Avi Loeb

Avi Loeb is the Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science at Harvard University and former chair of its astronomy department. In 2018 he co-authored a paper arguing that the interstellar object 'Oumuamua's non-gravitational acceleration was consistent with a thin artificial light sail, and in 2021 he founded the Galileo Project to search for extraterrestrial technological artefacts with purpose-built observatories. In 2023 his team recovered spherules from the seabed near the 2014 IM1 meteor site and reported unusual compositions.

Loeb's proposals are published in peer-reviewed venues and his standing is documented. Most astronomers hold that 'Oumuamua's acceleration is explained by outgassing, and other researchers have argued the spherules are consistent with terrestrial coal ash or ordinary micrometeorites. Loeb has answered these criticisms in print. He has not claimed knowledge of retrieved craft and is sceptical of testimony-based claims.

The corpus interviews Loeb once, in an episode about Harvard studying UFOs, and cites him occasionally as the mainstream scientist willing to consider the question. The knowledge base records his research programme as documented and his 'Oumuamua and spherule interpretations as contested within the field.