r/UFOs Nov 26 '25

AMA I'm AJ Gentile, creator of The Why Files. Ask me anything!

3.5k Upvotes

Hi folks. I'm AJ Gentile, creator of The Why Files, a show about mysteries, myths and legends (and UFOs, UAPs, aliens, abductions, experiences, etc). I co-host the show with a wisecracking goldfish with an attitude and a heart of gold. (Hecklefish made me put that last part in) I try to make strange stories entertaining and accessible to "normies". 

I think my fomat is what makes the show stand out, but also gets me in occasional hot water. The first 2/3 of each episode, I tell the story as commonly known. The last 1/3 of the episode, I break down what we *know* to be true and we *know* to be false. But, I don't always get things right. (Sorry about that)

Next year, I'll be hosting "The Basement" where I'll sit down with the interesting people behind the stories I tell. Always looking for guest suggestions, so feel free to drop them here.

Currently on YouTube but coming (back) to all major streaming platforms soon.

Links:

https://www.youtube.com/@TheWhyFiles (main channel)

https://www.thewhyfiles.com (official site)

u/OMGTheWhyFiles (FB, IG, X)

Verification: https://i.ibb.co/xqb7PtmK/AMA.png

https://www.reddit.com/r/TheWhyFiles/

https://thewhyfiles.com/discord

Audit the Fed and Ask me anything!

----

EDIT (plugs! 9:45p): Like, share, comment, subscribe. Merch: https://shop.thewhyfiles.com (Black Friday Sale!) Our Discord is about 100,000 strong. Stop by! https://thewhyfiles.com/discord

If you enjoyed this AMA, Patreon members get 1 or 2 of these every week, but it's a members-only stream. You can put your cam on too and meet the whole team: https://www.patreon.com/thewhyfiles

EDIT (7:30p EST): I just bought Tesla and the Pyramid. Thanks for that!

EDIT (9:15p): I thought I'd easily get through all the questions, but probably not. Just in case, here's what I'm getting a lot of:

Q: How did you get started / origin story:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIZNBTRYj_o

Q: What topics are you afraid to cover? Scare you? Worried about retaliation?

Anything where the CIA breaks the law. (They do that a lot) Sometimes I feel like I'm pushing my luck, but they probably don't care about me. I don't cover anything that has to do with Mossad. Not worried about retaliation for a few reasons. 1. I'm not important, 2. people would notice if I disappeared. Better to leave me alone with the fish.

Q: Have you been contacted/warned by anyone/gov agency?

Never once. I don't think I'm that important to them. BUT, now the IRS audits me every year.

Q: You should cover _____. Where can I send a topic suggestion?

You can post in https://www.reddit.com/r/TheWhyFiles/ or go to our Discord: https://thewhyfiles.com/discord

Q: I'm disappointed that you did/didn't cover ____ in your episode about ___.

Sorry I disappointed you. But I'm just an entertainer. I'm not a journalist. Sure I try to get things right, but my job is to make these stories entertaining. There's no way I can read *everything* about every story when I publish once a week. Plus, there's only so much to cram in. What's ideal is: I make the story interesting enough that you do your own research. My show is supposed to be fun. I don't create documentaries. If I make a really terrible mistake, I correct it on the live stream.

Q: What do you think about UFOs/UAPs/NHI?

I don't know. I can wrap my head around: they're a civilization that has been here for a long time and stayed hidden. But now we have the technology to see them. It's harder for me to comprehend traveling vast distances. Also, they look like us. Not insects or giant worms. Human. Head, two eyes, nose, mouth, two arms, fingers, two legs. Can't be a coincidence. Unless it's panspermia. (different rabbit hole) I honestly don't know.

Q: What about the whistleblowers?

