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Why Utah became a durable UFO state
Utah is a good place for sky stories. Much of the state has wide horizons, low population density, high desert visibility and large areas where the night sky is still clearer than in heavily urbanised regions. A University of Utah-led study of more than 98,000 National UFO Reporting Center reports from 2001 to 2020 found that reports were more common where people had more opportunity to see the sky: darker skies, less tree cover and proximity to airports or military installations all mattered. That does not mean the reports were extraordinary; it means the geography of seeing is part of the story. PubMed [nature]nature.comSource details in endnotes. This matters for Utah because the state’s UFO reputation has often been built from sincere but difficult-to-test sightings: lights crossing the sky, bright objects near mountains, distant formations over desert, and events witnessed from roads, ranches or small communities. In such settings, a report can be both honestly described and still hard to identify. Distance, altitude and size are especially treacherous when the witness has no fixed reference point. A small object nearby can look like a large craft far away; a satellite train can look coordinated; a meteor can be startling enough to prompt police calls and news coverage. [FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU]fox13now.comSource details in endnotes. [2FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU]fox13now.comSource details in endnotes.
The modern term “UAP”, or unidentified anomalous phenomena, is useful here because it does not assume an answer. NASA’s independent UAP study reported in 2023 that there was no conclusive evidence in peer-reviewed literature for an extraterrestrial origin, while also stressing that many cases lack the high-quality, repeatable data needed for confident resolution. Utah’s record fits that tension: it has intriguing testimony and a few historically important cases, but the evidence usually remains below the level needed to identify an extraordinary cause. [NASA Science]science.nasa.govScience Independent Study Team ReportScience Independent Study Team Report
Tremonton: Utah’s most important filmed UFO case
The best-known Utah UFO incident took place on 2 July 1952 near Tremonton, in northern Utah. Delbert C. Newhouse, a Navy warrant officer and photographer, was travelling with his wife when they saw a group of bright objects in the sky. Newhouse filmed the objects on 16mm colour film, producing what became one of the classic visual cases in the early UFO era. The case mattered because it was not just a vague anecdote: it involved film, a trained photographer and later official scrutiny. NCAS PDF Directory [2hightokolob.substack.com]hightokolob.substack.comtremontons ufo 1952tremontons ufo 1952
The film became part of the wider Project Blue Book-era debate. According to the Condon Report’s Case 49 discussion, analysts wrestled with the basic problem that still affects many UFO images: the camera recorded bright moving points, but it did not establish the objects’ distance, size or altitude. Without those measurements, speed and manoeuvrability estimates become highly uncertain. A nearby flock of birds and a distant formation of large unknown craft can create very different interpretations from similar-looking footage. [NCAS PDF Directory]files.ncas.orgPDF Directory Condon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, UtahNCAS PDF DirectoryCondon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, Utah - Movie FilmRuppelt (4) suggested that it be stated that "the images were cause…
The main sceptical explanation was that the objects were birds, often described as seagulls reflecting sunlight. The Condon Report records that Project Blue Book figures considered wording that would attribute the images to reflective surfaces such as gulls, while acknowledging that the Air Force could not prove the explanation. CIA-linked historical accounts of the Robertson Panel later stated that the panel concluded the Tremonton images were sunlight reflecting off seagulls. [NCAS PDF Directory]files.ncas.orgPDF Directory Condon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, UtahNCAS PDF DirectoryCondon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, Utah - Movie FilmRuppelt (4) suggested that it be stated that "the images were cause…
