2222N 12400E (FAR EAST), May 1961May 1961

Insufficient Data

Summary

On May 10, 1961, a sailor aboard a U.S. Navy ship in the far western Pacific Ocean, at coordinates 22 degrees 22 minutes North and 124 degrees East, reported seeing a bright white object in the night sky. The object appeared to him about the size of a pinhead when held at arm's length. The sighting lasted around 15 minutes.

The sailor reported that the object moved slowly across the sky at roughly 10 degrees of arc per minute, which is a fairly leisurely pace. The object held a steady altitude of about 33 degrees above the horizon. The observer watched it travel on a course of approximately 120 degrees (toward the southeast).

The Air Force's initial analysis suggested the object might be an artificial satellite. However, the technical evaluation noted a significant problem: the sailor had not reported when the object first appeared on the horizon or when it finally disappeared. Without those precise details, the Air Force said it could not reliably determine what the object actually was. The file states that the unusual observation characteristics made a final conclusion impossible.

This case stands as one of many oceanic sightings from the early 1960s involving military personnel. The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives across 19 pages.

Reported location

2222N 12400E (FAR EAST), May 1961

Date of incident

May 1961

State / country

? / XX

Page count

19 scanned pages

USAF evaluation

unknown

Microfilm

T1206, Roll 42

oo PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD “) ‘ : I. DATE 2. LOCATION 12. CONCLUSIONS 4 0 Wos Balloon 10 Mey 61 poooN 12400E (FAR €AST O Probobly Balloon : 3. DATE-TIME GROUP 4. TYPE OF OBSERVATION 0 Possibly Bellcon Local 0243 — 2 Ground- Visual DO Ground-Raodar = Pecbably Aireses oMT_ QL 18452 Qa Air Visual 0 Air-Intercept Radar D Possibly Aircraft 5. PHOTOS . SOURCE 0D Was Astronomical i 0 Yes 0 Probably Astronomical a Ne Military DO Possibly Astronomicel ER ee TCR NE, 7. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION 8. NUMBER OF OBJECTS | 9. COURSE 0 Other eee some i B Insufficient Dota for Evaluation 0 Unknown DEA EE SIT. SR ey Tr ry gi 10. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING Bright white round 17. COMMENTS Description and heading objt size of pin head. Course TT is characteristic of an artificial satellite Altitude 33° L49 min. Speed aprox 10° arc However, duration elevation, OT Az of per nmin. objt when it was first and last observed WZ were not reported, precluding a valid conclusion as to nature of objt., ATIC PORM 329 (REV 26 SEP 52) S.