Project 10073 Record: Sighting in Santiago, Chile, 28 March 1950

This document comprises an intelligence report and a personal statement regarding unidentified aerial phenomena observed in Chile during March 1950. The report, authored by Major Harry L. Mitchell of the U.S. Air Attache office in Chile, details a series of sightings. The first occurred on March 11 in Punta Arenas, where inhabitants reported a silver, ping-pong ball-shaped object at extreme altitude. Professor Frederico Rutland of the University of Chile's Observatorio Astronomico publicly attributed these sightings to the planet Venus. A second series of sightings occurred in the Santiago area on March 24 and 25. The third, and most detailed, sighting occurred on March 28, 1950, involving Master Sergeant Prince Patterson. Patterson, while at the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, observed a crowd looking at the sky. He proceeded to the roof of the Embassy, where he scanned the sky for an hour with field glasses. At 1515 hours, he observed an object traveling from south to north at an extreme rate of speed. He noted the object appeared whiter than any other color and moved in a straight line. He attempted to retrieve a camera to document the object, but upon his return to the roof, it was gone. Patterson provided a diagram of his observation, noting the object's position relative to the sun. In a subsequent comment, Major Mitchell noted that on March 29, the same observer witnessed a silver-colored, stationary object in the same relative position and concluded, after careful observation, that it was the planet Venus rather than a flying disc. Professor Rutland reiterated his assessment that the objects were likely Venus. The document includes a Project 10073 record form summarizing the March 28 incident, which officially classifies the sighting as 'UNIDENTIFIED' despite the observer's later conclusion regarding the stationary object.