Project 10073 Record: UFO Observation, 4 June 1967, Karthus, PA

On June 7, 1967, Major Raymond Nelson, a U.S. Air Force Reserve officer and former WWII pilot, submitted a report regarding an unusual aerial object he observed on the morning of June 4, 1967, near Karthus, Pennsylvania. Major Nelson described the object as a brilliant light, approximately three times brighter than the brightest star or planet, which appeared at 03:30 A.M. at an elevation of 45 degrees. He noted that the object moved from the NNW to the WSW over the course of a few minutes before fading from view. Nelson, who had completed college-level astronomy coursework, suggested it might have been an American or Russian satellite. The Air Force Foreign Technology Division (FTD) initially responded to Nelson on June 21, 1967, stating that the information provided was insufficient for a scientific evaluation and requesting he complete an FTD Form 164. Following the submission of the questionnaire, the Air Force conducted an investigation. On July 12, 1967, Lt. Colonel Barnett B. Young of the Office of Information informed Major Nelson that the investigation concluded he had likely observed the Echo II satellite. The Air Force analysis noted that the satellite, with an estimated stellar magnitude of -1.0, would have been visible in the area at the time of the sighting and that its disappearance in the WSW was consistent with the satellite entering the Earth's shadow at approximately 35.6 degrees latitude.