Project 10073 Record Card — Flushing, New York, 16 August 1961

This document contains the records for a UFO sighting reported on August 16, 1961, in Flushing, New York. The witness, a high school senior and member of an honor science corps, observed a shiny, silvery object for approximately 10 minutes at 2103 hours. The witness initially reported the sighting via a letter to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in Cleveland, Ohio, on August 17, 1961, describing the object as having a magnitude similar to Saturn and traveling from west to east with a maximum inclination of 70 degrees. The witness provided detailed responses on an Air Force Technical Information Sheet, noting that they were viewing the sky through a telescope when they spotted the object. They described the object's shape as a 'rocket nose cone' and noted that it turned upside down and sideways as it moved across the sky. The witness also provided a sketch of the object and its path. The Foreign Technology Division of the Air Force Systems Command investigated the report. In a letter dated September 11, 1961, Colonel Edward H. Wynn requested further information from the witness, noting that the initial report lacked sufficient detail for a valid conclusion. Following the submission of the completed questionnaire, the official conclusion recorded on the Project 10073 record card was that the object was the Echo I satellite, which was making a pass from the southwest to the northeast at the time of the sighting and was visible from the witness's location.