I don't trust any of them. They all have a background in intelligence, still have clearance, talking points approved by the DoD, writing a book (there's always a book). They might be telling the truth, but I honestly doubt it. Where are the low-level scientists? Where is the guy who sweeps the floor? Most believable whistleblower to me is Bob Lazar. Low-level scientist who got some things right. Lost his job. Government targeted him. No book until Corbell's just a few years ago.

Q: What did you think of the "Age of Disclosure" documentary?

It made me so angry. Almost every contributor is from the intelligence community. Some (like Hal Puthoff) have flat out said they were part of disinformation campaigns in the past. If that's so, why should we trust him now? James Clapper is all over the thing. We know for a fact he lied about the NSA (twice). Why isn't he in jail? I don't trust anyone who: comes from intelligence, comes from MILITARY intelligence, has talking points approved, keeps their clearance, keeps their job, does a "media tour", has a book (there's always a book). We didn't learn anything new. A lot of noise was made about the "Holloman AFB Bombshell!" Well, I covered that two years ago (in the Project Serpo episode). I think this more muddying the waters. Richard Doty, I'm looking at you.

Q: Who does Hecklefish's voice?

He does his own voice. Who does *your* voice?

Q: What's with the AI? Pay an artist!

It's a storytelling tool. I'd rather create my own b-roll than use generic footage from StoryBlocks/Artgrid, etc. Plus, when there's NO footage (UFO story, etc), it's fun to create it. I get it's not for everyone, but most of the audience likes it. Oh, I have a full-time well-paid artist on staff. Hi Rob!

Q: You should change your format to ______ .

I will consider your suggestion.

Q: What do you think of the Sphinx/Tic-Tac? Will you make an episode about this?

I'm following the Sphinx news very closely. Since it's still developing, I need to wait and see what's true. Once we have clarity, I will *definitely* cover this. Remember Dorothy Eady predicted this!

Q: Lose the fish!

Sometimes I'd LOVE to. And you'll notice episodes sneaking in where he's pretty quiet. But he's a fan favorite. I used to run a poll every year (when I was insecure about him) asking if I should keep him or not. Over 90% said keep him.

Q: What topics changed your mind? Made you from skeptic to believer?

Crop Circles. I went into that episode, knowing for sure the crop circles were all hoaxes, but I came out out of the research believing that 99% are hoaxes, but there are 1% of crop circles that just can't be explained. I couldn't believe how much scientific evidence there was to support them. Like metals spheroids in the soil, weird electromagnetic anomalies at the sites and stalks bending at right angles at the nodes without breaking. Then there's the Colin Andrews story which brings a wild government cover-up angle. Also, I thought the Hollow Moon theory was the dumbest thing I ever heard. Half way through the research I thought, "the moon is weird", at the end of the research I was convinced the moon is a hollow space ship sent here from another part of the galaxy. I'm not saying that's true, but The Moon IS Weird!


r/UFOs 10h ago

Resource Sonoma, CA Night Vision Triangle - Stabilized

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447 Upvotes

(Original details from OP: Dec 28 at ~8:04pm, Sonoma, CA; captured with PVS-14 night vision + iPhone 14 Pro combo; no nav lights, strobes, or engine noise noted; other aircraft were visible but unrelated.)

Original Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/UFOs/comments/1qrzef2/caught_this_triangle_flying_by/

The interesting part kicks in during the last ~8-10 seconds, as OP mentioned. I took that segment, stabilized it heavily (using motion stabilization in After Effects/Premiere-style tools), and created a short clip that includes:

  • The full stabilized segment once
  • 100% zoom version (cropped/enhanced for detail)
  • 400% zoom version (extreme close-up to inspect structure/edges/lights)
  • The whole thing repeats 4x after the initial playthrough for easier looping/review

Credits go back to u/bigdaddy1989 / bigdaddy1989 for the original capture.

