Short Note / Jun 14, 2026
Is Avi Loeb leading a new government UAP science council? Here's what is known
Avi Loeb says he has been asked to assemble a UAP science advisory team for the U.S. government. His announcement is public. The group's formal status is not yet clear.
Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb says he has been asked to assemble a UAP science advisory team for the U.S. government.
His announcement is public. The group's formal status is not yet clear.
Loeb published the claim on June 14, 2026, in a Medium post tied to recent UAP file releases and unresolved "orb" cases. He said the effort involves the White House, AARO, ODNI, the FBI, and the intelligence community.
The post is a clear public statement from Loeb. It does not show whether the group is a formal Federal advisory committee, an informal outside team, or something else.
What Loeb said
Loeb wrote that he was tasked over the past week to create a research team for a new UAP Science Advisory Council. He listed several members and said the team would focus on data analysis, instrumentation, numerical analysis, astrophysics, AI, and human psychology.
His stated goal is to bring scientific analysis to better UAP data. In ordinary search terms, that makes this a UFO science story as much as a government-process story.
But Loeb's post does not link to a charter, Federal Register notice, agency press release, or public government page naming the council.
Why the status matters
In Washington, words like "advisory council" can mean several different things.
It can mean a formal Federal advisory committee. It can mean a subcommittee. It can mean an informal outside team. It can also mean an ad hoc group assembled to advise officials without becoming a standing public body.
Those options leave different records.
The General Services Administration says the Federal Advisory Committee Act governs the establishment, operation, and termination of advisory committees in the executive branch. GSA also maintains the FACA database, which is used by agencies, Congress, the public, and the media to track federal advisory committees.
That does not automatically decide what Loeb's group is. It gives readers a practical next place to look when a government advisory body is described in public.
A recent UAP comparison
There is a recent UAP example.
NASA's 2023 UAP Independent Study Team was handled through the Earth Science Advisory Committee. Its public meeting appeared in the Federal Register under the Federal Advisory Committee Act.
Loeb's group does not necessarily have to follow that path. The NASA example simply shows what a formal, public advisory process can look like when the government puts one on paper.
What would clarify it
The next records to watch for are simple: a charter, a Federal Register notice, an agency announcement, a public member list, a named government contact, or a statement saying the group is informal or ad hoc.
Any of those would move the story from "Loeb says" to a clearer government-process item.
For now, the narrow description is this: Loeb says he has been asked to lead a UAP science advisory effort. The public documents reviewed for this note do not yet show what kind of official structure that effort has.
The bottom line
If U.S. agencies are bringing outside scientists into UAP file review, that is news.
If the word "council" turns out to mean a formal advisory committee, that carries one set of public expectations. If it means an ad hoc research group, that carries another.
The label matters because it sets expectations for what records should appear next.
Related UAP Logbook notes
- Avi Loeb says some UAP file cases may have ordinary explanations
- What is PURSUE? The UAP records release program explained
- AARO's contractor reporting channel is a small but useful UAP clue