Air Intelligence Information Report: Sighting at Deer Creek Springs, Nevada, 26 July 1953

This Air Intelligence Information Report details a sighting of an unidentified flying object on 26 July 1953, near Deer Creek Springs, Nevada. Two civilian employees from the Aero Maintenance Section at Nellis Air Force Base observed the object for approximately one hour. The witnesses, who were on a picnic, initially spotted the object with the naked eye and subsequently used seven-power and ten-power binoculars to observe it in greater detail. They described the object as a round, silvery, metallic craft, approximately 100 feet in diameter, appearing at an estimated altitude of 70,000 to 75,000 feet. The object remained largely stationary, exhibiting slight wavering and occasional turning, and was observed trailing a light, whitish vapor intermittently. The witnesses reported that the object had no sound. After watching the object for an hour, the witnesses looked away for five minutes, and upon returning their attention to the sky, found that the object had disappeared. Captain Curvin E. Miller, Jr., the Group Intelligence Officer at Nellis AFB, interviewed the witnesses and concluded that they were sincere and reliable. The report notes that there were no aircraft in the area at the time of the sighting. Following an investigation and coordination with the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC), the official conclusion reached was that the object was likely an upper air research balloon, based on balloon tracking data received from Lowry Air Force Base.