Project 10073 Record Card — Oak Ridge, Tennessee, 18 June 1958

This document details a UFO sighting report filed under Project 10073, concerning an event on June 18, 1958, in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The witness, Lt. Soward of the K-25 Carbide Chemical facility, reported observing a round, silver, basketball-sized object at a very high altitude. The object was seen moving in a straight line toward the southwest for a duration of approximately two minutes. The report includes a series of communications between the 663rd ACWRON and the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. Initial investigations sought to clarify the wind conditions and potential balloon launches in the area to rule out conventional explanations. Subsequent analysis by military personnel, including 1st Lt. William J. Duke, suggested that the sighting was likely an aircraft. The investigation noted that at the time of the sighting (7:30 PM), the sun was low on the horizon. It was hypothesized that the object was an aircraft engaged in chaff drops, and that the 'shining silver' appearance was a result of the low-angle sunlight reflecting off the aircraft's fuselage or the chaff itself. The report concludes that the phenomenon was likely an aircraft at high altitude, noting that the aircraft was approximately 100 to 125 miles from the sighting location at the time. The file includes internal memos, a sketch of the observer's position relative to traffic airways and the sun, and official message forms documenting the inquiry process.