The Buga Sphere Colombia UFO — a seamless metallic sphere discovered in a field near Buga, Colombia, on March 2, 2025 — has generated a year of debate between researchers who say it contains unknown technology and skeptics who call it an art project. The object, roughly the size of a football, was recovered by a local farmer after witnesses reported a loud explosion and an object descending rapidly into a field. No independent laboratory has published a peer-reviewed analysis of the sphere. The case remains unverified.
This video shows one of the most widely circulated analyses of the Buga Sphere’s internal structure, including X-ray imaging.
Timeline
March 2, 2025: A metallic sphere is reportedly found in a field near Buga, Colombia, by farmer José Arias Restrepo, who reported hearing a loud explosion. Witnesses described the object descending rapidly and moving in an erratic pattern.
May 2025: The Buga Sphere gains international media attention. Newsweek, Fox News, NDTV, and the Jerusalem Post publish reports. Colombian radiologist Jose Luis Velasquez examines the sphere and states it has no visible welds or joints.
May 25, 2025: A second metallic sphere is reportedly observed near San Vicente del Caguán, Colombia. Footage circulates on Reddit’s r/UFOs, drawing 6,000 upvotes.
June 20, 2025: A press conference in Mexico City features ufologist Steven Greer and U.S. Congressman Eric Burlison. Mexican journalist and ufologist Jaime Maussan presents the sphere on his program Tercer Milenio. UNAM researchers begin detailed analysis.
September 19, 2025: Steven Greer announces carbon dating results from the University of Georgia Center for Applied Isotope Studies, claiming the resin on the sphere dates to approximately 12,560 years ago.
November 2, 2025: Orbital Today publishes a detailed analysis of the case, noting that no chain-of-custody documentation has been released.
February 5, 2026: The Times of India reports the sphere “responds to Sanskrit chants” in viral footage.
March 19, 2026: IBTimes publishes an analysis noting that one year after discovery, no certified measurement data, no chain-of-custody documentation, and no peer-reviewed analysis has been publicly released.
The Discovery
On March 2, 2025, farmer José Arias Restrepo found a metallic sphere on his land near Buga, a town in the Valle del Cauca department of southwestern Colombia. According to early accounts published online, the object was roughly football-sized, silver-colored, and covered in markings that some observers described as symbols or text.
The metallic orb UAP reportedly descended rapidly before landing. Witnesses reported hearing a loud explosion before the object was found. Some accounts described the sphere as cold to the touch, completely seamless with no visible welds, joints, or screws. Its weight was reported as fluctuating, initially around 2 kg but registering closer to 10 kg at different times. None of these physical claims have been independently verified through certified measurement data.
The seamless sphere Colombia case quickly came into the possession of Mexican journalist Jaime Maussan, who transported it to Mexico and featured it on his television program Tercer Milenio. Maussan has a decades-long career in ufology, but has previously promoted alleged extraterrestrial artefacts that were subsequently debunked, including the so-called “Nazca mummies” presented at Mexico’s Congress in September 2023.
Claims from UNAM Researchers
Researchers affiliated with the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) have published the most detailed analysis of the sphere to date. According to reports compiled by IBTimes and other outlets, their findings include:
A fiber-optic-like network was reportedly identified inside the sphere at 2,000x magnification, connecting surface copper contacts to a central core. The material was described as an unknown transparent substance with ultra-low optical loss.
The outer layer was described as a titanium-like alloy with elements the researchers called unfamiliar. The team reported the material survived exposure to a 400-degree Celsius flame.
A middle layer was said to contain self-healing micropores, with damaged areas reportedly restoring themselves within 48 hours.
The core reportedly contains 18 microspheres arranged in symmetry, described as containing radioactive isotopes with an approximately 12,000-year half-life. The researchers claimed the sphere generates a self-sustaining electromagnetic field, maintaining a surface temperature of 4 degrees Celsius while vaporizing water on contact.
UNAM has not publicly confirmed or endorsed these findings as representing the university’s official position. The analysis was conducted by individual researchers affiliated with the institution, not as a formal university study. Engineer Rodolfo Garrido, part of the UNAM team, stated that a decaying ionized field from the sphere may have affected surrounding vegetation.
The Carbon Dating Controversy
In September 2025, Steven Greer announced that the University of Georgia Center for Applied Isotope Studies had carbon-dated a resin sample from the sphere to approximately 12,560 years ago, placing it in the Younger Dryas period.
The results drew immediate scrutiny from independent analysts. According to analysis published on Metabunk, the report’s header identified the sample as “foraminifer” rather than “resin.” Foraminifera are single-celled organisms commonly found in beach sand and sedimentary rock. Their presence in a sample would suggest the material came into contact with sand or coastal sediment at some point, not that it is 12,000 years old.
Independent analysts noted several problems with the carbon dating claim. Mixing tree resin, which contains measurable radiocarbon, with petroleum-based products produces a misleading “middle-aged” radiocarbon result. The report was addressed to “Sirius Technology Advanced Research LLC,” Greer’s personal organization. No verifiable documentation from the university links the test to the Buga Sphere specifically.
A Metabunk participant who examined the report concluded that “the likeliest explanation is someone used some sort of sand to mix some sort of clay, and it contains shells from things that lived 12,000 years ago.”
Scientific Skepticism
Dr. Julia Mossbridge, a cognitive neuroscientist and UAP researcher affiliated with the University of San Diego, has been among the most vocal skeptics. In comments to Newsweek in May 2025, she stated: “Buga Sphere, I really suspect it’s a piece of artwork. It looks so human-made to me.”
