Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 8:53 a.m. No.22210870   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>0881

https://www.yahoo.com/news/nuclear-power-plants-report-massive-213908778.html

https://newjersey.news12.com/drones-spotted-flying-near-nuclear-power-plants-in-salem-county

 

Nuclear Power Plants Report Massive Uptick In Drone Sightings

Sat, December 21, 2024 at 1:39 PM PST

 

The number of drone flyovers of nuclear plants for the entire year nearly doubled in one week, from December 10th to December 17th, according to data provided to The War Zone by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC).

Between Jan. 1 and Dec.10, nuclear facility licensees reported a total of 15 drone events. As of about 1 p.m. Dec., 17, that number had jumped to 26, NRC spokesman Dave McIntyre told The War Zone on Friday in response to our query.

While the timeline overlaps with a rash of drone sightings across the country and especially in the New Jersey area – including over military installations and energy infrastructure – it is unclear at the moment what, if any, connection there is to the dramatic increase in suspicious drone events over nuclear facilities.

 

“…before January 2024, nuclear power plant licensees voluntarily reported flyovers by uncrewed aerial systems, such as drones, to the Federal Aviation Administration; law enforcement (local and the FBI); and the NRC,” McIntyre told The War Zone.

“Because reporting was voluntary, our information may not reflect the total number of UAS overflights of nuclear power plants.”

Once a flyover is reported, he added, “the NRC provides the specifics to other agencies for follow-up, including the FBI. The NRC does not investigate this type of activity once it has been reported.”

We reached out to the NRC, FBI, FAA and Department of Homeland Security for more context about these flyovers. We will update this story with any pertinent information provided.

 

The most recent publicly known drone sightings were over the Public Service Energy & Gas (PSEG) Nuclear Salem and Hope Creek generating stations, located at Lower Alloways Creek Township, in Salem County, New Jersey.

“Yes, drones were seen in the vicinity of Salem and Hope Creek (they’re the same site) last weekend,” NRC spokesperson Diane Screnci told us on Dec. 20.

She did not provide a specific date, but a PSE&G spokesperson issued a statement saying that a flyover occurred on Dec 14.

 

The Hope Creek generation station, which produces nearly half of the state’s energy, was one of 22 facilities to have its airspace banned to drones by the Federal Aviation Administration on Dec. 18.

You can see the full list of sites where the FAA issued temporary flight restrictions (TFR) in our story about that here.

 

“While DHS and our federal partners continue to see no evidence of a threat, the purpose of the TFR is to discourage drone flights around these areas, as requested by the critical infrastructure partners,” DHS said in a statement on Dec. 19.

“DHS and other security partners routinely request the FAA establish TFRs to restrict drone flights in areas where the drones could be unsafe or pose a security risk.”

 

The restrictions affect drones operating below 400 feet and last until Jan. 17. There is always the possibility that the timeline could be extended or additional communities have their airspace similarly closed.

On Friday, the FAA issued 68 more TFRs across New York state. As with the New Jersey TFRs, these banned drone flights over energy infrastructure.

 

“At the request of federal security partners, the FAA published 30 Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFRs) prohibiting drone flights over critical New York infrastructure,” the FAA told us after the first 30 were issued. Another 38 were ordered later on Friday.

“On the NY TRFs, would refer you back to our statement and background we provided on the NJ TFRs,” DHS told us on Friday.

“We continue to assess there is no public safety threat relating to the reported drone sightings, and like in NJ, the FAA issued temporary flight restrictions over some critical infrastructure facilities in NY out of an abundance of caution.”

 

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Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 8:55 a.m. No.22210881   🗄️.is 🔗kun

>>22210870

Drone flights over nuclear facilities have been increasing over the years, nearly doubling from the 12 reported in 2019 to 23 reported last year, according to the data provided to us by the NRC.

In September 2019, America’s most powerful nuclear plant, the Palo Verde Nuclear Generation Station near Tonopah, Arizona experienced a rash of drone overflights.

 

In a trove of documents and internal correspondences related to the event, NRC officials described the incident as a “drone-a-palooza” and said that it highlighted concerns about the potential for a future “adversarial attack” involving small unmanned aircraft and the need for defenses against them.

You can read more about this from our exclusive story at the time here.

The drastic increase in drones reported to be flying over nuclear power plants comes amid a growing frenzy over mysterious objects in the sky that came after we broke the story about incursions over Picatinny Arsenal in northern New Jersey.

