Project 10073 Record Card: Sighting near Cape Canaveral, Florida, 4 November 1961

On November 4, 1961, at 040545Z, a 24-year-old machine shop operator for Pan American Airways reported a sighting of two unidentified objects north of Cape Canaveral, Florida. The witness described the objects as circular in shape, approximately the size of a basketball, and bright green in color. The objects were observed separately, appearing five minutes apart, and were visible for five seconds each. The witness reported that the objects appeared to be falling straight down, at an altitude of 12 to 15 degrees above the horizon, and made no sound. The observation was made under excellent weather conditions without the use of optical aids. Following the report, an investigation was conducted by the Deputy for Foreign Technology. The investigation confirmed that there was no missile activity at Cape Canaveral at the time of the sighting. After checking all available sources with negative results for other identifications, the official conclusion reached was that the objects were likely astronomical in nature, specifically meteor sightings associated with the Taurid meteor stream. No physical evidence was recovered, and the witness's reliability was considered to be good.