The Buga Sphere: What Do We Know About Colombia’s Mystery Object?
The Buga sphere is a metal ball said to have flown near Buga, Colombia, in March 2025. José Arias Restrepo, a peanut seller, described encountering it while searching for old coins with a metal detector. A companion reportedly filmed the encounter.
The ball later went to Mexico, where it was presented as a possible mystery object. An age claim followed: a report shared by UFO campaigner Steven Greer listed more than 12,000 radiocarbon years.
But that report dates a sample identified as resin. It does not, by itself, tell us when the metal sphere was made.
From a Coin Hunt to Mexico
The local account published by El País describes the object's early journey. Arias handed it to his cousin David Vélez, who was connected with a metal-detector business in Cali. UFO presenter Jaime Maussan's team then took it to Mexico.
Vélez told the newspaper that the sphere spent two months at his business. He said it did not light up or try to fly during that time, though he claimed its weight increased.
His account of keeping the ball was separate from his cousin's earlier reported encounter. As the object changed hands, different people made claims about what it could do.
Greer, Maussán, and Burlison Discuss the Sphere
A Ball Under the Cameras
Maussan presented the sphere at his offices in the Santa Fe area of Mexico City. Reporter Claudia Lando described the press conference in UnoTV's June 20, 2025 report.
Maussan claimed it contained optical fibers, thin strands that carry light. He said it produced energy and suggested static electricity explained its supposed flight. He also discussed ancient casting methods and proposed further tests of the object's materials and age.
According to Maussan, the sphere would stay in Mexico for examination. Displaying it showed that a physical object was available to inspect. The claims about its history and abilities still needed testing.
Attorney Joshua McDowell attended and wrote a first-person account of the event. He described a ball somewhat larger than a bowling ball, with scratches and pits on its surface. He thought the engravings on one half looked crude, and noted small holes around its middle.
McDowell handled the sphere. He was told it weighed more than nine kilograms, but did not report weighing it himself with checked equipment. He also said he saw paperwork about an analysis of its metal.
He described his role as an observer. Handling the ball did not allow him to determine whether it came from beyond Earth.
Inside Maussan’s Buga Sphere Press Conference
One Word in the Age Report
In September 2025, Greer posted an account of a radiocarbon test. This type of test uses carbon in a sample to estimate its age.
Greer said resin associated with the sphere had been sent to the University of Georgia's Center for Applied Isotope Studies. He linked to a one-page report copy on his site.
The copy shared by Greer is dated September 19, 2025. It labels the sample BGS, identifies the material as resin and gives an age of 12,560, plus or minus 30, BP.
The footnote explains that BP means radiocarbon years before 1950. The reference year is always 1950, rather than the year someone reads the report. The report calls this an uncalibrated age. Another step is needed to estimate the age in calendar years.
The document describes cleaning and testing the sample. It does not date the sphere's construction or identify an alien origin. It also does not provide a complete record of where the resin was collected or how it became linked to the ball. The copy has not been authenticated with the university for this article.
Greer's 2017 documentary Unacknowledged presents his wider claims about hidden technology. It predates the Buga story.
- Steven Greer presents the Disclosure Project testimony behind his claims of concealed extraterrestrial contact.
- Explore his case for hidden technology and UFO secrecy in a documentary built to provoke questions.
- Hear the argument in full and see why Greer's ideas keep drawing viewers into the disclosure debate.
What a Resin Date Can Tell Us
The university's explanation of radiocarbon dating describes why a sample needs preparation. The laboratory must separate the carbon it wants to test from material that may have mixed with it or changed over time. How it does that depends on the sample and its history.
The lab can also provide a calibrated calendar age. Calibration converts the radiocarbon result into an estimate expressed in calendar years. Until that is done, the result should keep its laboratory label.
Even a genuine result would date the material submitted. To date the sphere's manufacture, researchers would need evidence connecting the resin to its construction. An old ingredient could have been used to make a much younger object.
Carl Sagan's The Demon-Haunted World offers broader reading on how to examine extraordinary claims. It is not an investigation of this sphere.
- Develop practical questions for assessing extraordinary claims
- Explore why compelling stories can feel more convincing than the evidence warrants
- Bring a thoughtful scientific perspective to UFOs, mysteries, and unfamiliar ideas
The Sphere Gets a New Assignment
By October 2026, Greer had suggested a possible purpose for the object. As IBTimes UK reported after his appearance on Planet Tyrus, he proposed that such spheres might respond to magnetic changes and work as ancient warning devices.
That proposed function remains unverified, along with the claimed ancient age and alien origin. It has not produced a confirmed prediction of a catastrophe.
Our guide to Greer's Disclosure Project follows his wider campaign. For the Buga sphere, a useful next step would be a clear record of the tested sample: where it came from, who collected it and how it reached the laboratory.
The Disclosure Project & Steven Greer
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