Incident Report — Modesto, California, 3 September 1953

On the evening of 3 September 1953, a newspaper photographer and a reporter from the Modesto Bee observed a yellowish-white light at approximately 7:45 p.m. PDT. The light appeared to be positioned about ten degrees above the horizon in the direction of the Modesto Airport. The witnesses reported that the object remained stationary before moving a distance of about one mile east and vanishing. They initially believed it to be an aircraft with its landing light on, flying the upwind leg at the airport. Following the sighting, the photographer set up his Speed Graphic camera on the roof of the newspaper building, oriented east, and left the shutter open for approximately four hours. The resulting photograph captured an elliptical light. Upon developing the film on 8 September 1953, the photographer, unable to explain the image, contacted Castle Air Force Base. An investigation was conducted by the 93d Bomb Wing, involving a visit to Modesto by an OSI agent and a Public Information Officer representative. The investigation determined that the exposure was made between 8:20 p.m. on 3 September and 12:15 a.m. on 4 September, with the camera located 40 feet above the street. Civil Defense ground observers on duty during the time of the exposure reported seeing a small aircraft with its landing light on, flying the traffic pattern at Modesto Airport between 10:15 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. The preparing officer concluded that the elliptical light captured in the photograph was the result of the flash of an aircraft landing light, noting the coincidence of the runway's orientation and the location of the observed aircraft. The report includes maps of the area and references to Project Blue Book.