Palm Springs, CaliforniaSeptember 1957

On the night of September 29 to 30, 1957, residents of Palm Springs, California reported seeing multiple unidentified flying objects moving across the sky. The sightings occurred in three separate incidents between 02:45 and 03:30 (2:45 a.m. to 3:30 a.m.). Observers on the ground reported seeing formations of bluish-white lights, along with a ball-shaped object, moving from southeast to north-northwest across the dark sky. The objects appeared to move in a wedge formation during the first two sightings, then shifted into a Y-shape or straight line, before finally forming into a ball shape during the third sighting. The entire sequence lasted about five minutes.

The Air Force intelligence report noted that the observers could see no tail, trail, exhaust, or sound coming from the objects. The ball-shaped object was small, roughly the size of a fingertip when held at arm's length against the backdrop of distant mountains. A third light was believed to have a pinkish glow. Weather conditions were clear with unlimited visibility, and winds at various altitudes ranged from 210 degrees at 20 knots near the surface to 190 degrees at 35 to 60 knots at higher elevations.

The Air Force investigators acknowledged that the details of the sighting suggested the observers' reliability was "not too great." The official evaluation noted that the sighting "was possibly caused by an aircraft" but judged the available information to be "insufficient for analysis." No interception or identification action was taken, and no physical evidence was recovered.

The file lists the evaluation as "unknown." The complete case file, as held by the National Archives, is reproduced below in its 11 scanned pages.