Shelby, IowaOctober 1955

On October 1, 1955, two fifteen-year-old girls working as Ground Observer Corps (GOC) spotters near Shelby, Iowa reported seeing unidentified objects in the sky. The observers, identified in the file as Miss Merva Farr and Miss Janet Wendenbusch, said they first spotted a spherical object about the size of a quarter held at arm's length. The object appeared to be made of shiny, silver material and moved from southwest to northwest across the sky. After about one and a half minutes, the object seemed to split into two separate spheres, and one of them appeared to drop a small parachute. All three objects then vanished abruptly into the sky.

Over the next hour and a half, the girls reported seeing five additional objects with similar characteristics. Each one moved in the same general direction and disappeared suddenly after about the same length of observation time. The girls watched with the naked eye and through binoculars. They heard no sound and saw no exhaust or trail. The weather was clear, warm, and calm.

Air Force investigators followed up by questioning the girls and their school teacher, who described one of them as "very mature and level headed." The investigators also searched the area and found a parachute in a field about three and a half miles northeast of the observation post. The parachute was made of paper and had a radiosonde (a weather instrument package used to measure conditions in the upper atmosphere) attached to it. The equipment was identified as the type used on ordinary weather balloons. Winds aloft in the region were checked and found to be consistent with westerly motion at that altitude. Two fighter interceptors from Sioux City searched the area at 1,400 feet altitude but reported seeing nothing unusual.

In the final analysis, the preparing officer concluded the sighting was probably caused by a radiosonde weather balloon, likely released from a weather station near Omaha, Nebraska. The officer suggested the balloon may have developed a leak instead of exploding as normal, descended, and released its parachute and equipment. This lighter balloon would then have risen again, possibly accounting for the additional sightings. The officer also noted that the girls' youth and lack of experience may have led them to imagine additional objects after witnessing the initial dramatic sighting. The approving officer concurred, attributing subsequent sightings to known aircraft in the area and the observers' inexperience. The full case file, consisting of seven pages, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.