Michael Shermer
Michael Shermer is an American science writer and skeptic researcher, the founder of Skeptic magazine, who regularly examines and refutes claims related to UFO phenomena from the standpoint of pseudoscience.
Michael Shermer is an American science writer and one of the leading figures of the modern skeptical movement. He founded Skeptic magazine and for a long time wrote a popular science column in the pages of Scientific American. In his books and lectures, he examines the psychological and social roots of pseudoscientific and paranormal beliefs.
What he claims
According to Shermer, the overwhelming majority of UFO and UAP phenomena are of terrestrial origin, the result of misidentification, optical illusion, aerial or meteorological phenomena, or psychological factors (such as expectation bias or belief-based perception). In his view, claims about spacecraft of alien origin do not stand up to the test of scientific evidence, and despite the striking media interest, there is no convincing, verifiable physical evidence for the existence of extraterrestrial craft.
He is also critical of theories about government withholding of information, and often emphasizes that extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. He has also debated several UFO researchers and former government officials who have reported secret programs related to extraterrestrial technology, and in these cases he pointed to the lack of independent, verifiable documentation.
Official and skeptical position
Shermer's work fits into the broader scientific skeptical movement, according to which most UAP reports have a conventional explanation, and the remaining unexplained cases point more to the limitations of observation and measurement than to alien technology.