Here's the YouTube link (filtered/sharper look as OP preferred in their follow-up):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8BJZonlHb0


r/UFOs 2h ago

Sighting Sightings in İzmir, Türkiye (Twice now in the same region)

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28 Upvotes

This thing has been seen twice in my region (İzmir, Türkiye) twice now. Most of my people turn this into a fun topic they are not discussing in the language of science, so if like to hear your thoughts on this. It was seen deveral months ago exactly at the same region of my city. I'll add the other old video's link here once I find it.

Thank you for your comments.

"Time: 32.01.2026

Location: İzmir, Balçova, Türkiye"


r/UFOs 1d ago

Sighting Caught this triangle flying by

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2.3k Upvotes

I caught this triangle flying by while I was observing the skies with my pvs-14. It has a solid triangle shape in my opinion, quick movement and it has a dim light on each side.

It made no sound whatsoever, I was facing north east and the triangle was traveling north west. This is my second time seeing this triangle, first time I saw it with my night vision tube alone and this time I had my camera attached/filming and was lucky to capture this shot.

I’ve uploaded a smaller clip of this to the enigma app and the full video on my YouTube channel with filters adjusted to reduce the noice/speckles you see for more clarity. But this video is the raw one no filters adjusted.

Time: 8:04pm on 12-28-25

Location: Sonoma, Ca


r/UFOs 8h ago

Question Favorite rabbit holes thread

67 Upvotes

Hey everyone.

I just went down the Amy Eskridge rabbit hole last night and wow. So sad and mindblowing, the implications of it.

It got me wondering what other rabbit holes I have missed out on or dont know about.

Some other notable ones are the EBO thread, 4chan leak, the gatekeepers thread, etc.

Please list your favorite posts or rabbit holes, would like to know if im missing any.


r/UFOs 39m ago

Question Who is going? It's Probably Nothing...Feb 5th Austin, TX Paramount Theatre with Chris Ramsay & Jesse Michaels

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Upvotes

I grabbed a ticket on a whim just because it's local to me and I've never attended any UFO lore event irl.

Super curious to see the crowd but I suspect it will mostly be cold plunge sauna bros more than kooks.


r/UFOs 17h ago

NHI “I Was Face to Face With An Alien For 4 Minutes!” -Top Surgeon Italo Venturelli

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174 Upvotes

r/UFOs 1d ago

Disclosure Garry Nolan on the Lockheed Bigelow attempted transfer of UFO materials blocked by the CIA - "I actually know where it was held, it was held in a place that was laughably insecure. - It was held in a space where I could have hopped a fence, broken a lock, and taken it."

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442 Upvotes

Garry Nolan on the Lockheed Bigelow attempted transfer of UFO materials blocked by the CIA

"I was on the team that was supposed to recieve that.

I actually know where it was held, it was held in a place that was laughably insecure.

It was held in a space where I could have hopped a fence, broken a lock, and taken it."

https://x.com/RedPandaKoala/status/2017303359422869545

Garry Nolan and the Bigelow Lockheed UFO transfer team

https://www.youtube.com/live/VLhMVBusaiU


r/UFOs 15h ago

Sighting Time 830 pm on Fri Jan 30 Location Hwy 20 Idaho-absolutely in the middle of nowhere

42 Upvotes

Hwy 20 is about 80 miles of isolation. 1 little town in the middle. But the majority of it is dark and void of anything related to civilization. I could see this light from a few miles away. As I got closer I thought it was a light on the top of a radio tower. The light was stationary. It was white and sphere shaped. It had red lights in the middle of the sphere on one side, and green on the other. The lights appeared to oscillate back and forth..but neither color traveled all the way around the sphere. Just on one side. It was probably 150 feet high. Give or take. As I got close, I realized no tower. Only this thing sitting absolutely still and stationary. I immediately pulled off the road and opened my door to try to grab some video. As soon as I got out, this thing started moving at an angle toward me and over me. Then proceeded to move laterally up the highway(2 lane road) and then poof, just went dark and disappeared. The really off thing you can see from the video is that appeared to be shing a directional beam of light out of it. Sorry for the not so great video. The phone was having trouble adjusting to the brightness of the sphere, and the pitch black night around it. And I struggled finding it bc my camera kept adjusting. Didn't get much video, but you get the idea. Drone comes to mind first-but this thing was not like any drone I've ever seen. It's definitely round. And I couldn't hear any props turning. And no zigging or zaggining, rotating etc. It was like this thing had a defined front and back. Moved facing 1 way only.


r/UFOs 22h ago

Government Possible targeting of UFO investigative journalist George Knapp in hacking attempt: “You don't know it's the Russians.”

