Skywatcher
In the general sense, a skywatcher (Hungarian: égboltfigyelő) is an amateur observer who regularly watches the sky. Since 2025 it has also been the name of a controversial UAP research group founded by Jake Barber, which claimed it was able to lure UAPs to a location.
The word skywatcher (Hungarian: égboltfigyelő) can refer to several things in the UFO/UAP field.
General meaning
In a broader sense, the term refers to amateur or volunteer observers who regularly watch the sky and record or photograph unusual phenomena. They observe with the naked eye, with telescopes or with cameras, share their observations with one another or in reporting databases, and some groups also hold organized sky watches. Many come from the traditions of amateur astronomy, while others are specifically interested in UFO phenomena. The word is also used for amateur astronomers who track comets, meteors or satellites. In the 1950s, the US Air Force's airspace observation service made up of civilian volunteers also operated under the name „Operation Skywatch”.
The Skywatcher group
Since 2025, Skywatcher has also been the name of a privately initiated UAP research group founded by Jake Barber, James Fowler and investor Alex Klokus. Barber previously claimed that he took part in the retrieval of craft of non-human origin in a secret US program. According to the group, it is able to lure UAPs using an electromechanical signaling system and psychic, meditative techniques, and it tested this at a site in Texas. The Pentagon's AARO stated in 2025 that it was examining Barber's claims. The group went publicly silent at the end of 2025, did not release the promised footage, and since then only unconfirmed accounts have addressed its further fate.
Official and skeptical views
According to official bodies and skeptics, most civilian sightings can be explained by ordinary phenomena: aircraft, satellites, planets, meteors or atmospheric effects. The number and enthusiasm of observers is not in itself evidence of an unusual phenomenon, but regular, documented sightings can provide useful data for later investigations. The Skywatcher group's claims have not been verified by any independent source.