UFOs above Boise? Six reports since 2023 — see them here. West leads U.S. in ‘sightings’
Idaho is as great a place as any to find a pollution-free zone and spend a night gazing at the stars, looking for meteors and watching the constellations cross the sky.
But every so often, a mysterious flash might streak across the sky, leaving you puzzled. In the past, these were labeled as Unidentified Flying Objects, or UFOs, conjuring images of little green men and flying saucers.
Nowadays, they’re referred to as Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon, or UAPs, following a 2023 report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office.
It doesn’t happen to many of us. Still, the reports are common enough for the United States government to take notice and for organizations like the National UFO Reporting Center and Mutual UFO Network to track “sightings.”
Interestingly, a 2024 study by University of Utah geographers studied approximately 98,000 UAP reports between 2001 and 2020, and found that areas west of the Rocky Mountains tended to report a much higher quantity. The Northeast, with many areas free of light pollution, was the only area east of the Rockies to produce similar numbers.
Most of Central and Southwest Idaho — including Boise and Ada County — is in the highest hot-spot classification level.
“The West has a historical relationship to UAP — Area 51 in Nevada, Roswell in New Mexico, and here in Utah, we have Skinwalker Ranch in the Uinta Basin and military activity in the U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground,” Richard Medina, lead author of the study, said in a news release. “Plus, there’s a robust outdoor community that recreates in public lands year-round. People are out and looking skyward.”
UAP reports in Idaho
Idaho isn’t the most active state for UAP reports, with a 2022 study showing that the Gem State ranked 32nd in the nation since 1974.
But that could just be because of the state’s low population. In the same period, Idaho reported more UAP per 100,000 residents (420) than other states. Neighboring Montana was just behind Idaho in 3rd, with 223 per 100,000 people.
UAP reports in Idaho often come from the west-central mountains, where skies are typically darker and lend to better conditions for spotting bright objects in the sky. But people do report seeing things above Boise, too.
The National UFO Reporting Center tracks UAP reports for every state in the U.S. Here are the six from Boise since the start of 2023. Local residents make these reports. Some attached photos and videos, which can be viewed on NUFORC’s website.
Dark object moving slowly after dusk
Date and time: Feb. 20, 2024 - 7:06 p.m.
Duration: 3-4 minutes
Shape: Changing
Color: Black with no lights
Estimated Speed: 30 mph
Media: Yes
Description: “A dark, slow-moving object, looking longer in a vertical direction. I watched for about a minute, trying to figure out what I was seeing. I went out on the deck, watched, and then tried to take a photo. Using the night mode setting on my cellphone I did capture the object.
The picture quality is not good, but it appears the object had rotated, now looking longer in a horizontal direction. My husband also saw the object. When I first saw it, it was moving parallel to our house, coming from the West. As it got closer to our house, it slowly turned North and gained altitude.”
Strange object with smaller elements hanging below
Date and time: Jan. 16, 2024 - 5:33 p.m.
Duration: 2 minutes
Shape: N/A
Color: Black and gray
Estimated speed: 25mph
Media: Yes
Description: “Object was observed at higher elevation first and slowly moved west to east. Object moved lower in a continuous motion until it was no longer visible behind buildings. There are several videos and photos of the entire sighting. No sound noted. Difficult to describe the shape.”
Vertical, slow-moving, then quickly moved toward the mountains
Date and time: Dec. 31, 2023 - 5:19 p.m.
Duration: 5 minutes
Shape: N/A
Color: Black
Estimated speed: N/A
Media: Yes
Description: “Noticed this tall, black, metallic-looking object in the air. It looked like it was just floating along and almost not moving at all at one point. Then, I could tell it was moving northeast. We lost sight of it behind clouds or over the mountains, or it just disappeared altogether.”
Two red star-sized traveling from lightning-filled storm cell
Date and time: Sept. 7, 2023 - 9:30 p.m.
Duration: 5 seconds
Shape: Star
Color: Red
Estimated speed: N/A
Media: No
Description: “Went outside to watch a lightning storm go by. I saw a red star-shaped object travel out of a lightning-filled storm cell into clear skies for 5 seconds, and then it went into another cell. Seconds later, another red object followed in the same direction. Traveling south to north.”
V-shaped formation, very silent
Date and time: July 5, 2023
Duration: 30 seconds
Shape: Formation
Color: Silver/white
Estimated speed: N/A
Media: No
Description: “V-shaped formation moving south to north, low altitude, silver/whitish look to the craft. When passing overhead, everything went silent. We have a water pump running nearby, and then as they passed over, it was like a cone of silence passed over us as well. Witnessed clearly by myself and my wife. This is the second time we have seen a similar formation and the same ‘silent’ effect as it passed overhead.”
Seven lights in a V-shape moving west to east, totally silent
Time and date: May 27, 2024 - 11:45 p.m.
Duration: Approximately 30 seconds
Shape: Formation
Color: White
Estimated speed: N/A
Media: No
Description: “While sitting outside, my wife and I noticed seven lights in a v shape moving west to east, totally silent. The lights appeared to be at an altitude that was very similar to what local airplanes on approach to the Boise airport. The moon was bright despite being a half-moon. The night was calm, and there weren’t many clouds. It was a great night for star gazing.
At first, I thought it was a satellite, but then I noticed other lights as it came into view. It went almost directly overhead which is how I could see the v shape but again no sound. The night was strangely quiet. Lights were white, and all appeared to be part of the same craft.”