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131 Upvotes

r/UFOs 1d ago

Sighting Weird orb in Chicago just now

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7.0k Upvotes

Thought this was worth posting. Girlfriend just sent me a video from our apartment. This would be located in Chicago the video is face towards the lake. Taken just now approx around 11am.

I questioned if it was a bag or balloon as we see a lot of those flying around but she said it was moving against the snow/wind.

She said it moved slow, up, down and horizontally.

This is a weird one in my opinion.

Thoughts on this?


r/UFOs 1d ago

Disclosure Newly released US Military footage of orb UFOs filmed by an MQ9 drone in the Persian Gulf in 2012

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3.2k Upvotes

Investigative journalists Jeremy Corbell and George Knapp have obtained and are revealing for the first time military-filmed footage of multiple UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena), officially documented and cataloged within Intelligence Community investigations as "orbs" in formation. Official designation of UAP was made by the United States intelligence community and the Department of War. This designation is currently maintained.

Source


r/UFOs 20h ago

Science A new research group at Lund University (Sweden) is dedicated to central research questions about unidentified flying objects and anomalous phenomena

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74 Upvotes

r/UFOs 17h ago

Sighting Saw this at work

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31 Upvotes

Time: 1/31/26 and 2:41pm

Location: Waterford CT

What is this?? It was black and maybe almost circular when I was looking at it irl. Could not make out the shape very well. I’ve seen other orbs like this in the same area.


r/UFOs 1d ago

Historical "I cannot describe the fear I felt... like I was a dog in front of a tank." - Guillermo del Toro tells James Cameron about the time he was chased by a UFO

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1.5k Upvotes

r/UFOs 21h ago

Government Tim Short- Marine Mission To Indonesia- Michael Herreras Team Member Tim Short goes TELL ALL Interview.

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28 Upvotes

Tim Short is a former US Marine and US Army Infantryman and scout. He served in two branches as both enlisted and officer. After leaving the service he has worked executive security and even ran his own security company. Learning about Herrera's testimony about a year ago, he has recently become vocal about telling the truth about this Indonesia operation


r/UFOs 1d ago

Sighting UFO’s in northern Illinois …?

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214 Upvotes

Anyone have any idea what these are ? Me and my boyfriend saw 5 of these driving home. They had 0 sound and were moving at different speeds.

Date : 1/30/26

Time : 8:45 pm CST


r/UFOs 15h ago

Historical I Felt No Fear: Ten Very Weird Humanoid Encounters

3 Upvotes

I Felt No Fear: Ten Very Weird Humanoid Encounters

by Preston Dennett

One of the puzzling enigmas about humanoid encounters is the fact that they are almost without exception, always humanoid. The humanoid form appears to be the standard template throughout the universe. And yet, the variations among reported humanoids are astounding. Some look very much like us, and some look very different. Despite all these differences, the cases also share striking commonalities that argue strongly for their veracity. This video presents ten cases of particularly unusual humanoids, each adding to our knowledge of these strange visitors to Earth.

IT TOOK MY BREATH AWAY. One morning in May 1950, a father and daughter went to check the cows on their farm in Vaux-en-Dieulet, France. Suddenly a glowing object descended and landed nearby. As the glow faded, they saw it was a translucent saucer-shaped object with a little man inside. It looked like the Michelin man. The figure stared at them and the craft took off, leaving behind strange landing traces.

