Project 10073 Record Card and Air Intelligence Information Report — St. Petersburg, Florida, 22 September 1956

This document contains an Air Intelligence Information Report and a Project 10073 Record Card regarding an Unidentified Flying Object sighting in St. Petersburg, Florida, on 22 September 1956. The incident was reported by a restaurant employee who observed a round, white object with port holes or windows emitting light for approximately seven minutes. The witness, who observed the object from a second-floor screened porch using 8x56 binoculars, described the object as having a light-emitting structure that appeared to condense and fade at the same spot. The witness reported feeling both frightened and fascinated by the experience. The report notes that the object was estimated to be at an altitude of 1500 feet, positioned over the Gulf of Mexico. Military intelligence officers from the 305th Bomb Wing and the 680th Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron investigated the report. Meteorological data for the area indicated temperature inversions at 1750 and 3200 feet. Investigators considered the possibility that the object was the planet Mars, which was located at 20 degrees elevation and 230 degrees azimuth, while the object was reported at 30 degrees elevation and 230 degrees azimuth. However, the official conclusion remained that there was insufficient data to definitively identify the object. The documentation includes sketches of the object as viewed through binoculars, showing a structure with multiple light-emitting openings. Administrative notes reveal a delay in the reporting process, as the 680th ACW Squadron was not notified of the sighting until 26 September 1956, four days after the initial report was taken by Captain B. R. Cowan.