UFO Sighting Report - Lone Pine, California, August 29, 1964

On August 29, 1964, at approximately 10:30 p.m., a civilian witness and their father, an aeronautical engineer, observed an unusual object while hiking down from Mt. Whitney, California. The witness described the object as a light, light red in color, positioned in the east at an elevation of about 20 degrees. The object appeared to move up and down and side to side, occasionally shooting out a light beam, before returning to a 'home spot.' The witness noted that the object seemed to perform maneuvers similar to a jet airplane but with excessive speed. Later, at 11:30 p.m., while at their camp at 12,000 feet, the witnesses observed two additional objects, one on each side of the first, which exhibited similar motions. The witnesses continued to observe these objects until they went to bed at 12:00 a.m. The witness subsequently reported the sighting to the U.S. Air Force in January 1965, leading to the completion of a formal sighting report. The official Air Force conclusion for the incident identified the objects as the planet Jupiter and the stars Formalhaut and Capella, noting that Jupiter was in the position of the reported object.