Declassified UFO / UAP Document
Project 10073 Record: Sighting Report - Rochester, New York, 4 October 1966
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AI-Generated Summary
A Rochester, NY family reported a bright, moving light on 4 October 1966. The Air Force identified the object as the ECHO II satellite, attributing the reported movement to visual illusions.
On 4 October 1966, a resident of Rochester, New York, reported an unidentified aerial object to Project Blue Book at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The observer, a former Air Force Radio Operator and current engineer at Xerox, stated that he, his wife, and his daughter observed a bright white light moving in an easterly direction at approximately 9:40 p.m. The observer noted that the object appeared similar to a star or satellite. When he called his family to view the object, it changed to a northerly direction, moving in a general curve with uneven movements until it disappeared over the northern horizon around 9:45 p.m. The Air Force investigated the report under Project 10073. Official correspondence from the Department of the Air Force, signed by Lt. Colonel George P. Freeman, Jr., concluded that the object was the ECHO II satellite. The Air Force explained the reported 'zig-zag' motion as a common visual illusion caused by the way human eyes track objects, and attributed light fluctuations to meteorological conditions. The report includes the original sighting form, internal Air Force routing, and the final response sent to the observers.
To naked-eye observers, the motion of a bright artificial satellite frequently consists of tiny zig-zags rather than a smooth curve across the sky.
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Official Assessment
The object was identified as the ECHO II satellite, which was passing over the Toronto, Canada area at approximately 2134 EDT.
The Air Force concluded the observers witnessed the ECHO II satellite. The perceived zig-zag motion was attributed to the fact that human eyes do not move continuously but in little jerks, and light fluctuations were attributed to meteorological conditions.
Witnesses
Key Persons
- Louis De GoesColonel, USAF, Deputy for Technology and Subsystems