Project 10073 Record — Albany, Oregon, 4 August 1965

On 4 August 1965, at 0330Z, a civilian witness located one mile north of Albany, Oregon, reported observing a star-shaped object for approximately 30 to 35 minutes. The witness, a chemical engineer at the Bureau of Mines and a former USMC artilleryman, described the object as bright white, flashing red and white, and moving in a flat arc trajectory from an initial position of 30-35 degrees elevation in the West to 10 degrees elevation in the Northwest before disappearing over the horizon. The sighting occurred on a clear night with unrestricted visibility. The witness observed the object first from inside their house and then from outside. An investigation by Major A. F. Shiflett, Staff Intelligence Officer, included a review of local radar and flight reports. A T-33 aircraft was reported by Mt. Hebo (Site Z-100) flying at 1,000 feet in the same general area, but the investigator concluded that the T-33 would not have been visible for the duration of the reported sighting under normal circumstances. The final conclusion of the Air Force investigation was that the object was the star Arcturus, noting that the star was in the approximate position of the reported object and that the initial elevation reported by the witness was likely in error. The report was assigned a reliability rating of F-6.