PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD - Hartford, Connecticut - 10 July 1957

On July 10, 1957, at 2330Z, an observer located at 476 Capitol Avenue in Hartford, Connecticut, reported sighting an unidentified aerial object. The witness described the object as a brilliant white light, unevenly round in shape, and approximately ten times larger than a star. The object maintained a steady course from West to East, passing directly overhead at an angle of elevation of 50 degrees and an azimuth of 90 degrees. The observation lasted for approximately 45 minutes, during which the object was viewed both with the naked eye and through binoculars. Weather conditions at the time were reported as excellent with unlimited ceiling and high visibility. The report notes that there were no other observers at the location and that the nearest air traffic consisted only of light private planes at Brainard Field. Following the incident, the Air Force Research Center at Cambridge identified the object as a Moby Dick balloon, which had been released from Vernalis, California. This identification was supported by numerous reports of similar objects across New England, including sightings in New Haven, Boston, and Brunswick, Maine, as documented in various press reports from the New York World-Telegram & Sun, the Newark Star-Ledger, and the New York Herald Tribune.