For UFO sightings, Florida is mid

Aliens — they're just like New Yorkers. They love to visit Florida!

• Floridians reported 134 UFO sightings to the National UFO Reporting Center (NUFORC) from January 1 to June 22 this year. Since 1998, Floridians have reported 7,685 sightings.

The big picture: The NUFORC has been around since 1974, and it's where the FAA recommends folks report UFO sightings.

• An analysis of NUFORC data by website ​​Im-a-puzzle.com found that most sightings are reported from Washington state.
• Florida ranks 35th among states for sightings, with 35 per 100,000 residents.

Details: UFO sightings in NUFORC's database — some of which include photos — come from all over Florida.

• This May, a person from Miami reported that "a UFO made several looping maneuvers in the sky at incredible speed and precision before disappearing."
• In February, another local reported seeing a cylinder-shaped UFO for 80 minutes: "I have evidence of an alien invasion going on, and shapeshifters are on the ground."

Between the lines: UFOs have become a serious topic since a 2021 report from the U.S. military deemed unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs) a national security threat.

• Florida Sen. Marco Rubio has been leading the call for further investigation of the matter, even going on 60 Minutes to discuss it last year.

What's ahead: A new office in the Pentagon, called the Airborne Object Identification and Management Synchronization Group, was established in November to coordinate government efforts around UAPs.

• The office will establish a new system for reporting sightings.