Teletyped Information Report: Unidentified Object Observed in the Sky

This Central Intelligence Agency teletyped information report, dated 11 December 1958, details a sighting of an unidentified object observed on 6 December 1958. Between 1838 and 1840 local time, a source using a telescope observed an artificial object with a continuous brightness of magnitude 3, comparable to the Belt of Orion, while the source was observing Mars. The object was reported to have traveled from north to south. The observer noted no signs of disintegration, smoke, flame, or noise, and reported no signs of any fall. The source did not photograph the object but expressed certainty that it was identical with Sputnik III. However, the Headquarters comment included in the report clarifies that a preliminary check indicated Sputnik III was not within the source's area of visibility at the time, nor did the direction of travel align with computed orbits. Furthermore, the report notes that the carrier rocket for Sputnik III had already reentered the earth's atmosphere on 3 December 1958, according to a Soviet announcement. The document concludes with a request for evaluation by Air and OSI, and a field comment on page three notes that an object impacted prior to reaching the Caspian.