Project 10073 Record — King Salmon, Alaska, February 1953

This document is an Air Intelligence Information Report regarding a sighting of an unusual light near King Salmon, Alaska, on 7 February 1953. The report details the observations of four individuals, including one USAF officer and three Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) personnel. The witnesses reported seeing a stationary, pulsating light in the sky to the west of the airfield. The light was described as changing color from a reddish-orange to white and occasionally shifting in shape, appearing as an oval or a cylinder. The duration of the observation was approximately six minutes. The witnesses included James N. Burrus, Victor Mahler, and Mrs. Marcelle L. Adair, all of whom provided signed statements. The report notes that the 705th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron radar was checked at the time of the sighting, but nothing unusual was detected. The investigating officer, 1st Lt. William F. Farley, interviewed the witnesses and the airport weather officer. The weather officer confirmed that a temperature inversion was present on the night of the sighting, with clear skies and very cold temperatures. Based on the investigation, the official conclusion reached by the project was that the object was an astronomical phenomenon, most likely the planet Jupiter, as other planets like Mars and Venus had set by 9:00 PM. The report includes the original Project 10073 record, the intelligence report form, and the individual statements provided by the witnesses. The document was prepared by the 10th Air Division (Defense) and evaluated by the Air Technical Intelligence Center. It serves as a case study for identifying sightings that may be misidentified astronomical bodies.