 

The FBI has stated that out of some 5,000 sighting reports, fewer than 100 merited further investigation.

Still, the hysteria over drones has grown to the point where the FBI and New Jersey State Police had to plead with the public not to shoot lasers or bullets into the sky at any object flying overhead.

The warning was not hypothetical. Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst officials told The War Zone that pilots of 15 fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst had reported being struck by lasers from the ground since Dec. 7.

One of those pilots had to seek medical treatment but was quickly released, but all aircraft involved landed safely.

 

All this comes as drone incursions are being reported over military bases at home and abroad.

 

Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in southern California confirmed to The War Zone on Tuesday that it had experienced multiple such incidents over its airspace in the past several days.

It joins a growing list of military installations in the United States experiencing recent drone incursions, that also includes Hill Air Force Base in Utah, which reported drone incursions on Monday.

Drones have also flown over Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio forcing the closure of its airspace, which we were the first to report and they intruded on Naval Weapon Station Earle’s airspace and several unknown aircraft recently followed a Coast Guard vessel.

 

Last month, drones also appeared over four U.S. Air Force bases in the U.K., another story we first broke, and more recently also over Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

 

Drone incursions over key U.S. bases and training ranges are nothing new, and The War Zone has been on the leading edge of covering this topic for years.

TWZ broke the story of the major drone incursions over Langley AFB a year ago, which marked a major change in how the DoD was approaching this neglected threat.

Other such incursions involving UAS have taken place off the U.S. coasts and, as well as military bases, key civilian infrastructure has also been visited by mysterious drones.

 

As we have reported on repeatedly, including the aforementioned Palo Verde incident, drones pose a danger to energy infrastructure and nefarious and bizarre drone activity at such sites has been an ongoing issue.

What appeared to be the first actual drone attack on a power facility in the U.S. happened in 2020, which raised red flags in the intelligence community. The large recent increase in drone flyovers is deeply concerning for several reasons.

 

As we have reported on repeatedly, including the aforementioned Palo Verde incident, drones pose a danger to energy infrastructure and nefarious and bizarre drone activity at such sites has been an ongoing issue.

What appeared to be the first actual drone attack on a power facility in the U.S. happened in 2020, which raised red flags in the intelligence community. The large recent increase in drone flyovers is deeply concerning for several reasons.

Even small drones can deliver payloads able to cause damage and flying over these sites can provide insights into security protocols and responses, as well as network vulnerabilities and more.

 

While we don’t know for sure that there is any connection between the recent spike in nuclear site flyovers and the ongoing drone frenzy, there is certainly more attention being put on what is going on in the skies over these plants due to a the massive news story unfolding in New Jersey.

But it clearly still merits further examination.

 

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Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 9:01 a.m. No.22210919   🗄️.is 🔗kun

Coast Guardsman lashes out as White House brushes off claims vessel was trailed by 12 to 30 drones during patrol

Updated: 04:29 EST, 22 December 2024

 

The US Coast Guard has been left enraged after members of the White House implied the sailors were 'making up s*** up' about being followed by drones.

Several guards stationed in Barnegat Light had revealed that one of their 47-foot vessels was trailed closely by a fleet of 12 to 30 drones as they patrolled around the Atlantic Ocean earlier this month.

 

A spokesperson from the law enforcement service branch later confirmed to Fox Digital that 'multiple low-altitude aircraft were observed in [the] vicinity of one of the military branch's vessels near Island Beach State Park, New Jersey' .

'While no immediate threats or disruptions to operations were identified, the Coast Guard is assisting the FBI and state agencies to understand the type, origin, and intent of these aircraft and address potential risks to safety and security

 

'We take any and all aircraft activity near federal assets seriously and urge the public to report any suspicious activity to local authorities,' they told the outlet.

But instead of providing support, the White House brushed off their concern and suggested that the drones may be flown by hobbyists, could be planes or just be brightly lit stars.

 

However, the implication that the drones are not of any worry has left sailors furious.

'It's the implication that's insulting. It's implying we're making s up, when the ones making up s are down in Washington, DC,' a Coast Guard member who claims to be one of the 12 crewmembers on the boat that night told the New York Post.

 

He further explained: 'We were actually out there to see if we could spot any drones, because of all these sightings. Well, we found some drones. Or more accurately, they found us.

