05.21N 157.28W (Pacific), May 1962May 1962

On the night of May 14, 1962, the crew of a Navy ship in the Pacific Ocean spotted an unusual object in the sky. The ship was positioned at coordinates 05.21N 157.28W, roughly midway between Hawaii and the Asian coast. Several sailors saw the object, including the Officer of the Deck, the boatswain of the watch, lookouts, and other bridge watch personnel. All of them were experienced observers who had previously identified satellites and were considered completely reliable witnesses.

The object appeared as a solid round shape, about the size of a pea held at arm's length, or roughly comparable to a first-magnitude star in brightness. It glowed with an orangish-white color and had a yellowish cast to it. The sailors noticed no tail or other appendages trailing behind it. The object first caught their attention when it moved noticeably in relation to the background stars. It traveled from a bearing of approximately 58 degrees (northeast) to 52 degrees (also northeast), moving on a course toward the south-southeast. The sailors watched the object for a full minute before it disappeared behind clouds.

The sighting occurred at 1407 hours on May 14 (2:07 p.m. local time), under moonlight conditions with about 60 percent cloud coverage. The Navy ship had no radar contacts with any aircraft at the time of the sighting, and no optical aids (such as binoculars or telescopes) were used to observe the object. The Air Force officers who reviewed the case noted that the description matched a satellite observation, and the case was classified as a probable satellite. However, the file does not provide a definitive conclusion about the object's identity.

The full case file, consisting of 7 pages as held by the National Archives, is reproduced below.