The case has remained disputed because some investigators found the bird explanation unsatisfying, especially when they gave weight to Newhouse’s later description of the objects before he began filming. That is a recurring problem in UFO history: the filmed evidence is limited, while the witness account contains more detail than the film can independently verify. A fair assessment is that Tremonton is historically significant and not trivially dismissible as a mere hoax, but the film itself does not settle the matter. Its most likely conventional explanation remains birds or another reflective natural object, but the available evidence leaves room for argument about exactly what Newhouse saw. NCAS PDF Directory [NICAP]nicap.orgThe Newhouse Film, Tremonton UtahThe Newhouse Film, Tremonton Utah
The Uintah Basin: a cluster built from witnesses, not instruments
Eastern Utah’s Uintah Basin has a different place in UFO history. It is less about one famous film and more about an accumulation of local reports. The key early source is Frank B. Salisbury’s 1974 book, The Utah UFO Display: A Biologist’s Report, based on work with local science teacher Joseph “Junior” Hicks. The Internet Archive record identifies the book as a 286-page study of Utah sightings and encounters, and later descriptions of the book emphasise its focus on numerous reports from the Uintah Basin. [Internet Archive]archive.orgInternet ArchiveThe Utah UFO display: a biologist's report11 Apr 2022 — Publication date: 1974; Topics: Unidentified flying objects – S…
Hicks became important because he acted as a local collector of testimony. The 1996 Deseret News reporting on the Sherman family and the later Skinwalker Ranch story described Hicks as having investigated UFO sightings in the Uintah Basin since the early 1950s, with reports numbering in the thousands according to him. That figure should be treated carefully: it is a claim from a local investigator, not a verified instrument-based count. Still, it shows why the basin had a UFO reputation before television producers, internet forums and modern UAP politics arrived. [Deseret News]deseret.comNews FREQUENT FLIERS?News FREQUENT FLIERS?
The useful reader question is not “did all these people see alien craft?” but “what kind of evidence does a local flap create?” In the Uintah Basin, the evidence is mainly testimony: repeated reports, local memory, witness drawings, interviews and investigator files. That can reveal patterns in belief, observation and local experience, but it is weaker than calibrated radar, multi-camera tracking or recovered physical material. The basin is therefore best understood as a major Utah witness cluster rather than a solved case.
Salisbury’s involvement also complicates any simple dismissal. He was a biologist, not just a sensationalist writer, and his book framed the reports as something worth documenting and thinking about. But documentation is not confirmation. A collection of hundreds of accounts can still contain misidentified aircraft, planets, meteors, atmospheric effects, military activity, exaggerations and a smaller number of genuinely puzzling observations. The state-level significance is that Utah produced one of the better-known regional UFO catalogues in the American West. [Internet Archive]archive.orgInternet ArchiveThe Utah UFO display: a biologist's report11 Apr 2022 — Publication date: 1974; Topics: Unidentified flying objects – S…
Skinwalker Ranch: from local UFO reports to national UAP mythology
Skinwalker Ranch, in Uintah County, is now Utah’s most famous UFO-related location, but its reputation is broader than UFOs alone. Public claims about the ranch include lights, orbs, cattle mutilations, strange animals, poltergeist-like effects and other paranormal events. That breadth is precisely why it should be handled cautiously on a Utah UFO page: the ranch is relevant to UFO history, but much of its public mythology spills into wider paranormal culture. [Wikipedia]WikipediaSkinwalker RanchSkinwalker Ranch
The modern ranch story entered national attention in the mid-1990s after the Sherman family’s claims were reported by the Deseret News. The property was then bought by Robert Bigelow, whose National Institute for Discovery Science pursued investigations into paranormal and UFO claims. Later, the ranch became entangled with debates over AAWSAP/AATIP, Pentagon-linked programmes, and media accounts of government interest in UAP. Wired’s account of Bigelow’s long UFO involvement describes how the ranch story helped connect private paranormal investigation with later defence-funded research. [Deseret News]deseret.comNews FREQUENT FLIERS?News FREQUENT FLIERS?
