Project 10073 Record Card and Associated Staff Messages — 23 October 1962

On 23 October 1962, at 2025Z, aircraft crewmembers reported a sighting of an unidentified aerial object in the Atlantic region at coordinates 60-14N 13-36W. The object was described as a single, round, white light, comparable in size to a first-magnitude star. The witnesses observed the object moving relative to the stars, tracking it through a 65-degree arc over a duration of 10 minutes before it passed behind the aircraft. The weather conditions at the time were reported as unlimited ceiling and visibility with no clouds. The aircraft was flying at 4000 feet with a true airspeed of 240 degrees. Initial reports suggested the object might have characteristics of an orbital element, leading to an initial classification as a satellite. However, subsequent analysis by NAVSPASUR (Naval Space Surveillance) of orbital elements determined that no satellites of suitable size or orbital characteristics were present in the vicinity of the reported coordinates at the time of the sighting. The report explicitly notes that there was no radar contact and no physical evidence associated with the event.