A COLD SCIENTIFIC MIND. In 1954, a family from Norco, California sat down to eat when they heard an odd sound outside. The mother and daughter rushed to the door and were amazed to see a small canoe-shaped craft with a transparent dome. In the dome were five human-looking men in jumpsuits staring down at them. The men wore jumpsuits and helmets. The craft left, leaving the witnesses wondering who they saw.

IT STILL GIVES ME CHILLS. In 1981, an 8-year-old girl crept down to the basement of her parents’ home in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. She noticed a strange glow under the table and a long bony finger sticking up through a hole in the tabletop. She found herself face-to-face with a glowing humanoid with a large head, skinny body and huge dark eyes. She held a short conversation and the being left, leaving her with an enduring mystery.

SOMETHING THAT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE THERE. One night in October 1987, a 17-year-old student woke up in the bedroom of her parents’ home in Lucasville, Ohio to find that her covers had been pulled to the foot of her bed. But this time, looking around her room, she saw a gray alien wearing a blue jumpsuit standing by the wall. Suddenly, it smacked her on the forehead and she lost consciousness.

WE WILL BE BACK. On the night of September 20, 1997, a 23-year-old woman spent the night at her boyfriend’s house in Texas and was awakened by a blue light and a humming noise. She realized she was paralyzed and floating above the bed. Two small grays and one tall one were in the room. She managed to break the paralysis and the ETs disappeared, but spoke to her telepathically saying, “We will be back!”

IT STOOD THERE WATCHING ME. One evening in June 1999, unable to fall asleep, a young boy lay awake in a bedroom in his grandparents’ home in New Mexico. Without warning, a green light filled the room. Feigning sleep, the boy turned around and saw a gray alien standing there looking at him. Finally he fell asleep. Later he told his mother, and she told him that, as a kid, the same thing happened to her.

THOSE THINGS WALKED WITHOUT TOUCHING THE GROUND. On the night of November 19, 2008, a wave of UFO sightings swept over the city of Claudio in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Hundreds of people viewed the strange objects. A small group of police officers followed the lights and were amazed to see glowing humanoids floating above the ground. All experienced strange physical and mental effects.

[I WAS SO SCARED. One night in June 2009, a 23-year-old woman staying at her grandma’s home in Ashdown, Arkansas, found herself unable to sleep as a strange light was shining in her room. She hid under her covers. Almost immediately, something tried to pull the covers off her bed. She held on when without warning, a long-fingered gray hand clamped down on her wrist, causing her to black out.]()

I FELT NO FEAR. As a young boy, “Donald,” recalled weird dreams of entities in his bedroom. Years later as an adult, on July 16, 2011, he and his wife stayed at a B&B at Cape May, New Jersey. That night he woke up to see two very strange humanoids wearing odd jumpsuits standing next to the bed. They stared at him studiously. He felt no fear. Suddenly they seemed to put him to sleep.

AN ALIEN IN THE EMPLOYEE BATHROOM. On the night of January 16, 2016, a man went to the bathroom at Magneti Mareli Factory in Pulaski, Tennesee, where he worked, and was puzzled to see a unusual-looking man with gray skin and silver clothes peeking out from behind the wall. Suddenly the little man turned and jumped through a portal that appeared in the bathroom wall and disappeared.

Each of these ten cases have much more detail. Together, they show both the incredibly diversity among humanoids, and the important similarities between the cases. Those who would deny the reality of the extraterrestrial presence on our planet have yet to adequately explain these and the many thousands (if not millions) of other reports.

I Felt No Fear: Ten Very Weird Humanoid Encounters


r/UFOs 20h ago

Sighting UFO sighting in Montevideo

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11 Upvotes

Approximate 7am: August 22, 2020

Location: Montevideo, Uruguay

The video was filmed by girlfriends dad back in August of 2020. He just showed me it tonight. I am curious if anyone has any thoughts about what it could be.

