Unidentified Object Sighted in Gulf of Campeche — Investigation Report IR-95-58

This document is an Air Intelligence Information Report (IR-95-58) regarding an unidentified floating object sighted in the Gulf of Campeche on October 9, 1958. The initial report came from the commander of a refrigerator ship. The 1006th AISS conducted an investigation, which included attempts to interview the witness in Brownsville, Texas, and consultations with the United States Coast Guard. The investigation revealed that the USCG had recently deployed new-type weather reporting buoys in the Gulf of Mexico. Due to severe storm activity and strong currents in the area, it was determined that one of these buoys had likely broken loose from its moorings. The description of the object—a red, cone-shaped nose with a silver rod, transparent window, and electrical components—correlated closely with the design of the USCG buoys. The USCG cutter 'KIMBALL' conducted a search of the area between October 15 and 19, 1958, but yielded negative results. The report concludes that the object was almost certainly a detached weather buoy. The document also includes correspondence from 1967 regarding a separate sighting in Florida, which was also identified as a weather balloon, demonstrating the ongoing process of evaluating UAP reports against known meteorological equipment.