Immaculate Constellation: The Pentagon’s Alleged Secret UAP Program

By /

During a congressional hearing on UAP in November 2024, a journalist said a name no one in the room had heard before. He said it was the name of a secret Pentagon program that tracks unidentified aerial phenomena. The Pentagon denied it. But the journalist said he had a whistleblower report, and another witness said he had seen UAP footage on classified networks. What followed was a standoff between allegations and denials that, as of March 2026, remains unresolved.

TL;DR: On November 13, 2024, journalist Michael Shellenberger told Congress about an alleged secret Pentagon program called “Immaculate Constellation.” According to a whistleblower report Shellenberger obtained, the program maintains a database of UAP incidents collected from military personnel and intelligence sources. The Pentagon denied the program exists. FOIA requests were refused. A second whistleblower, later identified as Pentagon employee Matthew Brown, claimed to have discovered the program’s documentation on a classified network. As of March 2026, no evidence confirming the program has been publicly released, and no evidence disproving it has been provided either. Sources linked below.

Timeline

2024 (exact date unknown) A Pentagon employee, later identified as Matthew Brown, performs routine file management on a shared Pentagon server. He encounters a misplaced file labeled “2018 Schriever War Game” that allegedly contains documentation of a covert UAP monitoring program. Brown reviews the documentation and describes it as evidence of a covert program that monitors, tracks, and investigates UAP using classified intelligence platforms.

November 13, 2024 Journalist Michael Shellenberger testifies before the House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation during a hearing titled “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth.” Shellenberger tells the committee he has obtained a whistleblower report describing what he said was a Pentagon UAP program. According to the report he obtained, the program maintains a database of UAP incidents reported by U.S. military personnel and collected through various intelligence sources. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) questions Shellenberger directly about the program.

November 2024 The Pentagon denies the existence of the alleged program. No official statement names the program or confirms it was ever considered.

January 2026 The Pentagon’s FOIA office refuses to search for emails related to the program, stating that the term does not correspond to any known program. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence releases a one-page unclassified document under FOIA case DF-2025-00021 addressing the allegation. The document does not confirm or deny the program’s existence.

April-May 2025 Matthew Brown goes public in a NewsNation investigation, claiming he is the whistleblower who discovered the program documentation. Brown states he viewed videos of UAP captured by U.S. military platforms on the Joint Worldwide Intelligence Communications System (JWICS), a classified network. He describes the program as maintaining a database of UAP incidents and investigating possible crash or landing sites.

The Immaculate Constellation: Pentagon’s Alleged Secret UAP Program

According to the whistleblower report obtained by Shellenberger, The program allegedly performs three functions:

UAP incident database. The program maintains a comprehensive database of UAP incidents reported by U.S. military personnel and collected through intelligence sources including satellite imagery, signals intelligence, and human intelligence.

Crash and landing site investigation. The program allegedly investigates possible crash or landing sites associated with UAP, including recovery and analysis of physical evidence.

Physical evidence collection. The program allegedly gathers physical UAP evidence, including biological material and technology of unknown origin.

Matthew Brown, who later identified himself as the whistleblower, claims he discovered program documentation while performing routine file management on a classified Pentagon network. He describes finding a misplaced file labeled “2018 Schriever War Game” that contained the program records. Brown also states he viewed UAP footage on the JWICS classified network, including video captured by U.S. military platforms.

Brown has described the program as existing in a classified space that Congressional oversight committees were not aware of, consistent with the broader allegation that UAP programs have operated outside Congressional knowledge.

The Pentagon’s Response

The Pentagon has denied the existence of the alleged program through multiple channels:

Direct denial. Following Shellenberger’s testimony, the Pentagon stated that no such program exists or has existed.

FOIA refusal. In January 2026, the Pentagon’s FOIA office refused to search for emails containing the term “the alleged program,” stating the term did not correspond to any known program. This refusal is notable because FOIA offices typically conduct searches regardless of whether a program exists, on the principle that the absence of records is itself informative.

ODNI response. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a one-page document under FOIA case DF-2025-00021 that addressed the allegation. The document does not confirm or deny the program’s existence. Its brevity has drawn criticism from transparency advocates who expected a more substantive response.

The Pentagon’s pattern of denial followed by limited disclosure echoes its handling of AATIP, where the Pentagon initially denied Luis Elizondo’s involvement before documents contradicted the denial.

Congressional Response

The allegation was introduced during the November 13, 2024 hearing, “Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth.” The hearing was a follow-up to the July 2023 congressional UAP hearing and featured four witnesses: Dr. Tim Gallaudet, Luis Elizondo, Michael Gold, and Michael Shellenberger.

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) questioned Shellenberger directly about the program. Shellenberger confirmed he had obtained the whistleblower report naming the program for monitoring UAP incidents. Mace also raised the issue of military personnel who had been injured during UAP encounters, stating she had seen documentation of injuries sustained by service members.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) introduced a document she described as a report on the alleged program during the session. The report was entered into the Congressional record.

The hearing did not resolve whether the program exists. Shellenberger’s testimony was presented as information received from a source, not as independently verified fact. The Pentagon’s denial was presented as a categorical rejection without detailed explanation.

The FOIA Battle

The Freedom of Information Act process has become a key battleground in the dispute.

The Black Vault, a transparency organization run by John Greenwald that specializes in FOIA requests related to government programs, pursued records related to the alleged program. The Pentagon’s FOIA office refused to search for the term, arguing it did not correspond to any known program. This refusal is unusual: FOIA offices typically conduct searches and report whether records exist, rather than refusing to search based on the assumption that no records exist.

The ODNI’s one-page response under FOIA case DF-2025-00021 has also been criticized for its lack of detail. Transparency advocates note that a substantive response would address whether the program was ever proposed, discussed, or funded, rather than offering a single-page acknowledgment of the FOIA request.

The FOIA response pattern is consistent with how the government has handled other UAP-related requests: acknowledge the request, provide minimal information, and avoid definitive statements that could be contradicted by future disclosures.

Opposing Perspectives

The case for existence: Supporters note that the whistleblower account is specific: a documented function (UAP database), a specific discovery method (misplaced file on a classified network), and corroborating claims about UAP footage on JWICS. The Pentagon’s refusal to search FOIA requests for the alleged program is seen as suspicious, as standard FOIA practice would be to search and report no records found. The pattern mirrors AATIP, where the Pentagon denied Elizondo’s role before documents proved otherwise.

The case against: Skeptics note that no documentation confirming the program has been publicly released. The whistleblower’s account rests on his interpretation of a file he found on a classified network, which could be a misunderstanding of a war game scenario, a training exercise, or a different program. The Pentagon has categorically denied the program exists. Shellenberger’s testimony was presented as information from a source, not verified fact. Matthew Brown’s claims about UAP footage on JWICS have not been independently corroborated.

The evidence gap: The core issue is the absence of public documentation. If the program exists, releasing its records would resolve the question. If it does not exist, the Pentagon’s refusal to conduct FOIA searches fuels conspiracy theories. The one-page ODNI response satisfies neither side. Until substantive documentation is released, or a credible official source confirms or denies the program with specificity, the question remains open.

Sources

Reporting

Related

Scroll to Top