We're wrapping up our live coverage of the mystery surrounding flying objects that have been spotted in several states around New Jersey and its neighbouring states.

Here's what we know as of now:

• Possible drone sightings have now been reported in the US states of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and Maryland

• Officials at the White House and the defence department have said that the flying objects do not appear to pose any danger to the public or to US national security
• US lawmakers are increasingly demanding answers from investigators, after several prominent politicians posted videos that they had taken themselves of the drone swarms
• President-elect Donald Trump has called for the mystery drones to be shot down
• The FBI has already received more than 3,000 tips from people who say they have seen the drones. Investigators are appealing for more information from witnesses, including specific times, locations, and video and photo evidence
• The sightings have captivated the public, as they eagerly watch for updates on the unidentified objects
• On Friday, authorities searched a field where a drone was reported to have crashed into power cables, but found no evidence that it was ever there

Read more on what we know about the mysterious drones buzzing over New Jersey

The New York State Police have released a statement with an update on efforts to identify the source of the drones, and appealing for the public to help.

"The New York State Police have received numerous reports of drone sighting over the past 24 hours," the statement says, adding that the department is working with federal and local law enforcement through the New York State Intelligence Center.

"We have no evidence at this point that any of the reported sightings pose a public safety threat," the statement continues.

It adds that people who have seen the drones should "report sightings via email with time, date, location, and any pictures or video" to the email address crimetip@troopers.ny.gov.

President-elect Donald Trump, who will take office next month, is the latest to weigh in on the drone mystery.

"Mystery Drone sightings all over the Country," he writes in a post on his social media site, Truth Social.

"Can this really be happening without our government’s knowledge. I don't think so! Let the public know, and now. Otherwise, shot [sic] them down!!!"

US military officials have said that the drones do not appear to be a threat, but that base commanders are authorised to shoot them down if they do act threateningly.

Local officials in all of the states affected have been reminding the public that it is illegal to take the matter into their own hands and try shooting them out of the air themselves.

Multiple drones have been sighted over Naval Weapons Station Earle, in Colts Neck, New Jersey, as well as other nearby military installations.

"While no direct threats to the installation have been identified, we can confirm multiple instances of unidentified drones entering the airspace above Naval Weapons Station Earle," a spokesperson for the military base confirmed in a statement to CBS, the BBC's US news partner.

"The base remains prepared to respond to any potential risks, leveraging robust security measures and advanced detection capabilities."

We can now bring you some footage from New Jersey Senator Andy Kim, who was out with local police drone-spotting last night and recorded some of what he saw.

Kim describes the sightings as sometimes appearing with a solid white light, while at other times they flashed red and green.

In a post on X, he says they often saw five to seven lights at a time, which were "low and not associated with aircraft we could see on the tracker app".

The BBC has not verified the footage.

Image source, Matt Percey/BBC

Drones have been spotted at US airbases in the UK and reportedly in Germany in recent weeks.

In the UK, drones have been spotted near bases including RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath in Suffolk, and RAF Feltwell in Norfolk.

In the village of Beck Row, Suffolk, which is situated next to RAF Mildenhall, residents reported brightly lit aerial vehicles hovering above their houses and over the base itself.

And just today drones have reportedly been sighted near the Ramstein US air base in Germany, according to Reuters news agency.

German news site Der Spiegel also reported that drones had been seen over an arms manufacturer and a chemical company there. The BBC has not verified these reports.

The US Secret Service has confirmed that it is not flying any drones in the area where the sightings have occurred.

“The US Secret Service does not currently have any unmanned aerial systems operating in or around New Jersey or New York,” the agency told NBC News on Friday.

The Secret Service provides protection to current and former presidents and their families, as well as visiting heads of state or government.

Over the past few hours Connecticut state police say they've been made aware of "suspicious" drone activity reported across the state.

The state police force says it has deployed a drone detection system to support investigations in response to sightings throughout New England. At this stage, the force adds, they're set up in the Groton and New London area.

"Our personnel have been monitoring all UAS [Unmanned aircraft system] flights in the area and have, and will continue to, report all suspicious flights to our both federal and local partners in law enforcement."

The police say they're "monitoring all UAS flights in the area," adding: "there is no known threat to the public at this time".

Larry Hogan, former Republican governor for Maryland, says he saw for himself "what appeared to be dozens of large drones in the sky" above his Davidsonville home on Thursday night.

Hogan says the sightings began at around 21:45 local time, and lasted "for approximately 45 minutes".

