
A map that reveals every official sighting of a UFO over the past 76 years suggests that we are experiencing more cosmic traffic than ever before.

Many of the sightings can be put down to the development of drones and new aircraft technologies, but some enthusiasts believe it is because of rise in alien activity.

The interactive map was created by writer Levi Pearson, who used a UFO sighting dataset from the National UFO Reporting Centre and open source software from CartoDB.

Click on the map below to find out if aliens have been spotted in your neighbourhood

A map shows sightings of extra-terrestrials around the world in the last 76 years – and seems to suggest we have more cosmic visitors than ever. It was created by writer Levi Pearson, who used a UFO sighting dataset from the National UFO Reporting Centre and open source software from CartoDB

Published in the QuantBait website, it begins in 1933 with the first UFO sightings being spotted over California and Nebraska in the US, the UK and France in Europe, and locations in Japan and Australia.

The number of sightings increases dramatically between the 1940s and the 1960s across the world, according to the map.

In the US, sightings documented during the 1940s include the famous Battle of Los Angeles and Roswell UFO Incident.

On February 25 1942, radar operators spotted a UFO within 120 miles (193km) of Los Angeles that moved at incredible speed before vanishing.

The UFO map (pictured) was created by writer Levi Pearson, who used a UFO sighting dataset from the National UFO Reporting Centre and open source software from CartoDB. Its shows that the number of sightings increases dramatically between the 1940s and the 1960s

Explanations for UFO sightings are just as vague as for aliens themselves, and could be down to the development of drones and new aircraft technologies – or a genuine rise in alien activity. An illustration of a flying saucer is pictured

The map shows a dramatic rise in the number of UFO sightings during the 1950s and 1960s. While this could indicate ore alien activity, the CIA recently claimed that half of UFO sightings in the US were linked to them testing U2 spy planes (pictured) at altitudes of 60,000 ft

An artillery officer said he saw 25 craft flying at 25,000ft (7,620 metres) and other eye witnesses reported seeing swarms of balloon-shaped objects flying at around 200mph (320km/h).

Fearing the city was under attack, officials fired at the aircraft but no evidence of damage was ever found, prompting people to speculate the UFOs were from another world.

And in 1947 the Roswell Incident occurred, which is still the source of speculation today.

The US military claimed they recovered a secret research balloon that had crashed, but conspiracy theorists say the wreckage of an alien craft was discovered and hidden.

While it’s possible that there were more UFO visitations during the decade, officials at the time put it down to people being nervous about World War II, and seeing objects in the sky.

Nigel Watson, author of the UFO Investigations Manual, told MailOnline: ‘Sightings of strange things in the sky have been reported for centuries, though it was only with them being labelled as flying saucers or UFOs that people began to realise that this is a worldwide phenomenon.

‘UFO sightings often come in sudden and short-lived periods, which ufologists call flaps or waves.

'Often specific locations seem to be highly attractive to UFOs, and these locations are known as UFO window areas or UFO portals.

The British version of Roswell reportedly took place over Christmas in 1980. It occurred in Rendlesham Forest, Suffolk, next to RAF military bases. Soldiers reported unusual lights and when they investigated, found a metal object with coloured lights (UFO map of UK shown)

Thanks to the rise in popularity of sci-fi films and an increase in UFO sightings, aliens were very much in the public consciousness in the 1960s. Here, Dr H Allen Hyneck, an astrophysicist at Northwestern University says at a press conference in 1966, that a photo claiming to show a UFO is a time exposure of the crescent moon and the planet Venus

FAMOUS UFO SIGHTINGS IN THE UK The British version of Roswell reportedly took place over Christmas in 1980. It occurred in Rendlesham Forest, which is next to RAF military bases. Soldiers reportedly saw unusual lights and when they investigated, found a metal object with coloured lights. But as they approached the 'craft', it moved away, frightening farm animals. The incident is unexplained, but some people say the lights were reflections from a nearby lighthouse and the craft may have been a secret weapon. On March 31, 1992, high speed white objects were spotted in the skies and an officer at RAF Cosford and Shawbury spotted a large triangular craft hovering at 200ft, which was humming and shining a spotlight. The incident was reported to the Ministry of Defence and sceptics say it could be explained by a nearby police tracking helicopter or a Russian rocket re-entering the atmosphere. Advertisement

‘In the UK, Warminster, Cannock Chase and Bonnybridge are the most famous UFO window areas.'