The sceptical side is substantial. The Pentagon’s 2024 AARO historical report stated that AAWSAP/AATIP investigated an alleged Utah hotspot of UAP and paranormal activity, including reports of “shadow figures”, “creatures”, remote viewing and consciousness anomalies. That description matters because it shows how far the programme extended beyond conventional aerial-safety questions. AARO’s broader historical review found no empirical evidence that U.S. government investigations had confirmed extraterrestrial technology, recovered alien craft or reverse-engineering programmes. AARO [2U.S. Department of War]media.defense.govDOPSR 2024 0263 AARO HISTORICAL RECORD REPORT VOLUME 1 2024DOPSR 2024 0263 AARO HISTORICAL RECORD REPORT VOLUME 1 2024
For Utah’s UFO history, Skinwalker Ranch is therefore best treated as a cultural and investigative landmark, not a proven anomaly site. Its strongest claim to importance is not that it has demonstrated alien visitation, but that it became a meeting point for local Uintah Basin sighting traditions, private billionaire-funded investigation, government-adjacent UAP controversy and entertainment media. Later reporting has amplified the ranch’s fame more than it has resolved the underlying claims. [The Guardian]theguardian.comSource details in endnotes.
Military skies, drones and honest misidentification
Utah’s military and aviation environment gives UFO reports another layer. Hill Air Force Base, Dugway Proving Ground and other defence-related facilities make the state a place where unusual aircraft, restricted activity and public uncertainty can overlap. Not every light near a base is military, and not every military-adjacent report is exotic, but proximity to such sites changes how witnesses interpret what they see.
A recent example is the 2024 drone concern around Hill Air Force Base. Hill AFB warned in December 2024 that unidentified drone swarms had been observed over several U.S. military bases and reminded personnel that drones could not be flown on base. Local reporting then confirmed that unmanned aerial vehicles had been spotted near Hill in Davis County and that officials were monitoring the area with local authorities. This is a useful modern contrast with older UFO stories: the objects were “unidentified” in the practical security sense, but drones are a known technology with ordinary and potentially serious explanations. [Hill Air Force Base]hill.af.milHill Air Force Base Small Unmanned Aerial Systems awareness on baseHill Air Force Base Small Unmanned Aerial Systems awareness on base
Other Utah reports have had more mundane endings. In 2007, a spike of Salt Lake City UFO reports involving a silver cigar-shaped object was later attributed to a 30-foot remote-controlled “hyperblimp” launched by a local school teacher. That case is valuable because it shows how quickly an unfamiliar human-made object can become a UFO wave, especially when it drifts out of context and witnesses see only the strange final result. [WIRED]wired.comOpen source on wired.com.
Satellites have become a particularly important modern explanation. Utah news outlets have repeatedly had to explain strings of bright lights as SpaceX Starlink satellites, including sightings over Salt Lake City. These events can look eerie because the lights appear in a line, move steadily and seem coordinated. They are a reminder that the sky has become more crowded, and that some twenty-first-century UFO reports are caused by technologies that did not exist during the classic Blue Book era. [FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU]fox13now.comSource details in endnotes. [KUTV]kutv.comSource details in endnotes.
How to read Utah UFO evidence without flattening it
The most balanced way to read Utah’s UFO record is to separate cases by evidence quality rather than by excitement level.
Historically important cases include Tremonton because it produced film, entered official investigation and remains part of the national UFO archive. The case is not proven extraordinary, but it is too important to ignore in any state-level history. [NCAS PDF Directory]files.ncas.orgPDF Directory Condon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, UtahNCAS PDF DirectoryCondon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, Utah - Movie FilmRuppelt (4) suggested that it be stated that "the images were cause…
Regional witness clusters include the Uintah Basin reports documented by Hicks and Salisbury. These are valuable for understanding local UFO culture and repeated testimony, but they are not equivalent to controlled scientific observation. [Internet Archive]archive.orgInternet ArchiveThe Utah UFO display: a biologist's report11 Apr 2022 — Publication date: 1974; Topics: Unidentified flying objects – S…
Media-amplified landmarks include Skinwalker Ranch. It is central to Utah’s public UFO identity, yet many of its best-known claims mix aerial sightings with broader paranormal narratives and have not been independently confirmed to the standard required for extraordinary conclusions. [AARO]aaro.milOpen source on aaro.mil.
