Millheim, Penn., August 1952August 1952

In August 1952, a high school student and three teenage companions driving southeast of Millheim, Pennsylvania, reported seeing a bright yellow light in the night sky. The object appeared about twenty times larger and brighter than the brightest visible star, and it hung stationary high above the mountain horizon. The young witnesses watched for five to ten minutes before the light slowly faded when they stopped their car for a better look.

A second witness, an adult driving on a highway southwest of Millheim near Spring Mills, Pennsylvania, reported seeing a similar yellowish light at approximately 2150 (9:50 p.m.) the same evening. This observer described the object as about ten to twenty degrees above the horizon, appearing to move along a course parallel to the highway, which ran roughly east-west. The witness did not stop his car, so it remains unclear whether the object was actually in motion or only appeared to be due to his movement. He gave no description of the object's size, speed, or altitude. A third observer, described as an assistant manager of a local manufacturing concern and a man of average intelligence, corroborated the sighting. He reported the object's flight as very straight and level for most of the thirteen minute observation period, after which it made a sharp turn to the south and disappeared. When describing the disappearance, he said the object seemed to fade away rather than vanish suddenly.

The weather during the observation was clear with fifteen mile visibility. The file notes that heavy meteor activity had been reported in the area for the past few days. The file rules out several explanations: reflections from navigation lights would be improbable on a clear night, the length of the observation period (ten to twenty minutes) seems to invalidate the possibility that the object was an ordinary aircraft, and while a weather balloon cannot be completely ruled out, the intensity and size of the light would not be typical of such an object.

The case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives, 33 pages.