Did you know a UFO sighting in Washington state is credited with kicking off decades of reported sightings across the country?
In 1947, private pilot Kenneth Arnold reported seeing nine shiny UFOs moving at fast speeds near Mount Rainier. It's said that his explanation of the aircraft led to the widespread use of the term "flying saucer."
In fact, official documents from the federal government refer to Arnold's sighting as the first in the United States. The CIA and other agencies became involved in the phenomenon of unidentified flying objects after this report.
Since then, government agencies have transitioned to the term UAP over UFO, meaning unidentified anomalous phenomenon, in an effort to ease the stigma.
UAP sightings common in Washington state
The Evergreen State has remained a hotbed for UAP sightings since the original "flying saucers" at Mt. Rainier.
For several years in a row, Washington has ranked high on national studies of which states have the most sightings.
Most recently, Casino.CA released a study analyzing the hotspots in both the United States and Canada. Again, Washington ranked number two.
According to the study, Washington has an average of one UAP sighting per 1,093 people, beat out only by California, with one per 1,075 people. Since 1974, there have been 7,125 reported sightings in Washington.
For comparison, you're least likely to see a UAP in Louisiana, where the average is one sighting per 3,815 people.
The top 10 states for UAP sightings are:
Determining states with the most UAP sightings
The study used data from the National UFO Reporting Center and digital media reports to determine which states have the highest prevalence of UAPs. There were reportedly 149,000 sightings examined.
The National UFO Reporting Center shows over 80 reports in Washington just this year, all across the state.
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