Project 10073 Record Card and Incident Report — Texas/Louisiana, July 1960

On July 5, 1960, at 2116 CST, pilots operating seven different military aircraft over the Texas and Louisiana region observed an unidentified aerial phenomenon. The sighting was reported by personnel stationed at Harlingen Air Force Base. The object was observed at an altitude of 9000 feet. Witnesses described the phenomenon as a lime green object with a tail of flame or sparks that exhibited a whitish glow. The object maintained a constant, relatively slow speed while traveling in a descending arc from the northwest to the southeast. The duration of the observation was approximately six seconds. The phenomenon appeared to explode at the point of flameout. The visibility conditions at the time were described as unlimited, occurring under bright moonlight. The sighting was reported to the Air Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) and L.G. Hanscom Field for Project Space Track. The official conclusion reached by the evaluating authorities was that the phenomenon possessed all the characteristics of a bolide, or astronomical meteor. The report was classified as confidential to conform with existing USAF message protocols.