'The drones appeared out of nowhere' at about 9 p.m., and followed the boat for approximately 15 minutes. When the vessel shifted course, so too did the drones.

 

'I'm terrible with measurements, but [the swarm] was about 80 to 100 feet above us.

They had four propellers. Seven feet across. The flashing lights, like you've seen. The festive green, red, and white lights.'

Furthermore, the alleged witness claims that the swarm was moving at a speed of 'around 20 knots, which is just over 20 miles an hour'.

 

'Commercial airplanes don’t move like that. I’ve been out there [on the water] when planes were coming in for landings in New York, and trust me, you can tell the difference.

We’re not idiots, we know what drones look and sound like.' The sailor's comments come after White House national security spokesman John Kirby spoke to reporters and shared his theories on the drone sightings.

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14218409/Coast-Guard-angry-White-House-drones-followed.html

Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 9:10 a.m. No.22210973   🗄️.is 🔗kun

Malaysia to resume the hunt for the remains of missing Flight MH370

December 20, 2024

 

Malaysia Airlines flight MH370's disappearance in 2014 remains one of the most startling aviation tragedies in modern history.

Ten years after the incident, families remain without closure, as neither survivors nor wreckage have been found.

Between 2014 and 2018, hundreds of millions of dollars were spent scouring 274 square miles (710 square kilometers) of the Indian Ocean, but the search ended without success.

 

Now, Malaysia is set to approve another 'no find, no fee' mission to continue searching for flight MH370, said Transport Minister Anthony Loke.

Cabinet ministers approved Ocean Infinity, a Texas marine robotics firm, to resume seabed searches in a 5,800-square-mile (15,000-square-kilometer) zone, Loke said.

Ocean Infinity’s compensation is tied to results, with US$70 million payable for confirmed substantial wreckage, Loke clarified.

 

A total of 227 passengers and 12 crew were on board the Boeing 777 that disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8, 2014.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-my/news/other/malaysia-to-resume-the-hunt-for-the-remains-of-missing-flight-mh370/ss-BB1jxRTj

Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 9:47 a.m. No.22211134   🗄️.is 🔗kun

Daffy Duck's 'full moon' and Porky Pig fend off alien invasion in 'The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie' (trailer)

December 22, 2024

 

Aiming for a worldwide release on Feb. 28, 2025, "The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie" has had a circuitous and oft-delayed path to the big screen after being abandoned by incoming Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav as a direct-to-streaming feature, before eventually getting a theatrical presentation courtesy of the most unlikely indie distribution partner.

Now check out the first hilarious trailer which arrived as the movie headed for an Oscar-qualifying engagement on Dec. 13, ahead of its global unwrapping next year.

 

This hand-drawn feature represents the first fully-animated movie in Looney Tunes' long 80-year history and it originally debuted at France's Annecy International Animation Film Festival this past June.

But it was a seriously bumpy ride for the imaginative sci-fi project that began in 2021 as an animated film for Warner Bros.' Max streaming service directed by Peter Browngardt.

"At least three, four times during the production I was waiting for that phone call [to shut down the movie," Browngardt told THR. "It was a rocky journey."

 

A stampede of no less than 15 screenwriters and story consultants have their names on the far-out cartoon tale, which focuses on Porky Pig and Daffy Duck stumbling onto a diabolical alien plot to conquer the Earth using wads of mind-control bubblegum and their attempts to rescue our planet from these candy-crazed extraterrestrials.

When Warner Bros. completed their merger with Discovery in 2022, "The Day The Earth Blew Up" was on the budgetary chopping block targeted for tax write-downs just like "Batgirl" and "Coyote vs Acme."

 

Following its successful screening at Annecy, the indie distributor Ketchup Entertainment stepped up and grabbed domestic distribution honors. Its talented vocal cast includes Eric Bauza, Candi Milo, Peter MacNicol, Wayne Knight, Fred Tatasciore, and Laraine Newman.

"'The Day the Earth Blew Up' is a historical moment for the Looney Tunes franchise, and we are proud to be partnering with Warner Bros. Animation to bring this film to audiences theatrically.

 

We cannot wait for audiences of all ages to experience one of the smartest animated films in recent years," Gareth West, CEO of Ketchup Entertainment, told Deadline.

