PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD 2. L OCAT:ON CONCLUSIONS Wos Balloon obably Balloon ossi:,ly Balloon 3. ~AiETI.Mc CROUP TYPE OF OBSERVATION :O'{(iroun d-Vi 3Ua l Ground- R adar 0 'Has Ai rcra fr Pro bob I y Aircraft 0 Ail'-Visual 0 Airlntercopl R a d a r 0 Possibly Airc r aft '0 Was A stronami cal robobl y Astronomi col '.lilit:try a Po,sibly Astronomi c a l 7. L ENGTH OF OBSeRVATION HUMBER OF O BJECTS 9. COURSE 0 Insufficient Dena for Evolu a t i on EF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING 11. COMMEHTS Dr o b"l ~1 l y \,;Jpe :1red n::tve ta~.L J ... .ltn~ t e r -'"'J ,rn'JDD !-l.I R FOEC:::: l ;. Ct-ii EF", TO\.'ER CF PEILLIP 3ILLI-. !<Gi:~Sl?~.L AI~?O~T. DIR::.::CTIOU AiW LL-ll,c '"T -G--T Dor- Vfl IQ.,-.. PCI!~T OF Oi3SERVATIC:: ~:o POSSI~Lr.: CA~s: CF ?CSSII.:I LITY or HIGH ALTITUD~ AIRCRA:T T I PT f.l.;~J< OR DOOR LO:: 7 CHEC;~ vJI TH ;3r..HTHSONJAN fNSTITtJTtOI'! AS T ROPHYSlCA L OBSERVA T Ql.{'r S~JON 01' t.JI>"T't:!'l ATMO!liP'illl'l~: STUD I!_. I COY OPTICAL oilATiii.Lii':! T'IU.CI\1 N G PROCRA.M CSO QAitC04 81'7!1rr ~SRIOGC 28. MAS.IMCHU81n'T8 captain George T . Gregory Hqtra, Ai r Technical Intelligence Ce~ter Wrigb.~-Pattersor1 Air Poree Base, Ohi o Dear. captain:':-'.. , .. , now have had a chanoe t o look t~roug..~ all t h e reporta .; sent, d the one eor.~.cerni.ng t.l:.e ,.satel11t.e-t.~-pe sighttng'' f' Denver 1l erests me very ttZUch and I am gtr1:1g 1t the full rea.~ -.~nt. It ~. clear that this a:>'.lld r.ot hav~ beer: a.ny of , e .:IJ.t::r- ... lcan satell1~e. not on l y because of th-= ~x~es31 'le b r .. .htr..es 5, but. becs.uae no Ame~can sate-llite at t;reaent ~.:tx :c. ':>~ :q _en apprca ~h ~ '"'~8. from the northwe~t a t the l at:1ta1eo :-f 'C~rY0l'"o 0 t,pril 3 ... "*.-: ':;..~""'e were no known RUse!-~ Sputn ik's u.p!) b"n; f:\e~ f"IJia there beer. :_" !..: almost. 1noo::::oe 1 va b l e !la t objects t r...J. ': tr ig:-,.tY ~ould e s .;;Jtpe ~ ..... -:-,:.- tion by our Mocnwa."Cch ., 'This ! s a c-:~.:.-r; S'J l!:.l~h <:;o; ;} !'!.~" I w15h I had the t!.me an i;he o~p:)r?;~;:1o/r.\ t alk N ... ~h the5~ r;,-,., otf1cera. It eould be that"'-c asual ;rn'"~r~at1on s ome clue --~:.g~t be.~btained whieh 1s Mt appa nt in/thei r re:r-crt .. . ::. I had an experience the othe '-.n~ght wh!.~h may oear-e n t ., !..:! , I had been instrccting my yo't*.ng/ta:~g,c.ter-t n f'!6'lri:lg !l!der~al r: -;e, and we ha~ gone o~t on the la~m t v k r :~l~llat1ons whe~ there oa.u along a sputn1k-~1ke o t j e ~'J--'\.o:..-:..c~rect ~r1g.htne.sfi -;c c r E : t epeed, oorreet OC'lor , and ;I' a lmos t stood~6!'a~st.o 'ft'lere was ro sound. A !'e w tni.nute~ la.~er ~'r'I.Other s~<: . .h rt-~ <-":.": :~e Zhr?