'Significant' number of UFO sightings reported in Canada last year: survey

Reports of mysterious lights in the sky WATCH: People in Western Canada are reporting mysterious lights in the night sky. Wayne Mantyka investigates the claim.

Winnipeg, MAN — If you believe you saw a UFO last year, you are not alone

According to a new survey from Ufology Research, 570 Canadians officially filed UFO sighting reports in 2023.

Chris Rutkowski, a science writer specializing in UAP (also known as ‘unidentified aerial phenomenon’) says the number of filed reports is “significant.”

“Not quite two a day, but it does show that people continue to see things in the sky over Canada. From coast to coast to coast.”

Although the number of official reports has decreased since 2022’s 768 sightings – Rutkowski says that doesn’t mean less people are seeing UFOs.

“The number of UFO sightings is actually not down,” he said. “What's happened is that there is less participation by some of the private UFO groups who are not sharing their information. So, that makes it difficult to do a study like this. But all the other organizations that have continued to participate have shown a steady trend in the numbers of UFO or UAP reports across Canada throughout 2023.”

According to the survey, provinces with larger populations tend to have the most UFO reports. However, there are some outliers.

“Quebec seems to be leading the pack in terms of the numbers of UFO reports. It's usually related to population although this year for some reason there's some anomalies,” Rutkowski said. “Eastern Canada specifically in the Maritimes have more than they ought to based on their population. And Quebec does seem to have more cases than other areas such as British Columbia and Ontario.”

Here at home in Manitoba, Rutkowski says there have been about “30 or 40 cases” which is about average for the province.

“In Manitoba, individuals have been reporting lights in the sky,” he said. “There were a number of reports that turned out to have been a Starlink satellite chain. There have been other flares. And I think pilots have been reporting things over Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario as well. In fact, a pilot did report seeing some unusual lights in the sky just in February of this year.”

Rutkowski says the nearly 600 sightings nationwide last year is a pattern that’s holding steady.

“I would say that people are still very aware of objects in the sky and want others to know about them.”

If you've seen an unusual sight in the sky, you can share it with Ufology Research.