Project 10073 Record Card and Correspondence — Nashville/Memphis Sighting, May 1961

This document collection details the investigation into a UFO sighting reported on May 27, 1961, over Nashville and Memphis, Tennessee. A civilian witness reported a large, silver, triangular-shaped object moving slowly from west to east at a high altitude. The sighting was observed by multiple parties, including a local television employee who viewed the object through a telescope and identified it as a balloon with a box and cable attached. Two Navy pilots from the Memphis Naval Air Station were scrambled to intercept the object, which they estimated to be at 47,000 feet. They also judged the object to be a balloon. The Nashville Tennessean newspaper reported on the event, noting that the object was brilliantly lit and appeared to be at 60,000 feet. The Air Force's Aerospace Technical Intelligence Center (ATIC) investigated the report, concluding that the object was a high-altitude balloon, likely a radiosonde. ATIC officials explained that the balloon's configuration, combined with the angle of reflected sunlight, often gives these devices a metallic appearance and unusual shapes. They further clarified that balloons expand as they rise due to decreasing atmospheric pressure, which can lead to spectacular visual effects. The correspondence includes a request from ATIC to acquire a photograph taken by one of the Navy pilots, as well as internal communications between Air Force personnel regarding the identification of the object. The investigation concluded that the sighting was consistent with the characteristics of high-altitude weather balloons launched from various locations across the United States.