Project 10073 Record Card: Sighting near Hamar, Norway, 20 July 1958

This document consists of a Project 10073 record card and associated teletype communications regarding an aerial sighting on July 20, 1958. At approximately 21:24 local time, the crew of a US Naval aircraft flying at 8,000 feet, 12 miles north of Hamar, Norway, observed two bright, pale-white, oblong objects. The objects, described as being twice the size of a jet aircraft and shaped like rockets, were traveling on a 330-degree course. The witnesses reported that the objects left blue-white gas trails approximately seven times their length and emitted sparks from their aft ends. No sound was reported. During the observation, which lasted between 5 and 10 seconds, one object appeared to veer off as they passed the aircraft. The sighting was also reported by four ground observers in Oslo, Norway, on the same evening. Intelligence reports from the period indicate that the Stockholm Observatory believed the phenomenon was an unusually bright meteor. Similarly, reports from Finland describe a bright object seen at 22:00 on the same date, characterized as having a long tail and being shaped like a goblet. The official conclusion recorded by the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) suggests that the objects were meteors and that the perceived veering motion was an optical illusion. The documentation includes internal notes questioning whether other reports had been filed and expressing an intent to follow up with the Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNOAF).