DISCLOSURE / FILECENTCOM Three Timed Transits September 2020
DOW-UAP-PR087, "05 September 2020 [CALLSIGN] UAP"
A 4:54-minute infrared video uploaded to a classified network in September 2020, showing three brief transits of an unidentified area of contrast through the frame, assessed by AARO as likely recorded by a U.S. military sensor in the CENTCOM area of responsibility.
Brief
AARO identified this footage as part of a collection of 51 potentially UAP-related records requested by eight House members on March 6, 2026. The video, whose uploader-defined title includes a redacted callsign, runs 4:54 and captures an uncharacterized area of contrast transiting from bottom to top of frame on three separate occasions (01:23-01:26, 02:53-02:56, and 04:22-04:26), with the remaining runtime showing no content. AARO assesses the footage likely derives from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform in the CENTCOM AOR, though many of the broader collection's materials lack a substantiated chain-of-custody. No analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination about the event's nature or significance accompanies the release.
Metadata
- Agency
- Department of War
- Release
- 5/22/26
- Incident
- 2020
- Location
- CENTCOM
- Type
- VIDEO • .mp4
- Length
- 4:54
- Programs
- AARO
- Tags
- infrared, CENTCOM, 2020, area of contrast, bottom-to-top transit, classified network upload, redacted callsign
Key points
- AARO assessed the video as likely derived from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating within the United States Central Command area of responsibility in 2020.
- The video was user-uploaded to a classified network in September 2020; it was not formally submitted through official reporting channels.
- Many of the 51 responsive records identified by AARO lack a substantiated chain-of-custody, qualifying the evidentiary weight of the collection.
- Three transits of an area of contrast occur at near-regular intervals of approximately 86-87 seconds: 01:23, 02:53, and 04:22; each transit lasts 3-4 seconds.
- The video title includes a bracketed callsign that remains redacted in the public release, leaving the originating platform or crew unidentified.
- Eight members of the U.S. House of Representatives initiated the disclosure by formally requesting access to these 51 records on March 6, 2026.
- AARO's accompanying disclaimer explicitly states the video description reflects no analytical judgment, investigative conclusion, or factual determination regarding the event's validity, nature, or significance.
Most interesting
- More than 86 percent of the video's runtime — over four minutes — shows no detectable content; the phenomenon is visible for a combined total of roughly 10 seconds across three windows.
- Each of the three transits is nearly identical in duration (3-4 seconds) and direction (bottom-to-top frame exit), suggesting consistent object behavior or sensor geometry across multiple passes.
- The transit intervals are strikingly regular: approximately 86 seconds separate the first from the second transit and approximately 86 seconds separate the second from the third, which could indicate orbital mechanics, loitering behavior, or sensor sweep cadence.
- The redacted callsign in the title is a standard military identifier that, if unredacted, would likely pinpoint the specific aircraft, ship, or ground platform that recorded the footage.
- The footage entered the classified network as a user upload rather than through a formal UAP reporting chain, which is partly why chain-of-custody is unsubstantiated for much of this collection.
- The release is a direct consequence of a congressional access request — one of the first instances in the May 2026 disclosure tranche where legislative pressure produced a specific infrared video rather than a written report.