Last month, we looked at the work of Harvard astrophysicist Dr. Avi Loeb, head of The Galileo Project, and the discoveries his team made off the coast of Papua New Guinea. He was searching for the remnants of an interstellar meteor named IM1 (Interstellar Meteor One) using magnet sleds they dragged over the floor of the ocean. The tiny metallic spherules they located turned out to be amazing during scientific analysis, almost certainly having come from beyond our solar system and potentially (though not definitely… yet) technological in nature. Testing continues, but now a new wrinkle has entered the story. Officials in Papua New Guinea were reportedly “enraged” about the expedition, claiming that Loeb may have “stolen” the material without going through the proper channels to obtain permission to conduct his research. So they’re calling one of the preeminent scientists of the current era a thief? Give us a break. (Daily Mail)

A UFO chasing Harvard astrophysicist who recovered meteor fragments that may prove alien life exists has been accused of stealing and not having the correct scientific research permits for retrieval.

Professor Avi Loeb announced last month that he and his team had successfully recovered fragments of the IM1 meteor that plunged to the Earth in January 2014 and ended up in the sea off Manus Island 260 miles from Papua New Guinea…

But the removal of the scientific marvel has left Papua New Guinea officials enraged many accusing the team of bypassing the conventional licenscing channels and removing the foreign object without clear agreement on the benefits such a discovery would have for the country.

It’s challenging to see precisely what has the local officials so bent out of shape beyond basic greed or jealousy. First of all, Loeb’s team was hundreds of miles from the mainland of Papua New Guinea. They were off of Manus Island, so it’s not entirely clear where their territorial waters end.

The officials are claiming that Loeb took away something that may have provided “benefits” to their country. Are they implying that the spherules have some tremendous value that they’ve been “robbed” of? We’re talking about a total amount of material that is the equivalent of a few dozen grains of sand. And the government had no idea whatsoever that they were even there. Nobody knew they were there until Dr. Loeb figured it out after a lengthy investigation.

Also, these are not “natural resources,” the removal of which would clearly require permits and an agreement. They literally fell from the sky. And yet they are suggesting that Dr. Loeb could be arrested.

The benefits from this discovery, whatever they turn out to be, will be the advancement of scientific knowledge. And Dr. Loeb is sharing the science that is being revealed at no cost to the entire world, including the scientific community of Papua New Guinea. Do they really think they have anyone down there who could have pulled this off on their own? Please pardon me if I seem a bit skeptical.

You can read some of the latest updates from Dr. Loeb’s team here and keep up with the investigation. They are beginning the in-depth analysis of the various elements in the material. And they are still insisting the signs point to something that may have been technological in nature. This is some seriously exciting work.