Nick Cross acts as the animated feature's Art Director with Aaron Spurgeon as Production Designer. Warner Bros. Animation's Sam Register and Pete Browngardt serve as Executive Producers.

 

"The Day The Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie" lands on Feb. 28, 2025.

 

https://www.space.com/entertainment/daffy-ducks-full-moon-and-porky-pig-fend-off-alien-invasion-in-the-day-the-earth-blew-up-a-looney-tunes-movie-trailer

Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 9:56 a.m. No.22211195   🗄️.is 🔗kun

Multiple drones fall from sky during downtown Orlando's Holiday Drone Show

Updated: 10:26 AM EST Dec 22, 2024

 

Multiple drones unexpectedly fell from the sky during downtown Orlando's drone show at Lake Eola on Saturday.

The Holiday Drone Show features a display of synchronized drones flying in formation to create holiday-themed designs in the night sky.

Initially, there were supposed to be two performances, one at 6:30 p.m. and another at 8 p.m., but the second show was canceled.

 

Just before 8 p.m., city officials announced the cancellation in an Instagram post.

"We apologize for any inconvenience," officials stated on Instagram.

Videos circulating across social media show multiple drones falling from the sky mid-performance.

 

It is still unclear what caused the drones to fall. The Orlando Fire Department said one person was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

However, it's unclear if the injuries are directly related to the fallen drones. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident.

 

https://www.wesh.com/article/downtown-orlando-drone-show-canceled/63256268

https://x.com/MosquitoCoFL/status/1870646253358350638

Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 10:17 a.m. No.22211300   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>1308

https://thedebrief.org/academics-investors-and-uap-seekers-unite-at-the-2024-sol-foundation-symposium/

https://thesolfoundation.org/event/sols-2024-symposium/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytCN0KI5TzY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4t8UgcjKfM

 

Academics, Investors, and UAP Seekers Unite at the 2024 Sol Foundation Symposium

December 20, 2024

 

From the tip of Pier 2 at Fort Mason Center in San Francisco, California, Alcatraz Island looms off in the distance toward the west.

From the same location, the iconic Golden Gate Bridge can be seen with little more than a glance to the East, and one could easily feel that amid such imagery, a UAP sighting–or perhaps even an unidentified submerged object (USO) appearing from out of the coastal California waters–could happen at almost any moment.

 

Unfortunately, that coveted experience of observing unusual aerial or “transmedium” phenomena didn’t happen for conferencegoers attending the 2024 Sol Foundation Symposium the weekend of November 22-23, 2024.

Approaching the entrance, a sign reading “SOL” appeared high above, and entering through the glass doors revealed a vast space with white walls and high ceilings.

An aura of sophistication and futuristic technology washed over the attendees as we entered: the intersection between exploration of the unknown and the professional world of academia, a new frontier for higher learning, and sharing ideas about UAP and edge science.

 

Entering the theater, the Sol Foundation logo appeared projected onto a screen above two royal blue lounge chairs on the stage, signaling the conversational nature of the presentations to follow.

Meanwhile, guests comfortably sank into the venue’s theatre-style seating, eager to learn and explore–both inwardly and outwardly.

 

The Sol Foundation was launched in 2023 by sociocultural anthropologist Peter Skafish, its current executive director, Stanford Professor, and inventor Garry Nolan, Sol’s executive director of the board, and Jonathan Berte, founder and chief visionary officer of Robovision and also a member of the Sol Board of Directors.

Dedicated to pioneering research into unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP), the Sol Foundation explores the potentially profound implications the subject may have on fields ranging from science and culture to global politics.

As governments increasingly recognize UAP, the foundation has worked to assemble a diverse team of experts from various fields, including the natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, engineering, and technology, to conduct rigorous research and guide future UAP studies.

 

This year’s symposium began with an opening by host Maura Mindrila, Director of Strategy at the Sol Foundation, who invited co-founders Peter Skafish and Garry Nolan on stage to share a few words at the event’s commencement, kicking off two days of learning and seeking, as well as connecting and sharing.

Academics and leaders from various industries worldwide specializing in public education, research, policy, science, and technology gathered to share their findings and ideas.

Each event day featured sessions on themes including “Understanding the Enigma: The Role of Philosophical Investigation” and “Toward a Science of UAP.”

At the same time, presentations with forward-looking titles like “At the Threshold of a New Future?” focused on UAP-related technology and investments.