Bonnybridge is known as the UFO capital of Scotland and there are said to be some 300 sightings every year, although not all of these are shown on the map.

Cannock Chase in the Midlands has been a UFO hotbed since the1960s when there were first reports of a crashed craft, and earlier this year, residents reported seeing slow-moving aircraft making a loud buzzing noise moving across the sky.

There appear to be repeated UFO sightings in the Midlands shown on the map during the 1960s, with clusters of activity also seen in the Netherlands, Germany and other parts of central Europe.

There is a marked increase in sightings on the map during the 1950s and 1960s, all across the US shown on the map.

It is worth noting, however, that some famous sightings are missing, such as reports of flying saucers over Washington DC in 1952.

Last year, the CIA took credit for half of the UFO reports in the 1950s and 1960s and as sci-fi films gained popularity such as Invaders from Mars, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Invasion of the Body Snatchers, it’s possible aliens were higher in the public conscious than ever before.

The CIA said that UFO sightings were directly correlated to them testing U2 spy planes at altitudes of 60,000 ft (18,288 metres) - a feat of engineering that was not possible before.

Reports suggest that the CIA soon realised that UFO sightings lined up with the place and time the U-2 planes were flying, but that they purposefully chose not to let people know that what they were seeing were not aliens to keep the tests firmly under wraps.

However, this does not explain the 1966 Westall Encounter in Australia, when some 200 students and teachers in Melbourne claim to have seen a UFO land in a suburban field, before taking off again. But once again, sceptics say the UFO was an experimental military aircraft.

The map also shows a famous UFO sighting in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1986, when military aircraft were sent to intercept 20 UFOs, which showed up on radar.

The mysterious flying objects disappeared when fighter jets gave chase, leading some people to say the UFOs were technically-superior alien craft.

However, a British space researcher called Geoffrey Perry claimed that the UFOs were actually pieces of debris thrown out of the Soviet space station, Salyut-7, which burned up in the atmosphere, Stylist reported.

In Europe, the map shows many sightings over Belgium, between 1989 and 1990, which is known as the Belgium Wave.

At that time, some 13,500 people claimed to have seen huge black triangles flying silently through the skies.

While the incident was tracked by Nato radar and investigated by the country's military, nothing unusual was found and sceptics believe the sightings may have been of ordinary helicopters.

From the mid-1990s onwards, the explosion of sightings intensify on the map, with large concentrations over the West Coast and the whole eastern half of the US, from Texas.

The map shows the whole of Europe ablaze with circles indicating UFO sightings, as well as areas of western Africa, India, South East Asia and South America.

Some believe that the increase in sightings over the past 20 years could be down to the widespread uptake of the internet, which allowed people to share sightings more easily than before (UFO map focused on Australia pictured)

The map shows a famous UFO sighting in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1986, when military aircraft were sent to intercept 20 UFOs, as well as numerous sightings in South Africa and other parts of the continent, which have been reported in recent years. UFO maps of South America (left) and Africa (right) are shown

The global nature of the sightings suggests this could be down to the widespread uptake of the internet, which allowed people to share sightings more easily than before.

Mr Watson said: ‘With the coming of the internet it is easier for people to report UFO sightings and this is probably one reason for a rise in sightings.

‘We should also acknowledge that Chinese lanterns and the increased deployment of drones are responsible for greater amounts of sightings.’

In 2008, a guard at Yeni Kent Compound in Turkey claimed to have filmed UFOs and the footage is said by some to be among the most important UFO images. There is no explanation for the encounter, in a similar way to a sighting in Warden in South Africa, where a police officer said he saw an enormous oval-shaped, orange light in 2000.

In 2007, eyewitnesses in Kolkata, India said they saw a fast-moving, glowing object which was a cross between a sphere and a triangle.

And in 2013, in Bracknell, Berkshire, two glowing 'flying saucers' were photographed hovering in the skies above a pub and new of 'visitors' quickly spread online.

John Wickman, Chairman of the British UFO Association (Bufora) said: 'Technology is vastly progressing and a very large number of sightings no matter where they are in the world can be attributed to modern military craft that have been misidentified.'

‘Just because a UFO report is made does not mean that the object originates from anywhere other than the Earth,’ he cautioned.

Mr Watson said: ‘On the other hand, the internet allows access to greater amounts of information and enables us to discuss reports from lots of different angles, from the extreme sceptical viewpoints to the most outlandish conspiracy rumours.