Likely conventional sightings include Starlink trains, fireballs, drones, balloons, unusual aircraft, distant lights and hobbyist craft. These do not make witnesses foolish. They show that modern skies contain more objects than most people can readily identify, especially at night or over open terrain. [FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU]fox13now.comSource details in endnotes. [2FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU]fox13now.comSource details in endnotes.
This distinction avoids two common mistakes. The first is credulity: treating every unresolved report as evidence of alien technology. The second is over-dismissal: assuming that because many reports are explained, all witnesses were careless or dishonest. Utah’s UFO history is more interesting than either simplification. It is a record of real observers, difficult viewing conditions, occasional documentation, official interest, local storytelling, and unresolved claims that often remain unresolved because the data were never strong enough to begin with.
What later research has changed
Recent UAP research has not validated Utah’s famous cases as extraterrestrial events, but it has improved the questions researchers ask. The University of Utah-led environmental study suggests that sighting patterns are partly shaped by where people can see the sky and where aerial objects are likely to be present. That reframes Utah from a mysterious exception into part of a broader western geography of visibility, military activity and open landscapes. [ESS School]ess.utah.edu11 2024 uap sightings11 2024 uap sightings
NASA’s UAP work and AARO’s historical review also push the discussion towards data quality. NASA emphasised the lack of conclusive extraterrestrial evidence and the need for better, standardised observations. AARO’s historical report rejected claims that U.S. government investigations had verified alien technology, while acknowledging that unresolved reports can remain difficult when the original evidence is thin. Applied to Utah, that means Tremonton remains a classic ambiguous film case, the Uintah Basin remains a major testimony cluster, and Skinwalker Ranch remains culturally significant but evidentially contested. [NASA Science]science.nasa.govScience Independent Study Team ReportScience Independent Study Team Report [2U.S. Department of War]media.defense.govDOPSR 2024 0263 AARO HISTORICAL RECORD REPORT VOLUME 1 2024DOPSR 2024 0263 AARO HISTORICAL RECORD REPORT VOLUME 1 2024
The strongest conclusion is modest but useful: Utah is one of the more important UFO states because it combines a landmark filmed case, a long-running rural sighting tradition, a famous ranch, dark western skies and modern military/drone relevance. The weakest conclusion would be the dramatic one: that Utah’s UFO history proves alien visitation. The record does not support that. What it does support is a careful state-level history in which some cases were probably misidentified, some remain unresolved, and the most famous stories often reveal as much about investigation, evidence and belief as they do about objects in the sky.
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Endnotes
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Source: files.ncas.org
Title: PDF Directory Condon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, Utah
Link: https://files.ncas.org/condon/text/case49.htmSource snippet
NCAS PDF DirectoryCondon Report, Case 49: Tremonton, Utah - Movie FilmRuppelt (4) suggested that it be stated that "the images were cause...
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Source: archive.org
Link: https://archive.org/details/utahufodisplaybi0000saliSource snippet
Internet ArchiveThe Utah UFO display: a biologist's report11 Apr 2022 — Publication date: 1974; Topics: Unidentified flying objects -- S...
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Source: nature.com
Link: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-49527-x -
Source: science.nasa.gov
Title: Science Independent Study Team Report
Link: https://science.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/uap-independent-study-team-final-report.pdf -
Source: science.nasa.gov
Link: https://science.nasa.gov/uap/faqs/ -
Source: hightokolob.substack.com
Title: tremontons ufo 1952
Link: https://hightokolob.substack.com/p/tremontons-ufo-1952 -
Source: nicap.org
Title: The Newhouse Film, Tremonton Utah
Link: https://www.nicap.org/reports/utah1.htm -
Source: deseret.com
Title: News FREQUENT FLIERS?
