UFO Sightings: Top 10 States With Highest Number of Reports
California ranks first, with over 11,000 sightings in four decades.
— -- There have been 1,177 UFO sightings reported to the National UFO Reporting Center (NUFORC) so far this year, 353 of them in March, according to a recent announcement.
The UFO Center's announcement also included three notable "sightings" last week in Portugal, Alaska and Washington.
In one of reports, a woman from Sitka, Alaska, said she heard a strange "ping" sound in her home last Wednesday and claimed her 4-year-old son witnessed a disc-shaped craft outside their home. The report came with a drawing made by her son of the alleged craft.
If you're in the mood to go UFO hunting or if you just want to have an extraterrestrial experience, you may want to visit these 10 states with the highest number of UFO sightings since 1998, NUFORC director Peter Davenport told ABC News today.
Disclaimer: The National UFO Reporting Center said it makes no claims as to the validity of the information in any of these reports.
1. California – 11,202
Most recent sighting: Ladera Ranch on March 22, 2015, at 9:35 p.m.
"I was on my patio [and] saw something fell out of the sky, straight down," the witness said. "It was green and looked like a flame was coming out of the back end of it."
2. Florida – 5,113
Most recent sighting: Deltona on March 23, 2015, at 9:14 p.m.
"Two round lights changed colors and moved at incredible rates of direction and speed," the witness wrote. "There were two round lights, one green, one red. Then both lights became green, 5 seconds later they both became red. The lights were below the cloud cover at approximately 1000 ft. The lights were stationary in the night sky."
The witness added a traveling companion pulled the vehicle off the road to further observe the sighting, but then "the lights streaked north at an incredible rate of speed, dove 90 degrees and streaked north again out of sight."
3. Washington – 5,004
Most recent sighting: Everett on March 24, 2015, at 8:15 p.m.
The witness claimed to have seen "two massive crafts, solid black in color" with orange lights in an inverted "V-shape" while on the phone with a sister.
"I was alarmed and scared as this was close, just above the tree line and electrical power lines," the witness said.
4. Texas – 4,359
Most recent sighting: College Station on March 25, 2015, at 8:30 p.m.
The witness reported seeing a red and green orb moving at an "incredible speed" down Jupiter's horizon through a telescope.
"What drew my attention was its curving motion and abrupt changes in speed, from close to a dead stop to full speed almost instantaneously," the witness wrote. "The speed of this object was far greater than any aircraft/satellite and could not be seen by naked eye, only through telescope."
5. New York – 3,837
Most recent sighting: Bronx, New York City, on March 22, 2015, at 10:00 p.m.
The witness claimed seeing a spacecraft trying to abduct an airplane and hearing strange songs from the attic.
6. Arizona – 3,212
Most recent sighting: Green Valley on March 23, 2015 at 8:30 p.m.
"For the past few nights we've seen a brilliant bright white light under the moon in the night sky, and we're wondering what it is," the witness said. "It doesn't appear to be moving (like a plane), but is in a different position every night."
7. Pennsylvania – 3,142
Most recent sighting: Philadelphia on March 25, 2015, at 12:05 a.m.
The witness reported seeing tightly grouped white lights in the east that vanished after 30 seconds.
8. Ohio – 2,907
Most recent sighting: North Ridgefield on March 22, 2015, at 11:00 p.m.
The witness claimed spotting a chevron-shaped craft "at low altitude behind the tops of some trees."
"It the started to move from left to right," the witness wrote. "After about 30 sec it made a swoop back the way it came."
9. Michigan – 2,451
Most Recent Sighting: Vicksburg on March 24, 2015, at 10:30 p.m.
The witness reported seeing a lit-up object in the sky that hovered, disappeared and reappeared in the same spot.
10. North Carolina – 2,273
Most recent sighting: Pfafftown on March 18, 2015, at 9:25 p.m.
"My friend and I were on my driveway behind my house and it was dark," the witness said.
A craft traveling slowly appeared and rapidly disappeared, the witness said, adding the craft was "almost silent" with "one bright light in the front, followed by two red lights horizontally opposed quite a distance from the front."
The National UFO Reporting Center did not immediately respond to ABC News' requests additional comment.
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