Fairborn, OhioNovember 1957

Unidentified

Summary

In November 1957, residents of Fairborn, Ohio, reported seeing unidentified objects in the night sky. The Air Force received at least three separate sighting reports from the area during this period.

The reports describe objects with distinctive appearances. One witness observed a clear bluish-white light that changed to orange, appearing about the size of a teacup held at arm's length. Another sighting involved an amber-colored object with the brightness of a star, hovering without sound. A third report documented a white light with a rose tint, appearing starlike and roughly the size of a pea held at arm's length. This third sighting lasted approximately one hour and thirty minutes.

The witnesses provided detailed questionnaires to Air Force investigators describing the objects' colors, brightness, size, and movement patterns. The forms asked about weather conditions, the observers' locations and backgrounds, and whether the objects moved behind or in front of clouds. Witnesses indicated they had observed the objects outdoors under nighttime conditions, though the precise clarity of the sky varied among reports.

The case file contains 28 pages of witness questionnaires, sketches, and investigative materials. The Air Force's official evaluation concluded the sightings were "unidentified," though an informal note on the cover page suggests Venus as a possible explanation. No definitive conclusion appears to have been reached. The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.

Reported location

Fairborn, Ohio

Date of incident

November 1957

State / country

OH / US

Page count

28 scanned pages

USAF evaluation

unidentified

Microfilm

T1206, Roll 30

I me —— { . . PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD : | 1. DATE 2. LOCATION Fairborn, Ohio 12. CONCLUSIONS | 2, Dayton, Ohio DO Was Balloon BE 9 November 1957 3. Xenia hic 0 Lig LA Balloon | 3. DATE-TIME GROUP 4. TYPE OF OBSERVATION O Possibly Balloon i % g DO Was Aircraft Local delice bai bas £:Ground Vi sval Oo Ground Rodar m] Probably Aircrof? GMT * 1 O Air Visual 0 Air-Intercept Rador DO Possibly Aircraft 5. PHOTOS é. SOURCE CH XWas Astronomical VOoi1ui’3 O Yes D Probably Astronomical ; B'Ne Civilian O Possibly Astronomical 7. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION 8. NUMBER OF OBJECTS | 9. COURSE CRA 0 Insufficient Dato for Evaluation th 0 Unknown I eis niis si i DES i A BLA LAONATY 10. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING 11. COMMENTS 1) x1 08/2400% *2 +0 minutes Probably Veaus. Object with clezar biluish-white color changing to orange, Just a point of bright light, about the size of a teacup, 2) *1 09/2330Z indefinite Amber colored object, appearance of bright star. No sound, 8tationary 3) *]1 09/2230Z %*2 1 hr 30 nmin White light with rose tint, starlike size of "Thali pea, ATIC FORM 329 (REV 26 SEP 52) TT BR abv ol "