Link: https://www.deseret.com/1996/6/30/19251541/frequent-fliers/ -
Source: Wikipedia
Title: Skinwalker Ranch
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skinwalker_Ranch -
Source: wired.com
Link: https://www.wired.com/story/inside-robert-bigelows-decades-long-obsession-with-ufos -
Source: aaro.mil
Link: https://www.aaro.mil/Portals/136/PDFs/AARO_Historical_Record_Report_Vol_1_2024.pdf -
Source: wired.com
Title: UFO Sightings In Utah On The Rise
Link: https://www.wired.com/2007/06/ufo-sightings-i -
Source: kutv.com
Link: https://kutv.com/news/offbeat/ufo-train-of-bright-lights-string-of-glowing-dots-starlink-spacex-elon-musk-satellites-continue-to-startle-earthlings-5-years-after-first-string-of-satellites-launched -
Source: ess.utah.edu
Title: 11 2024 uap sightings
Link: https://ess.utah.edu/blog/posts/2024-2025/11-2024-uap-sightings.php -
Source: attheu.utah.edu
Title: the west is best to spot ufos
Link: https://attheu.utah.edu/facultystaff/the-west-is-best-to-spot-ufos/ -
Source: magazine.utah.edu
Title: the truth is out there
Link: https://magazine.utah.edu/issues/fall-2024/the-truth-is-out-there/ -
Source: attheu.utah.edu
Title: world ufo day
Link: https://attheu.utah.edu/facultystaff/world-ufo-day/ -
Source: Wikipedia
Title: The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Secret_of_Skinwalker_Ranch -
Source: Wikipedia
Title: David Grusch UFO whistleblower claims
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Grusch_UFO_whistleblower_claims -
Source: Wikipedia
Title: Robertson Panel
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robertson_Panel -
Source: Wikipedia
Title: NASA Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Independent Study Team
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NASA_Unidentified_Anomalous_Phenomena_Independent_Study_Team -
Source: Wikipedia
Title: 2024 United States drone sightings
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_United_States_drone_sightings -
Source: ia803206.us.archive.org
Title: David Jacobs The UFO Controversy In America
Link: https://ia803206.us.archive.org/26/items/DavidJacobsTheUFOControversyInAmerica/David%20Jacobs%20-%20The%20UFO%20Controversy%20In%20America.pdf -
Source: ia800501.us.archive.org
Title: Edward J Ruppelt The Report on Unidentified Flying Objects
Link: https://ia800501.us.archive.org/20/items/FritjofCapraTheTurningPoint/Edward%20J%20Ruppelt%20-%20The%20Report%20on%20Unidentified%20Flying%20Objects.pdf -
Source: history.com
Title: skinwalker ranch paranormal ufos mutilation
Link: https://www.history.com/articles/skinwalker-ranch-paranormal-ufos-mutilation -
Source: history.com
Link: https://www.history.com/shows/the-secret-of-skinwalker-ranch/articles/7-of-the-most-mind-bending-moments-on-skinwalker-ranch -
Source: cia.gov
Title: DOC 0000015458
Link: https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/DOC_0000015458.pdf -
Source: aaro.mil
Link: https://www.aaro.mil/UAP-Cases/Official-UAP-Imagery/ -
Source: deseret.com
Title: drones spotted recently in vicinity of hill air force base spokesman says
Link: https://www.deseret.com/utah/2024/12/17/drones-spotted-recently-in-vicinity-of-hill-air-force-base-spokesman-says/ -
Source: utah.com
Title: what is skinwalker ranch and whats really going on there
Link: https://www.utah.com/articles/post/what-is-skinwalker-ranch-and-whats-really-going-on-there/ -
Source: standard.net
Title: files declassified ufo investigations in utah
Link: https://www.standard.net/news/military/2015/jan/26/files-declassified-ufo-investigations-in-utah/ -
Source: fox13now.com
Link: https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/bright-string-of-lights-flying-above-utah-explained-again -
Source: fox13now.com
Title: comet fireball ufo what was that flash of light seen above utah skies last night
Link: https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/northern-utah/comet-fireball-ufo-what-was-that-flash-of-light-seen-above-utah-skies-last-night -
