Kingsville, MDFebruary 1953

On February 26, 1953, an Army officer driving west on U.S. Route 1 near Kingsville, Maryland saw an unusual glowing object in the northeast sky. The object was bright, about forty degrees above the horizon, and appeared to shine with the brightness and color of the sun. The witness was Captain REDACTED, who held a degree in physics from Carnegie Institute of Technology and had studied light phenomena for eight years in experimental work.

At first, the object looked like a sharp, oval shape with a vertical orientation. After about fifteen seconds, its brightness faded for roughly five seconds and took on a shape like the inside of a wedding ring reflecting sunlight. During this period, the object began to move. After that, it resumed its original brightness and appeared to travel eastward at the same altitude until it dropped to thirty degrees above the horizon, at which point the captain lost sight of it behind a hill as his car continued down the road. The entire sighting lasted about thirty seconds. The captain saw no smoke or vapor trails.

The Air Force investigator returned to the sighting location and took a compass bearing on the spot where the object had appeared. The reading was thirty degrees. Investigators checked the nearby Churchville Ordnance Corps tank proving ground, the only known site in the area where pyrotechnics might have been used, and found no activity that day. A nearby Army unit was also checked with negative results.

The Air Force's evaluation of the case is listed as "possible aircraft." The file notes that because the witness was driving in an automobile, the object "is believed that obj was not properly observed." The conclusion suggests the object was probably an aircraft at a far distance reflecting the rays of the sun, though the file also notes "No check on a/c in the ares." The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives, containing 8 pages.