\lg,_ '.:: another direotion, and ;;hen a few :r.i 'Ill.t'-~8 '=' t:_: l finot~P r., a.r1 .. third one ! was a ble :;'0 de~eet ove-r amcl~'1~ .:\~'' ... es the tsour..\! ~ ~ j~ ~ motors. Lighte were,.not blii'.Xifl_g. If the . t)..~r-o o 1ect r:.ad f'( t gonethrcugh I might honestly be p-.;z;tl t o tr.::s -~as t.c ...- ~. I had seen an u..~..h..~wn sate lliteo I d j<iP.t t .101cw t-h t Jets e.~= carried sueh 1~-:;s., It 1 a ar110st L~coneaivable t~c. such e.:~:per~r:::'~e-1 J~.t.:.o.rs ?.:\ ~ ~:i have mad\? tfie tnistake I had fir~t 1r.ade!) bu+. "".r :u1g:: nL.~s c-a '-w all other ~unk:nom: egutnii<'::t -chat OU!' r;.;ra~n~ ... ro;;t ......... e t o ~.,.-. - ~nver case very C}C>On), ~e vtarta in ly s t .. e,_ t c ave ~ f1nEt tJ..i~ : ''\_ ?bject that wa s s ean the aerce t .!.me ':';n. t.-..~ r .l gh .s j 1.: ":.. , :!ft (perlod of r:.orn:'ng t~"~il~g.+-.t h .. c. already bt:gu'l). V~,ea Yta ... <:.._.~'! yr.u southeastern aky. . ...... planet---venu at i-vs brigntest i!" ~h~ pre-aunri e e .~ and I know from past t-x ..e......,~e horl easily it ca.n be en f o r a.r: U!'l.lrno;m oi>Jeot.. lot] 'Jnly :-~ao~ : o que on the s'ta.ted position and to cor~i r the pc-aa1b111ty th'l was Vertua. '!be caese of e "daylight met eor" t a g~atly ar.lbiguou s .. While a daylight fireball oannot be ruled t, I would lYl.Y~elf favor the accidental releas e of aome ot~e~t from an a ircraft. H.\1; ever, muoh hing~s on the statemen t .. orang~ f la.meu o If i t rea l.:y was tla.ming theD it looks as t hough we mus t a c ered1t this to a c.b._ ligbt meteor. It the light was s imply a bright refleot1on of sur.~ light, then.we have the othe r poa51bility" In either case, th&r~ is nothing hostile, and I s a y to this "in~.Ifi'iJient 1nform.e.t!.o:1 .. be able to d1s~1nguieh between da ylight ~et~or or obee t fal ling from a1roratt' I don't think 1 t i s wu~h.m1le to p..1rsue thi5 o, : although I ttunk it' I eould talk t o the ~hap a better a.na.lys i s lrlght be made. It just OOO\lrs t o me that perhap s the obj-ect might have been a burst weather or cos~ic ray ba l:oon , with the ref l ec- tion from the trailing material accrJJ..."lt!ng f o r t h e uta.1 1 f our ~1"'ne"' the diameter of object". In fact~ I t)" .. i..T\.k this i s a 11st 111ct poaa1b111ty since it o~rred in the T!eig.~no::-h:::-od o f the cz1,1IJa) airport from which,~ I suppose, bal~oons lire i atl:'iChfrd.. 'ftle-~!.~a _ .... observation wa:. 4:00p.m., their tirr.e wt:1~t~: I bal1:.v~, ia .s..t:,~t the.time or euch lam:.chings. So, t hret-P0f.Sib1 11t1at3: da:,~!.ghT~ meteor---part o f airor~rt---bureted ball o0n . All harmles s ~ts l now tend to prefer the latter I am looking. forward t o v1e1t1ng you 1n you r ne w quarter~-- I hope 1n early ~e. J. Allen Hynek