Source: ufologie.patrickgross.org
Link: https://ufologie.patrickgross.org/htm/tremonton.htm -
Source: media.defense.gov
Title: DOPSR 2024 0263 AARO HISTORICAL RECORD REPORT VOLUME 1 2024
Link: https://media.defense.gov/2024/Mar/08/2003409233/-1/-1/0/DOPSR-2024-0263-AARO-HISTORICAL-RECORD-REPORT-VOLUME-1-2024.PDF -
Source: theguardian.com
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/22/ufologists-sean-kirkpatrick-pentagon-report-uaps -
Source: hill.af.mil
Title: Hill Air Force Base Small Unmanned Aerial Systems awareness on base
Link: https://www.hill.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3992742/small-unmanned-aerial-systems-awareness-on-base/ -
Source: nuforc.org
Link: https://nuforc.org/sighting/?id=30991 -
Source: facebook.com
Title: hill air force base drone incidents
Link: https://www.facebook.com/AFamnncosnco/posts/hill-air-force-base-drone-incidents-/915553780706232/ -
Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/BCAk27KAcQo -
Source: ohdbks.overdrive.com
Link: https://ohdbks.overdrive.com/ohdbks-clermont/content/media/9605822 -
Source: mynews4.com
Title: hill air force base confirms reports of drones over davis county airspace
Link: https://mynews4.com/news/nation-world/hill-air-force-base-confirms-reports-of-drones-over-davis-county-airspace -
Source: wlos.com
Title: hill air force base confirms reports of drones over davis county airspace
Link: https://wlos.com/news/nation-world/hill-air-force-base-confirms-reports-of-drones-over-davis-county-airspace -
Source: ebooks2go.com
Title: Utah UFO Display
Link: https://www.ebooks2go.com/img/samplefiles/9781599557786_Sample.pdf -
Source: theguardian.com
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/apr/22/pentagon-released-ufo-videos-chase-aliens
Additional References
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Source: youtube.com
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKYcy0n82x8Source snippet
Episode 9 - Utah & The Paranormal: The Rise of Rural Filmmaking...
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Source: youtube.com
Title: The Most Disturbing Discovery Yet (S7) | The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzL5x420LfYSource snippet
Revisiting the Ranch's Wildest Events | The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch...
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Source: youtube.com
Title: Episode 9
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Bc7ALOJ3eESource snippet
The Most Disturbing Discovery Yet (S7) | The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch...
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Source: youtube.com
Title: Revisiting the Ranch’s Wildest Events | The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY47osjbirISource snippet
UFOs and the Paranormal Unraveling Utah UFO Mysteries...
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Source: researchgate.net
Link: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/379726085_A_history_of_scientific_approaches_to_Unidentified_Anomalous_Phenomena_Time_to_rethink_their_relegation_to_the_paranormal_and_engage_seriously -
Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/saltlaketribune/posts/a-salt-lake-tribune-review-of-flight-data-identified-a-pattern/1590098503116491/ -
Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/SteveBartlettShow/posts/a-few-days-ago-161-classified-uap-files-were-released-to-the-public-that-include/1531892531652951/ -
Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/VICE/posts/a-new-analysis-of-ufo-reports-found-the-cities-where-people-are-most-likely-to-s/1333219522004362/ -
Source: facebook.com
Link: https://www.facebook.com/HISTORY/posts/after-years-of-shocking-investigations-the-team-returns-to-the-secret-of-skinwal/1537911594568478/ -
Source: fox13now.com
Link: https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/are-we-alone-utahns-debate-importance-of-pentagon-ufo-file-release
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