Report of Unidentified Flying Object Sighted on 8 August 1956 in General Vicinity of Quartsite, Arizona

This document is a collection of records regarding a sighting of an unidentified flying object on August 8, 1956, in the vicinity of Quartsite, Arizona. The primary record is a Project 10073 Record Card, supplemented by a Spot Intelligence Report (File 24-448) dated September 25, 1956, and a transmittal letter from the Headquarters United States Air Force dated October 8, 1956. The sighting involved one object, described by civilian witnesses as a bluish-white light, roughly the size of a dime to a quarter when held at arm's length. The object was observed for approximately five to seven minutes, traveling at a high rate of speed in a northerly direction at an estimated altitude of 40,000 to 50,000 feet. The witnesses reported that the object did not change color, altitude, or speed, and emitted no sound, vapor trail, or exhaust. One witness, an attorney from San Diego, California, was interviewed by a Special Agent of the Office of Special Investigations on August 23, 1956. He stated that he was camping approximately 10 miles east of Highway 95 when he observed the object while lying in a sleeping bag. He noted that the object appeared elliptical and pulsated. He explicitly ruled out weather balloons, meteors, or conventional aircraft, and briefly considered the possibility of a launched space station. The Air Force investigation concluded that there was insufficient data to identify the object. The documents are marked as unclassified and were handled under the provisions of AFR 124-1, which prohibited the release of investigative information to unauthorized persons. The file includes a summary of the witness's account, which emphasizes the clarity of the night sky and the witness's inability to reconcile the object's behavior with known aerial phenomena.