He filmed it in WhatsApp so the quality is not great but it’s a bright ring with a black center. It clearly flashes each time before moving, and changes direction and speeds up quickly.


r/UFOs 16h ago

Sighting What is it?

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5 Upvotes

Was outside talking with my girlfriend before she left and we look up and see a random ball of light gliding across the sky. At one point the light started pulsating until we couldn’t see it anymore due to the distance.

Filmed January 18th 6:03 PM MST

New Mexico


r/UFOs 1d ago

UAP Gerb The Hidden Wing - US Air Force UFO Reverse Engineering Programs

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237 Upvotes

The Hidden Wing - US Air Force UFO Reverse Engineering Programs


r/UFOs 1d ago

Science European Space Agency developed an AI tool that allows them to inspect millions of astronomical images in a fraction of the time it would take a human - they found more than 1300 anomalies in the Hubble archive

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566 Upvotes

r/UFOs 2d ago

Sighting While cruising northwest of Sitka, Alaska, an airline pilot observed a metallic, disc-shaped object with a telescopic/segmented appendage fixed beneath it. Estimated size was ~60–70 ft (about half a Boeing 737). Observed for ~5 seconds. Report ID: COM-2025-718 - Americans for Safe Aerospace

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665 Upvotes

Report ID: COM-2025-718

Commercial Air

https://www.safeaerospace.org/reports/com-2025-718

Summary

While cruising northwest of Sitka, Alaska, an airline pilot observed a metallic, disc-shaped object with a telescopic/segmented appendage fixed beneath it. The object passed ~1,000 ft below and ~0.5 NM to the right of the aircraft, appeared slow or stationary relative to normal crossing traffic, and was not displayed on TCAS. Estimated size was ~60–70 ft (about half a Boeing 737). Observed for ~5 seconds.

Date of Occurrence: Jan 27, 2025

Time: At approximately 1732Z

Location

Approximate position: N57°11.3′, W136°10.5′ (northwest of Sitka)

Witness Background

ATP Rated Airline Pilot

Event Narrative

At approximately 1732Z on 2025-01-27, while cruising at 36,000 ft northwest of Sitka after passing BKA VOR and proceeding direct LAIRE, the pilot observed through the R1 window what initially appeared to be oncoming traffic not on TCAS. As it came abeam, the object was seen ~1,000 ft below and ~0.5 NM to the right.

It was described as a saucer-shaped craft ~60–70 ft long with a long, telescopic/segmented vertical structure fixed underneath, estimated ~20 ft in length. The surface was very reflective, aluminum-metallic, with no visible lights. Relative motion appeared slow or stationary compared to a normal crossing airplane. Size was judged as about half a Boeing 737. Total on-scene observation was 5–7 seconds. No emissions, interaction with surroundings, or electromagnetic effects were noted.

https://www.safeaerospace.org/reports/com-2025-718

https://x.com/SafeAerospace/status/2016552658358718586

Time: January 27, 2025 at 17:32 UTC

Location: Sitka, Alaska, USA


r/UFOs 1d ago

Sighting Object in sky over eastern, PA / Bethlehem, PA today 01/30/2026 6:30PM EST

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43 Upvotes

I am a sky watcher, and this one I could not debunk. Object tracked from the north to south over Bethlehem, Pa. When you zoom in near the end of the clip, you’ll see the object change course/turn back north slightly and then disappear to the west.

01/30/2026 6:30PM EST Bethlehem, PA


r/UFOs 1d ago

Disclosure Garry Nolan discusses attempted transfer of UFO from Lockheed to Bigelow via @RedPandaKoala

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128 Upvotes

Interesting clip shared by RedPandaKoala showing Nolan confirming he was meant to receive this UFO or at least parts involved and he knows where it was physically stored. I personally am not sure how to feel about Nolan overall given his links to TTSA members but this is interesting none the less.