PURSUE Record — PURSUE R02 — Submarine Transmedium Spheres (March 25, 2022): U.S. Department of War / U.S. Navy · Open ocean — U.S. submarine operating area · M

On May 22, 2026, the U.S. Department of War and U.S. Navy released a declassified military sensor video — catalogued as PURSUE R02 — Submarine Transmedium Spheres — documenting an observation made on March 25, 2022 in an open ocean U.S. submarine operating area. The footage shows multiple spherical objects at the air-water interface engaging in what the military formally designates as "transmedium" behavior: movement between two physical media. The record is published in two file parts and remains unresolved by AARO.

What this record contains

Classified as a military sensor video (VID) and released by the U.S. Navy under the PURSUE Release 02 batch on May 22, 2026, this record documents a single incident split across two file parts covering the same event. According to the official description, the footage shows several spherical objects near the surface, "repeatedly observed both 'in and out of water'" — what the military terms transmedium behavior. The objects are described as hovering above the ocean surface before descending into the water. Two separate USO (Unidentified Submerged Object) clips were included in this release. AARO has not assigned a conventional explanation to either segment.

Sensor & operational context

Military submarine platforms operate in one of the most sensor-demanding environments in the U.S. Navy's inventory. Dense acoustic interference, limited sky-frame reference, proximity to the ocean surface, and the refractive properties of the air-water boundary all create conditions where distinguishing atmospheric phenomena, marine biological activity, and genuine hardware anomalies is technically difficult. Unlike the airborne electro-optical and infrared systems behind many of the other PURSUE records, submarine-adjacent footage carries its own interpretive constraints.

The "transmedium" designation is a technical descriptor, not a conclusion. It records that an object was observed transitioning between air and water — it implies nothing about origin, propulsion, or material composition. AARO has applied this designation in several cases where conventional hydrodynamic or aerodynamic behavior does not readily account for what was recorded.

What this does and does not prove

What the record establishes: a U.S. Navy submarine platform recorded multiple spherical objects on March 25, 2022; those objects were observed at the air-water interface; AARO reviewed the footage and did not assign a conventional explanation. What the record does not establish is any identification — whether the transmedium behavior reflects genuine anomalous physics, a sensor artifact, a surface or subsurface vehicle of known type, or an environmental effect. Unresolved means the case has not been explained. It does not confirm anything extraordinary.

How it fits PURSUE Release 01

This case belongs to the May 22, 2026 PURSUE Release 02 batch, which extended the May 8 Release 01 with additional military sensor videos and archived records. Within the broader PURSUE program — which spans AARO-coordinated sensor records, NASA archive materials, and historic FBI files going back to 1947 — this submission is operationally unusual: a submarine-platform observation with documented transmedium characteristics rather than a standard airspace event. You can review the full catalog, including every other case from both releases, on the SkyLens UAP files page and in our PURSUE coverage archive.

Editorial note: This analysis is independent commentary on a publicly released document. The original record, source links, and full release metadata are catalogued on the SkyLens UAP files page alongside every other case in the PURSUE Release 01 set.