COMETA is an association of specialists in physics, life sciences and human sciences as well as engineers and senior army officers.

In July 1999, COMETA published a very detailed report about UFOs that was given to the President and Prime Minister. According to this report, the hypothesis of an extra-terrestrial origin of UFOs can no longer be ruled out.

The GEIPAN does not forbid any hypothesis, but it focuses solely on gathering facts and allowing the scientific community to use them for research purposes. No formal or scientific evidence of the existence or non-existence of any extra-terrestrial phenomenon has been provided to date. Therefore, the GEIPAN sometimes cannot find an explanation for the strangest cases submitted.

The GEIPAN’s Steering Committee is very clear, cases that are archived as “D” could be linked to advanced distant civilizations but that hypothesis cannot be proved due to lack of current knowledge.

The universe is very vast and is made of billions of galaxies, themselves made of billions of stars. In this proliferation of matter, which spacecraft are scrutinizing with extreme precision, it would be surprising if there was no solar-type system that could support life. If we hope to have within a few years the proof of organic chemistry on an extraterrestrial planet, there would still be a long way to go before we have any proof of life let alone intelligent life. Even on earth, the existence of life and thought remains an enigma for scientists. The CNES has participated in some astrobiology programs (its COROT satellite discovered the first super-earth) but the GEIPAN does not take part in the same programs.