Bill Nelson, 78, the former Florida senator and spaceflight veteran, became the NASA Administrator on May 3, 2021. 

One month later, Bill Nelson has directed NASA to study UFOS (or UAPs). Notably, the push comes as a much-anticipated UAP report is due to Congress.

In 1986, Nelson flew on the 24th flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia, conducting 12 medical experiments.

During a CNN interview with Rachel Crane, Nelson claimed that NASA doesn’t know what the authentic UFOs observed by Navy pilots and equipment could be.

Now, he’s quickly leading scientific efforts into the phenomena. 

“Well, I have talked to those Navy pilots, and they are sure that they saw something real,” said Nelson. “And of course, we’ve seen the video from their jets. What is it? We don’t know. So, now that I’m here at NASA, I’ve turned to our scientists, and I’ve said, “Would you, looking at it from a scientific standpoint, see if you can determine so that we can have a better idea?”

Leading UFO Research with Science

Leading with science and evidence is also how former Nevada senator Harry Reid proposes approaching UFO research. In a recent op-ed in the Times, Reid, the man who created the clandestine Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP), wrote:

“I believe it’s crucial to lead with the science when studying UFOs. Focusing on little green men or conspiracy theories won’t get us far,” he wrote.

Now, NASA could have more funds for scientific inquiry. In the budget for 2022, President Biden has requested a 6.6% increase for NASA science.

No Formal NASA UFO Task Force?

Although Bill Nelson is pushing for scientific research, NASA press secretary Jackie McGuinness says Nelson “did not establish a formal task force,” per CNN. 

Interestingly, McGuinness cited American’s interest in the subject as a reason why NASA scientists are taking a new approach.

“There’s not really a lot of data and…scientists should be free to follow these leads, and it shouldn’t be stigmatized,” McGuinness said, acknowledging that UFO research can be negatively associated with unfounded conspiracy theories. “This is a really interesting phenomenon and Americans are clearly interested in it [so if] the scientists want to investigate, they should.”

In response to the news about NASA, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Intelligence Christopher Mellon called the news “wonderful and unexpected news of scientific open-mindedness.” Then, he notes “potential” for NASA’s collaboration with the Intelligence Community.

Bill Nelson isn’t Ruling out Extraterrestrials

When Rachel Crane asked Bill Nelson, “Do you think we have been contacted by extraterrestrials?” he deflected to talking about the Navy pilot’s experience.

Although Nelson denies knowledge of extraterrestrials, he doesn’t rule it out, saying he doesn’t know if it’s ETs, an enemy, or an optical phenomenon.

“…And so the bottom line is, we want to know.”

Then, Crane pushed again, asking Nelson directly, “What do you think it is? What’s your personal take on it?” 

A smiling Nelson replied:

“I don’t have an idea. That’s why I turned to our scientists.”

“What have they said to you?” asked Crane.

“Well, they’re looking into it. Would you like me to call you when I get an answer?” Nelson joked.

Then, Nelson claims that NASA won’t be working directly with the Pentagon on the upcoming UAP report but said, “I can guarantee you if we find something, the Pentagon will want to know.”

The UAP Report

According to recent reports, current and former government officials say military and spy agencies are “blocking or simply ignoring the effort,” to create a UAP report that may come this month.

Meanwhile, the Navy-led Pentagon task force, now called The Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force, or UAPTF, reportedly has few personnel or resources to gather any evidence.

Now, it looks like NASA is not directly contributing to the public report, a notable omission, although they are seeing a budget increase.

Hopefully, there is potential for a collaboration sometime in the future, as Mellon suggests? Right now, it doesn’t seem to be happening – at least not publicly.

For those who have long accused NASA of covering up the truth about extraterrestrials, it comes across as curious. However, tomorrow is a new day, and who knows what may happen next?

Recommended: Did a ‘Galactic Federation’ Ask Trump Not To Reveal Extraterrestrials?

For more by this author, follow The Gamut and The Cosmic Web on Facebook.

See the Bill Nelson interview via CNN:

Featured image: Screenshots via YouTube/CNN