Tom DeLonge’s obsession with aliens is well documented.

He has held steady in his interest and research for decades, schooling a sincerely-interested Larry King, befriending operatives at the CIA, and generally sitting on the sane side of a pretty insane topic.

For example, as he explains in this in-depth interview on Spacing Out, most UFO sightings aren’t crazy people in fields drinking moonshine, but in fact people seeing actual, classified aircraft being tested by the U.S government for future war scenarios.

Now DeLonge is using his money and power to launch To The Stars Academy of Arts & Science, an organisation made up of scientists, aerospace engineers, and creatives who will explore the “outer edges of science”, using technology to push research past the usual red tape-restricted stalling points.

“The public interest in the outer edges of science and the understanding of phenomena has always been suffocated by mainstream ideology and bureaucratic constraint,” DeLonge said in a statement.

“We believe there are discoveries within our reach that will revolutionise the human experience, but they can only be accomplished through the unrestricted support of breakthrough research and innovation.”

A crowdfunding campaign has already raised more than $200,000 – considering DeLonge has some moneyed up friends in high places, expect this venture to be well very funded.

Watch the announcement video below, plus some of DeLonge’s earlier work on the topic.

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