Photo of UFO shot down over Yukon still raises more questions than answers – what were the Canadian and US governments hiding?

 In February 2023, a mysterious object was shot down over the Yukon, a Canadian province bordering Alaska, and a photo of it was released by CTV News a few months later. The photo, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, has stirred much speculation, and the lack of official responses from the Canadian and American governments has only added to the confusion. The incident occurred just a week after the downing of a Chinese spy balloon, which intensified tensions over the protection of airspace over North America.

The object itself was shot down by an F-22 fighter jet, sent as part of a joint NORAD operation. The incident was one of three shootdowns that occurred between February 10 and 12, 2023. The objects appeared shortly after a Chinese balloon, clearly identified as a spy device, passed over the United States for a week. However, unlike the balloon, the object shot down over the Yukon and two others were not clearly identified. The photo that caused so much excitement shows a vague, cylindrical shape, which has only intensified theories about the objects' possible extraterrestrial origins.

During press conferences, US President Joe Biden stressed that the downed objects most likely did not pose a threat. He said they could have been private research or weather balloons, in an attempt to reassure the public. Nevertheless, due to the lack of recovered debris – search efforts were interrupted due to difficult weather conditions and terrain – numerous conspiracy theories have grown around the events.

In documents released by CTV News, the Yukon object is referred to as “UAP 23” — meaning “unidentified aerial phenomenon.” The term is gradually replacing the old term UFO, part of a broader government effort in the U.S. and Canada to investigate such phenomena. Both the Pentagon and NASA are stepping up their research into UAPs, and Canada is preparing to release a report as part of a Sky Canada project to shed light on such sightings.

The public, meanwhile, continues to wonder: Were these objects truly harmless? Why is there still so little information about them? The lack of transparency from both governments only fuels speculation about possible threats from nations competing for technological dominance. The February 2023 incidents have undoubtedly shown how sensitive North American airspace is and how little we know about what might be flying there.