 

“Our event last year surprised people because we struck an elevated and sober tone while remaining true to the issues,” Skafish told The Debrief in an email.

“This year, we looked at some of the conditions surrounding the UAP advocacy—a divisive election season and the likely failure of the UAP Disclosure Act—and we decided that we’d need to hold another symposium to assemble stakeholders and representatives from other organizations to help renew their momentum.”

 

“Given the overwhelmingly positive feedback we received about the event, I sense that we helped people find some focus and inspiration to continue their work.”

Speakers at this year’s event included Colonel Karl E. Nell, a retired senior military officer and corporate strategist, theoretical and applied physicist Dr. Eric Davis, Dr. Stephen Finley, Chair of African and African American Studies at Louisiana State University, and Rear Admiral (ret.) Dr. Tim Gallaudet, former administrator of the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration, among others.

 

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Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 10:19 a.m. No.22211308   🗄️.is 🔗kun   >>1311

>>22211300

During the event’s first session, “The Challenges with to Government and UAP,” led by investigative journalist Leslie Kean and featuring former fighter pilot Ryan Graves, who discussed advancements in machine learning through his work as the co-founder of Americans for Safe Aerospace.

Graves said he has been working with others to “develop certain advanced artificial intelligence algorithms that we’re able to incorporate into what we call event-driven cameras.”

 

“This technology allows us to put together a very sophisticated detection and tracking system that is very applicable for the detection of high-speed moving objects, especially in space,” Graves said.

We won’t have a full operational capability in June of 26 but will be flight testing in space the full system.”

 

Shifting to political developments, Graves reflected on his testimony before Congress alongside UAP whistleblower David Grusch and retired naval pilot Commander David Fravor last summer.

Asked by Kean whether his testimony led to more UAP reports, Graves said “absolutely,” adding that he has seen “an increase as the stigma has been reduced.”

Graves also noted that UAP cases filed through NASA’s Aviation Safety Reporting System, which allows pilots and others to report potential aviation-related hazards anonymously, have also appeared to have risen since then, indicating that some pilots may have begun to feel more comfortable coming forward about their sightings.

 

Graves also recalled his recent experience at a naval aviator conference, noting that “at least three-quarters of the room had seen something.”

Graves estimates that around half of the broader aviation community might have encountered unexplained phenomena.

While many pilots remain hesitant to report what they’ve seen, significant headway toward eliminating stigmas has been made.

 

“The stigma has been reduced,” Graves said. “The education, I think, is what’s lacking at this point to get everyone kind of better read into what to look for and to understand that this is a real issue that they need to take seriously.”

Eric Davis, widely known for the controversial Wilson-Davis Memo, was also speaking at Sol alongside Kirk McConnell, a retired staff member with the Senate Armed Services Committee, the Senate Intelligence Committee, the House Intelligence Committee, and the Select Committee on U.S. National Security and Military/Commercial Concerns with the People’s Republic of China.

 

McConnell highlighted the constitutional tension between Congress’s oversight responsibilities and the President’s asserted plenary authority over national security information.

He described the legislative branch’s critical role in raising armed forces, declaring war, and appropriating taxpayer funds for national security while criticizing the executive branch’s potential withholding of information on significant phenomena as “constitutionally offensive.”

During the session, McConnell also noted that while the President has a constitutional argument for resisting disclosure—citing inherent authority as Commander in Chief—this secrecy could stem from concerns about public panic or a loss of faith in human dominance if revelations about advanced civilizations came to light.

“If the President decides that information is so sensitive that it should not be reported to Congress, the President’s lawyers are convinced that there is a constitutional basis for not sharing it with Congress,” McConnell said.

 

Other lectures centered on research and innovation, complemented by fireside chats featuring Garry Nolan and retired Colonel Karl E.

Nell, who was back for his second round at Sol after being a top keynote speaker at the inaugural symposium in 2023.

Nolan and Nell, in this conversational discussion, explored the intersections of hard and soft sciences.

They deconstructed the UAP/NHI Hilbert Problems and proposed a way forward—a conceptual framework for addressing the unresolved and complex challenges in the study of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAPs) and Non-Human Intelligence (NHI).

 

The conclusion of this year’s symposium took the discussion in a different direction by focusing on funding and investment models for frontier science.

