Project 10073 Record Card: Satellite Sighting by USS MARYSVILLE

On 7 February 1963, at approximately 1230 GMT, the crew of the USS MARYSVILLE (EPCER-857) observed an unidentified object while at position 15.34N, 100.48W. The object was first sighted at a bearing of 147 degrees T, at an altitude of 42 degrees, appearing slightly lower than the star Antares. The object moved in a northward direction and disappeared on a bearing of 035 degrees T. The total duration of the observation was five minutes. The weather conditions were reported as broken Cumulus and Cirrus clouds, with an air temperature of 81 degrees Fahrenheit and calm seas. The sighting was formally documented on a Project 10073 Record Card. The official conclusion reached by the evaluating agency was that the object was a satellite, noting that the sighting was characteristic of such an object and not a UFO. A memorandum from the U.S. Naval Oceanographic Office, dated 19 February 1963, forwarded the report from the USS MARYSVILLE to J. S. Lacey at NASA, Greenbelt, for his information. The document includes technical data tables for satellite tracking, specifically referencing the ECHO satellite.