Drones over New Jersey: Latest updates on what we know, what we don’t
There are some mysterious flying objects hovering over New Jersey and, days after the first drones were spotted, we still don't know much about what they are, where they're from, and what they're doing up there.
Folks with eyes on New Jersey have been reporting mysterious drone sightings — over houses, military installations, and Trump's Bedminster golf club, to name a few — since mid-November. The FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and Federal Aviation Administration have all investigated the origins but don't yet have any answers for us. The Pentagon says the mystery drones are not military and are probably not foreign. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and U.S. Sen. Andy Kim have gone on their own drone hunts, too, but have come back empty-handed.
Despite this, Murphy and law enforcement officials say the drones aren't likely a threat to public safety, according to the Associated Press.
"Tonight I met with @NJSP officials and radar technicians at the Regional Operations & Intelligence Center who are surveying the area for unmanned aircraft systems," Murphy posted on X Sunday night. "The public deserves clear answers — we will keep pushing the federal government for more information and resources."
The drones have become such a spectacle that the president-elect weighed in.
"Let the public know, and now," Trump said. "Otherwise, shoot them down!"
It's leading lawmakers to consider stricter rules about flying unmanned aircrafts, the AP reported. But many of the sightings aren't unmanned aircrafts at all — they're stars, planes, or other flying objects like aircrafts coming and going from New Jersey airports.
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Just look at the Friday X post from Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, who says he "personally witnessed" what he believed were "dozens of large drones in the sky above my residence in Davidsonville, Maryland." The video that accompanied the post clearly shows the constellation Orion and the stars Sirius and Procyon.
No matter who — or what — is behind the drones, Harry Direen, an electronic and software engineering expert at DireenTech, told USA Today that the culprits are "clearly ... not being very stealthy."