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Declassified UFO / UAP Document

PROJECT 10073 RECORD - Little Rock, Arkansas - 16 August 1965

📅 16 August 65 📍 Little Rock, Arkansas 🏛 USAF 📄 Sighting report and correspondence
Project 10073Little RockArkansassatelliteUSAFsighting

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AI-Generated Summary

TL;DR

A civilian sighting of a light in Little Rock, Arkansas, on August 16, 1965, was officially evaluated by the USAF as a satellite. The reported erratic movement was attributed to atmospheric illusions.

This document consists of a Project 10073 record and a follow-up letter regarding a civilian sighting in Little Rock, Arkansas, on August 16, 1965. The witness reported observing a single light at a 60-degree elevation moving toward the southeast for approximately 1.5 to 2 minutes. The witness described the object as having a zig-zag motion and varying speed, with no sound. The official Air Force evaluation concluded that the object was a satellite. The report explains that the perceived zig-zag motion was an illusion, likely caused by atmospheric conditions such as a temperature inversion or the effect of one light passing another. A formal letter dated September 15, 1965, signed by Lieutenant Colonel John F. Spaulding of the USAF Office of Information, was sent to the witness to communicate this conclusion.

The erratic flight can be attributed to an illusion as one light passes another or to atmospheric conditions such as a temperature inversion which could cause the object to appear to have such an erratic movement.

Official Assessment

The object was evaluated as a satellite. The erratic flight can be attributed to an illusion as one light passes another or to atmospheric conditions such as a temperature inversion which could cause the object to appear to have such an erratic movement.

The sighting was determined to be a satellite observation. The reported zig-zag motion was identified as an optical illusion caused by atmospheric conditions or the relative movement of lights.

Witnesses

Key Persons

  • JOHN F. SPAULDINGLt Colonel, USAF, Chief, Civil Branch, Community Relations Division, Office of Information

Organizations