"The public is growing increasingly concerned and frustrated with the complete lack of transparency and the dismissive attitude of the federal government," he says, adding that "people are rightfully clamouring for answers but aren't getting any".

In his view, neither the White House, the military, the FBI nor Homeland Security "have any idea what they [drones] are, where they came from, or who has launched or is controlling them".

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Thursday many of the reported drone sightings are manned aircraft operating lawfully.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
US reporter

A spate of mysterious drone sightings in the US are not the work of an Iranian "mothership" lurking off the east coast, the Pentagon says.

Dozens of drone-like objects have been spotted across New Jersey in recent weeks, including near sensitive military locations in the state and close to President-elect Donald Trump's golf course in the town of Bedminster.

A US congressman Jeff Van Drew claimed he had heard from "high sources" that the flying objects were tied to Iran.

Speaking to Fox News, the New Jersey Republican said the drones were coming from an Iranian "mothership" in the Atlantic.

But deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh flatly rejected the claims, telling a briefing on Wednesday: "There is no truth to that.

"There is no Iranian ship off the coast of the United States, and there's no so-called mothership launching drones towards the United States."

The Pentagon's initial assessment, Singh added, is that "these are not drones coming from a foreign entity or adversary".

New York Governor Kathy Hochul says she’s aware that residents have spotted what appear to be drones flying overhead during the past week and the reports are being investigated.

In the last couple of hours she posted on X to say “there’s no evidence that these drones pose a public safety or national security threat”, and her team are working alongside the FBI and Homeland Security “to protect New Yorkers”.

Her comments come after the Pentagon had to issue a statement clarifying that mysterious drone sightings were not the work of an Iranian “mothership” lurking off the east coast – a claim that had been made by US congressman Jeff Van Drew.

Nada Tawfik
Reporting from New York

I live in New Jersey and just last night, my husband and I were on the phone with relatives comparing drone sightings.

We counted three likely drones in our area of Union, New Jersey, with blinking white and red lights.

My sister-in-law lives in Somerset county, where there have been far more appearances over the last few weeks, and her family counted more than ten that they could see from their house.

The mystery has captivated my friends and family, who’ve all had different theories and reactions. But humour and curiosity is beginning to cross into slight concern, given that no-one seems to have any answers or explanations.

In Hillsborough, New Jersey, there were reports that a drone had crashed. Could it finally have provided some clues? Turns out, it was a false alarm. So the mystery continues.

Rowan Bridge
North America correspondent

Who’s behind the sudden appearance of the drones which have been as large as two metres remains a mystery.

The FBI has received more than 3,000 tips from the public about the flying objects, most of which have been seen at night. They first started to appear in the skies over New Jersey in mid-November and have been spotted across several states since.

New Jersey governor Phil Murphy wrote a letter to President Joe Biden about it, and he says the sightings have prompted more questions than answers and sparked conspiracy theories online.

On Thursday New York’s two senators wrote to federal authorities requesting a briefing on what was being done to "identify the source of the incursions”.

The White House says there’s no evidence the drone sightings pose a national security or a public safety threat.

Dozens of drone sightings have been reported over New Jersey since 18 November, according to local authorities.

The drones were initially spotted near the Raritan River, a waterway which feeds into the Round Valley Reservoir - the largest in New Jersey, the Associated Press reported.

The sightings soon spread to other parts of the state, including New Jersey's coast.

In nearby New York City, several drones were reported flying over the Bronx on 12 December, a police official told CBS News, the BBC's US partner.

Officers who responded to the incident saw the drones flying overhead, but they disappeared soon afterwards.

In Maryland, former Republican Governor Larry Hogan claimed he saw what appeared to be "dozens" of drones over his residence in Davidsonville, approximately 25 miles (40km) from Washington DC.

Drone sightings have also been reported in several counties in Pennsylvania.

And now authorities are looking into reports of drone sightings in Connecticut, with the emergency services deploying a drone detection system to investigate, the police say.

Alys Davies
Live page editor

Hello and welcome to our live coverage as the case of mysterious drone sightings across New Jersey and New York this week have left residents and lawmakers alike demanding answers as to who's behind them.

In New Jersey, where drones are being regularly spotted over the state, lawmakers are calling for answers from federal agencies involved in investigating the sightings.

The White House, Pentagon and Homeland Security (DHS) have all said there's no evidence that the reported drone appearances state-wide pose a threat to national security.

"It appears that many of the reported sightings are actually manned aircraft, operating lawfully", the FBI and DHS have said in a statement.

Stay with us as we bring you more on this story.