Mossbridge’s skepticism is notable because she is not a debunker by trade. She is a researcher who studies unidentified aerial phenomena and has publicly supported the investigation of genuine UAP cases. Her objection to the Buga Sphere is specifically that it appears to be a human fabrication, not that UAP as a category are impossible.
Mossbridge cautioned that the sphere could “discredit actual UAP investigations” and urged submission to rigorous scientific frameworks such as the Galileo Project, the Harvard-led initiative that requires controlled, transparent, and reproducible analysis of unidentified aerial phenomena.
The IBTimes analysis published in March 2026 noted that key claims about the sphere remain unverified. No certified measurement data has been released. No chain-of-custody documentation has been published. No peer-reviewed analysis in a recognized scientific journal has confirmed any of the extraordinary claims about the object’s properties, including weight fluctuation, self-healing materials, or radioactive content.
The article also noted that modern spectroscopy is highly sensitive. Unidentified readings typically point to calibration error, surface contamination, or misinterpretation rather than a genuinely new material. Without reproducible testing published in a recognized scientific journal, the findings carry little evidential weight.
The online investigation of the sphere, particularly on Reddit’s r/UFOs community, has involved pixel-level photo analysis and AI-assisted symbol decoding. While online communities can occasionally surface useful anomalies, researchers note that such investigations are structurally prone to confirmation bias. The human brain is predisposed to find patterns in random or geometric shapes, a phenomenon known as pareidolia, which may explain much of what the internet has confidently “decoded” from the sphere’s surface markings.
Jaime Maussan and the Credibility Problem
The Buga Sphere’s path to global attention ran through Jaime Maussan, a Mexican journalist and ufologist who featured it on his program Tercer Milenio. Maussan’s involvement is significant because of his track record.
In September 2023, Maussan presented alleged “non-human” bodies to Mexico’s Congress, claiming they were extraterrestrial remains. Independent analysis quickly determined the specimens were constructed from a combination of human and animal bones, with some components appearing to be modern fabrications. The presentation was widely debunked by the scientific community.
Maussan’s association with the Buga Sphere does not prove the sphere is a hoax, but it has led much of the scientific community to approach the case with heightened caution. The standard of evidence required for extraordinary claims has not been met.
The UNAM Analysis Under Scrutiny
While the UNAM-affiliated researchers’ findings are the most detailed analysis available, several aspects of their claims raise questions.
The claim that the sphere’s mass fluctuates between 2 kg and 10 kg, while gaining 0.1% mass daily, would violate conservation of mass unless the sphere is drawing material from its environment, a mechanism the researchers have not explained. The claim of a self-sustaining electromagnetic field generating 12 Tesla without magnetic leakage would represent a breakthrough in physics far beyond current capabilities, yet the finding has not been submitted for peer review.
The assertion that the sphere contains “unknown elements” is particularly noteworthy. Modern spectroscopy can identify all known elements. An “unknown element” reading typically indicates calibration error, surface contamination, or misinterpretation rather than a genuinely new material.
The researchers’ claim that surrounding vegetation died and soil microbiology was reduced to near zero has not been verified through independent environmental testing.
Opposing Perspective
The strongest counter-explanation for the Buga Sphere is that it is a manufactured art object or deliberate fabrication. Dr. Julia Mossbridge, a UAP researcher with no history of debunking UAP claims, has stated publicly that it appears “human-made.” The seamless construction of metal spheres is well within current manufacturing capabilities. Ball bearings, industrial spheres, and artistic sculptures routinely feature seamless metal construction.
The carbon dating results, the only laboratory analysis that has been made public, do not support an extraterrestrial origin. The dated material was foraminifera, tiny sea shells commonly found in beach sand. Their presence suggests the material contacted coastal sediment, a thoroughly terrestrial process.
No official investigation has been opened by any government. No military, aviation, or intelligence agency has commented on the case. The sphere has not been submitted to the Galileo Project, AARO, or any other formal UAP investigation framework.
The history of alleged alien artefacts is long. No physical object claimed to be of extraterrestrial origin has withstood independent, peer-reviewed scientific scrutiny. The Roswell debris was identified as a weather balloon. The Nazca mummies presented by Maussan were found to contain human and animal bones. The Buga Sphere has not yet been subjected to that level of scrutiny.
What Has Not Been Proven
As of March 2026, no evidence has been publicly presented that confirms the Buga Sphere is of extraterrestrial origin. Equally, no evidence has been publicly presented that definitively proves it is a hoax. The case exists in a space between viral sensation and scientific uncertainty, where extraordinary claims circulate without the extraordinary evidence required to support them.
What can be stated with confidence: the sphere has not undergone peer-reviewed analysis by an independent laboratory. The carbon dating results, the only lab work made public, are inconclusive at best and potentially misleading at worst. The UNAM-affiliated findings have not been confirmed by the university as an institution. And the sphere’s most prominent promoter has a documented history of promoting debunked artefacts.
Until the sphere is submitted to a transparent, independent scientific framework, such as the Galileo Project or a peer-reviewed materials science study, the claims surrounding it remain unverified.
Sources
Source Links
- Newsweek: UFO Discovered in Colombia? Scientist Weighs In (May 25, 2025)
- Metabunk: Buga Sphere Carbon Dating Analysis (September 22, 2025)
- IBTimes: The Ball From Nowhere (March 19, 2026)
- NDTV: Mysterious Metallic Sphere Found in Colombia (May 26, 2025)
- Fox News: Scientists Discover Mysterious Sphere in Colombia (May 25, 2025)