The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) has designated a June 2024 infrared video captured by a U.S. military platform operating over the United Arab Emirates as an unresolved UAP case, according to official documentation published under case identifier DOW-UAP-PR29. The 21-second clip, submitted to AARO by United States Northern Command, depicts an object whose nature has not been formally determined.
What the Footage Shows
According to the official case record published at war.gov, the infrared sensor footage spans 21 seconds and shows "an area of contrast visually resembling an inverted teardrop with a vertically linear trailing mass suspended below" that remains generally centered within the sensor's field of view throughout the clip. An accompanying mission report, designated DoW-UAP-D8, described the object as appearing to have "a vertical pole or bar attached to the bottom."
The source documentation includes a formal disclaimer noting that its video description is "provided for informational purposes only" and that readers "should not interpret any part of this description as reflecting an analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination regarding the described event's validity, nature, or significance." AARO's formal classification of the case as unresolved signals that investigators were unable to match the observed signature to a known object or phenomenon within the available data.
Competing Explanations Remain Open
The observing crew did not reach a definitive conclusion. According to the mission report DoW-UAP-D8, the observer noted that the UAP may alternatively represent a reflection from an object in the water rather than a physically airborne phenomenon. This ambiguity is characteristic of infrared sensor data collected over maritime or coastal environments, where surface reflections and thermal gradients can produce artifacts that are difficult to distinguish from discrete objects, particularly in short-duration clips.
The geographic context — the United Arab Emirates, which borders the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman — is consistent with a scenario in which a military platform conducting surveillance over or near open water might capture ambiguous infrared returns. Neither the case record nor the mission report specifies the altitude, heading, or platform type involved, limiting the scope of independent analysis.
It is worth noting that the single source for this report, war.gov, carries a relatively low editorial trust rating, and the domain itself is unconventional for official U.S. defense publications, which typically appear under .mil designations. The case identifiers and procedural language are consistent with known AARO reporting formats, but readers should be aware that independent corroboration from .mil or congressional sources is not available for this specific filing at the time of publication.
Context Within AARO's Reporting Process
AARO, established under the fiscal year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act and operating within the Office of the Secretary of Defense, is the primary federal body responsible for detecting, identifying, and attributing UAP. The office receives reports from across military services and combatant commands, including U.S. Northern Command, which submitted this case. Publication of unresolved cases is consistent with AARO's mandate to provide transparency on phenomena that cannot be explained through standard investigative means.
The release of DOW-UAP-PR29 adds to a growing public record of unresolved infrared UAP cases logged by U.S. military personnel. Many previously disclosed cases share structural similarities with this one: short video clips, limited sensor modalities, ambiguous signatures, and no corroborating radar or multi-sensor data referenced in the public record. Without additional sensor data — radar returns, electro-optical confirmation, or signals intelligence — infrared-only cases frequently resist resolution, a limitation AARO has acknowledged in prior congressional testimony.
No named government officials have commented publicly on this specific case. AARO has not issued a separate press release, and no congressional committee has cited the UAE June 2024 footage in any publicly available hearing record reviewed prior to publication. The case stands, for now, in the unresolved column.