...It could be some sort of breakthrough that we don't know about in terms of maneuverability and aerodynamics," he said.
"They want to gather intelligence on US military activity, so they're testing these things out."
On 4 January 2022, on an episode of US "The Space Show," the topic of UAP came up and Dr. Davis who was talking of other matters, was asked for his views on UAP. After mentioning that he was on a recent Australian TV show about UAP, he said he thought there were two possibilities for explanations for UAP. They could be foreign controlled drones, or they could be a US Black project. He favoured the first explanation.
He went on to say that he did not think there was a need to look at an extraterrestrial hypothesis. He had seen no convincing evidence for the ETH. On the possibility they were foreign controlled drones he favoured the source being China rather than Russia. He did note that the performance of these objects was way above what normal aircraft are capable of. He was asked if he had heard of Ross Coulthart's book on UAP, and replied that he had not.
Recently, via Twitter, Dr. Davis has been making some interesting observations on the recent U. S. Congressional hearing on UAP; and on UAP in general. Naturally, although working for an independent think tank organisation, his views are solely his personal thoughts. Nevertheless, as it is extremely rare for an Australian "think tank expert", let alone one with a focus on Defence issues, to speak out on this topic I thought it worthwhile to point out to readers just what his views are.
The initial tweet
In a tweet on 27 July 2023, Dr Davis wrote:
"Watching the #uaphearing - it's fascinating material. But I can't work out why these objects - if they are not from Earth - would fly across interstellar space and clearly display technology well beyond human capabilities - only to crash?
Thats why my thinking is that these are terrestrial in origin - probably foreign controlled. Thats concerning in of itself."
As at the time of my writing these words, there were 133 comments in response to the tweet, including one from Australian investigative journalist, Ross Coulthart. Ross wrote:
"As a well respected senior Defence analyst @Dr_M-Davis do you have a view on @Defence Aust Australia's DOD's reluctance to engage on #UAPs, after hearing Ryan Graves @uncertainvector & David Fravor's view about the flight safety and national security concerns?"
On 28 July 2023, in response to Ross' question, Dr. Davis responded with:
"I'd say be patient. Look how long it's taken the Americans to get their act together and they are just getting started."
The second tweet
Back on 27 July 2023, in another Tweet, Dr. Davis wrote:
"Lots of interesting responses to my initial tweet. Let me state my perspective clearly.
(1) I don't know what the truth is, but two possibilities - either they originate here on Earth, or they are from elsewhere - are clear. Whichever it turns out to be, there clearly needs to be a much deeper investigation to this issue, and if there is any attempt to suppress the truth by government - that needs to be challenged.
(2) If they are extraterrestrial in origin, then that represents the single most important discovery in human history. Its virtually 'first contact' and humanity would be profoundly affected. We can't ignore the possibility that some of the #UAP cases cannot be explained. Today's hearings by highly credible witnesses reinforced the case for a serious investigation and make it important to challenge the stigma associated with this issue.
(3) If they are terrestrial in origin - and evidence suggested by events such as Tic Tac, and so on, suggest technologies way beyond current human levels, then that too is very significant, because we then have to consider how that technology emerged - and who has access to such advanced technology. If it is controlled by US adversaries, then that's a real worry. If it's a US Black Project, that's interesting, in itself.
(4) More broadly, I don't for one second believe that humanity is the only intelligent civilisation. The universe is vast and incredibly old, and life is likely prolific, and can evolve. Fermi Paradox aside, there is more than enough time for other intelligent civilisations to have emerged, perhaps far more advanced than us, nor do I think that we somehow have the sum total understanding on physics and maybe there is a way around constraints of the speed of light. Simply put - we don't know what's out there. We've only been looking for a very short period, with relatively crude technologies and our radio emissions have only been extending across a tiny portion of our galaxy. So, it is possible that we are being visited - yes. But the galaxy is huge, and interstellar civilisations might be limited in number, and spread across vast distances, so getting from there to here may be challenging - especially if Einstein is correct.
(5) Above all we need proof. If we apply scientific method, then a hypothesis for UAPs being extraterrestrial must be supported by evidence and tested rigorously through peer review. We're just starting to get to that process now - I'd argue that today's #uaphearings are the beginning. The hypothesis may not prove correct in the end, but it must be tested.
(6) And it's really vital to embrace skepticism and avoid confirmation bias. I can quite understand how many out there, and here on #ufotwitter 'want it to be aliens' - but that's yet to be proven, and indulging in conspiracy theory thinking is the worst thing we could do at this point. If it's aliens - as I said, it's the most momentous day in human history. If it's not, then we need to work out what it is - it clearly is 'something.'"
