and are typically seen between 9pm and 10pm


Some people may roll their eyes at the idea of UFO sightings, while others are certain they have seen alien craft.

Now a data visualisation expert has created a map of the US showing almost 90 years of official UFO sightings, including information such as the time of day they are typically noticed in different months.

The data also reveals that UFO sightings of fireballs are the most common, while egg-shaped craft are the rarest over time.

A data visualisation expert has created a map of the US showing almost 90 years of UFO sightings, including information such as they time of day they are typically noticed in different months. This map shows sightings per capita

John Nelson combined census data with statistics compiled between 1925 and 2014 by the National UFO Reporting Centre to make his maps.

‘Of course, as is the case for any observation data, there is a strong tendency towards echoing a population map’ he wrote on his blog.

‘This is certainly the case with this sighting data, as well. In order to visualise the actual sighting phenomenon, I needed to normalise by the underlying population.’

To do this, he created a map showing sightings by population density, as well as maps based on more complex calculations to build the most accurate maps he could.

Mr Nelson also used the data to create a chart showing UFO shape by sightings, as well as the times which alien craft are commonly spotted. This chart shows that fireball-like UFOs are most commonly seen, while egg-shaped craft are rarer

Mr Nelson said that more fireball-shaped UFOs have been sighted recently, compared to the previously popular disk-shaped craft (illustrated with a stock image), which are popular in sci-fi films such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind

States where UFO sightings are most common include Maine, Washington, Arizona, Nevada, which happens to include Area 51 and New Mexico - the location of the famous Roswell Incident occurred in 1947.

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.

Mr Nelson also used the data to create a chart showing UFO shape by sightings, as well as the times when alien craft are commonly spotted.

‘Most interesting to me is the variability of our concepts of shape and how they reflect our own changing notions of design and certainty through recent decades,’ he told MailOnline.

States where UFO sightings are most common include Maine, Washington, Arizona, Nevada, which happens to include Area 51 and New Mexico - the site of the famous Roswell Incident occurred in 1947, as shown in this image

He said that more fireball-shaped UFOs have been sighted recently, compared to the previously popular disk-shaped craft, which are popular in sci-fi films such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

'Physically analogous shapes like Disk and Egg? So mid-century materialist chic,' he explained. 'Uncertainty? So late-century neo-relativism. Flaming lights? Such millennial clarity.

'No matter the phenomenon, crowd sourced data tends toward a first-order trend of how we see ourselves.

In 1983, just nine per cent of UFO sightings were 'fireballs, compared to 38 per cent in 2013.

Overall, fireball ships are the most commonly seen, according to the data, followed by spherical and then triangular craft.

The most common month for UFO sightings is July, according to the data, with 9,892 reported sightings over all, while between 9pm and 10 pm is the most common time to spot an alien craft.

This may be because people tend to spend more time outside in the summer months.

The most common month for UFO sightings is July, according to the data (pictured), with 9.892 reported sightings over all, while between 9pm and 10 pm is the most common time to spot an alien craft