Laurel, MontanaFebruary 1953

On a clear, windy night in February 1953, two observers near Laurel, Montana reported seeing a strange object moving slowly across the sky. One man spotted it first around 11:04 p.m. and watched it travel westward for about an hour before it disappeared. A second observer, stationed on top of a two-story building, saw the same object and tracked it for roughly twenty-five minutes starting around 4:25 a.m. Both men described it as round, blue-white or bluish-green in color, and much larger than a star. The object seemed to fade and brighten at times, as if twinkling, and moved up and down slightly as it traveled. There was no sound, no exhaust, and nothing else unusual about it.

The first observer tried to get a closer look by moving about one mile west of town. He also attempted to contact the owner of a local observatory to view the object through a telescope but was unable to reach them. The two witnesses estimated the object was flying at roughly 3,000 feet in altitude. One observer was a former Air Force crew chief and flight engineer with about five years of service, considered reliable. The other was a 15-year-old described as serious and fairly reliable. They watched only with their eyes, since a telescope was not available.

The Air Force received the report and noted that weather conditions were clear with light winds from the west. There were no photographs taken and no physical evidence collected. Military officials found nothing in the area that might explain the sighting. The Air Force concluded the object remained unidentified.

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