Summary
This nearly five-minute infrared video is assessed to have come from a U.S. military sensor operating in the U.S. Central Command region in June 2022. It captures the sensor repeatedly panning, zooming, and switching modes to track multiple areas of contrast crossing its field of view. The file was uploaded to a classified network in June 2022 and released through the PURSUE declassification.
Detail
This Department of War video was identified by AARO among records requested by U.S. House of Representatives members in March 2026. AARO assesses the footage likely came from an infrared sensor aboard a U.S. military platform operating in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility in June 2022, with a user uploading it to a classified network that same month. The clip runs about four minutes and 45 seconds.
Throughout the video, the sensor pans, zooms in and out, and cycles modalities while tracking areas of contrast that enter and exit the frame from various directions. At one point four small areas of contrast appear together near the center of the field of view. AARO emphasizes the description is informational and implies no analytical judgment about the event. The record was released through the PURSUE declassification.
