My father worked for decades in the research laboratory of a multinational company, General Electric.  He talked about an interesting presentation that he saw by Irving Langmuir, a scientist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.  The talk was about pathological science.

According to Langmuir, pathological science has the following symptoms:

1. The maximum effect that is observed is produced by a causative agent of barely detectable intensity, and the magnitude of the effect is substantially independent of the intensity of the cause.
2. The effect is of a magnitude that remains close to the limit of detectability; or, many measurements are necessary because of the very low statistical significance of the results.
3. Claims of great accuracy.
4. Fantastic theories contrary to experience.
5. Criticisms are met by ad hoc excuses thought up on the spur of the moment.
6. Ratio of supporters to critics rises up to somewhere near 50% and then falls gradually to oblivion.

Source: https://www.cs.princeton.edu/~ken/Langmuir/langmuir.htm

In his presentation, Langmuir presented ESP and flying saucers as examples of pathological science.  After his presentation, the label has been applied to cold fusion and to polywater.

Sometimes, what appears to be pathological science turns out not to be pathological science as more evidence becomes available.  I would argue that flying saucers (UFOs) fall into this category.

Langmuir categorized flying saucers as pathological science based on his work with Project Sign.  Technological advances have made it easier to track UFOs than was the case when Langmuir was alive.

In recent decades, governments have released multi-mode (visual, radar, and infra red) evidence that UFOs (unidentified flying objects) or UAPs (unidentified aerial or anomalous phenomena) exist.  Videos from military aircraft show UFOs with performance characteristics that far exceed the capabilities of human-made aircraft.  Whistleblowers such as David Grusch, an ex-Pentagon officer, have also provided testimony that advanced alien aircraft exist, and that the U.S. government has recovered some of these aircraft, as well as non-human remains at UFO crash sites.

Bob Lazar, who used to work at Area 51 in Nevada, has said that he worked on a recovered alien craft.

The former Canadian Minister of Defense, Paul Hellyer, said that there are groups of aliens that are in contact with the U.S. and with other countries.

The French government has also released information about UFOs, as this video reveals.

In summary, we should understand what pathological science is, while also understanding that Langmuir may have been wrong when he asserted that flying saucers are examples of pathological science.