A successful entrepreneur and venture capitalist, Rizwan Virk opened his lecture by breaking down funding investment models and illustrating how entrepreneurs can leverage various funding sources to build an innovative research ecosystem.

“The presentation was a summary of the white paper that I’ve been writing for the Sol Foundation on the same subject, so the white paper will go into more details when it’s released in the next month or so,” Virk said in an email to The Debrief.

 

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Anonymous ID: 1575b2 Dec. 22, 2024, 10:19 a.m. No.22211311   🗄️.is 🔗kun

>>22211308

“I believe private investment has a role to play in both research and UAP-related technology ventures.

There are foundations that fund research in various areas – I think the problem with ‘edge’ science, or ‘frontier tech’ as I called it, is that it requires a combination of scientific and engineering research to figure out what’s going on,” Virk said.

“The stigma surrounding the subject has made it difficult for private investors to know who to invest in and who is legitimate for research,” Virk added.

 

Virk told The Debrief that UAP research has traditionally struggled for many reasons, although one key issue has been sporadic funding.

He says examples include wealthy individuals who will invest in a few projects but withdraw when results fall short.

To address this, a dedicated UAP research foundation could fill the gap by serving two key roles: acting as a clearinghouse that connects research projects with investors and establishing a fund to support scientific studies.

Virk says this structure could attract private investors interested in advancing UAP research without expecting financial returns, similar to how foundations fund university-based scientific innovation.

 

Throughout his presentation, Virk contrasted deep technology with frontier technology in research and development, unpacking each category by risk, product or sales potential, risk factors, and expected payout or market entry timelines.

By outlining these differences, Virk highlighted how frontier tech is more expensive and has a longer exit timeline before products reach the market, resulting in delayed payouts compared to deep tech or “shallow” tech companies like Instagram, Tesla, or SpaceX.

 

However, this doesn’t mean that frontier tech and science should not be considered a valid investor’s strategy.

Of all the funding models presented by Virk, the Innovation Prizes (UPRIZE) Social Innovation Challenge stood out as the most effective strategy for UAP and edge science investors and entrepreneurs to explore.

 

“The award-based funding was one of four pieces of funding that I think will help build an ecosystem,” Virk explained in an email to The Debrief.

“Some of these are more short-term, and some are more long-term. Two of them were about grant funding (UAP Research, UPRIZE, or awards-based funding), while two others, ‘Frontier Tech incubator’ and VC Funds, were about equity investment for profit.

I think the first two are needed more in the short term.”

 

For Virk, the benefit of awards-based funding is that it allows for the establishment of a prize at virtually any time, even if the technology or research won’t be available for many years.

“Those who invest in the fund (i.e., give money for the prize) get it back if the goals aren’t met. Meanwhile, the prize serves as a catalyst for additional funding,” Virk told The Debrief.

“So, as I mentioned, with the Google Lunar X Prize, Google put in $30 million for the prizes, but over $100 million was invested in the companies trying to win the prize.”

 

Virk explains that this approach reduces the funding burden, allowing the prize fund to grow over time. It also helps address skepticism from potential donors who might contribute if they believed UAP research was credible but remain doubtful due to mainstream scientific skepticism.

“2024 was a packed year for us,” Skafish told The Debrief following the conclusion of this year’s symposium.

“Our focus on research, policy, and technology remains the same, but we’ve had to intensify our efforts due to the increased awareness of the reality of the UAP presence in the US government and the general public.”

 

“We’re also about to execute our different research projects, so we’ll be more publicly active after a period of quiet, behind-the-scenes work,” Skafish concluded.

With the conclusion of the 2024 event, the Sol Foundation has cemented itself as the premiere symposium addressing the UAP issue.

The event helps foster an environment that allows the public to learn more about UAP and provides fertile ground for civilian researchers, academics, and investors to exchange ideas safely, all of which are plans that will create fundamental, lasting change for years to come.

 

For Skafish and his colleagues, helping foster this synergy is fundamental to the Sol Foundation’s long-term goals.

While the current pace of the organization’s efforts may seem gradual to some, the Sol Foundation team recognizes its work as a significant acceleration of progress, especially when taken in the broader historical context of UAP studies.

“Sol has a broad mission that cuts across academia, government, civil society, and tech,” Skafish says, “so what others may take for the slow pace of disclosure is for us a rapid historical event that demands that we grow quickly.”

 

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