Silver Springs, Md., August 1959August 1959

Insufficient Data

Summary

In August 1959, two residents of Silver Springs, Maryland, reported seeing three bright objects in the sky during the afternoon. Two of the objects appeared silver and shiny, while the third looked reddish or iridescent. The witnesses described the two silver objects as having a spinning motion, with one moving and then the other following in the same pattern. All three objects traveled northward and climbed higher into the sky throughout the roughly fifteen-minute observation period before disappearing vertically out of sight.

The Air Force investigated the sighting by sending questionnaires to the witnesses, who provided detailed accounts of the objects' appearance, movement, and behavior. The witnesses indicated the objects were solid in form, appeared brighter than the surrounding sky, and moved against a background of scattered clouds with light winds.

The Air Force Technical Intelligence Center examined the case using standard evaluation procedures. They ruled out satellites, astronomical phenomena like meteors or planets, radar contacts, natural phenomena such as ball lightning, and conventional aircraft. The analysis concluded that the objects were probably balloons. The file notes that the witnesses were reliable sources, making their accounts credible for analysis. However, the records do not indicate any specific reason for ruling out other possibilities beyond the balloon explanation.

The full case file, comprising 23 pages as held by the National Archives, is reproduced below.

Reported location

Silver Springs, Md., August 1959

Date of incident

August 1959

State / country

? / XX

Page count

23 scanned pages

USAF evaluation

unknown

Microfilm

T1206, Roll 36

1 [ 1 od 2 PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD RI « V Ei - ee ——— ee —— ee ——— | 1. DATE 2. LOCATION 12. CONCLUSIONS ‘0: Was Balloon 1 2 Aunoust 59 Silver Springs, Md. 0 Probably Balloon : —_—— a agus Jz ee 10 Possi bly Balloon 4 3. DATE-TIME GROUP 4. TYPE OF OBSERVATION E 3 ¢ 0 Was Aircraft 1 pr] [Re CHER en Ne A SAT +& Ground- Visual O Ground-Radar Bl BIEBaNI GIA erat 1 GMT 03/16457 0 Air Visual O Air-Intercept Radar O Possibly Aircraft E 5. PHOTOS 6. SOURCE O Was Astronomical i O Yes O Probably Astronomical 4 ‘0:No Civilian ; O Possibly Astronomical § 7. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION 8. NUMBER OF OBJECTS | 9. COURSE (0 J of § py] pe SE A I Ne 4 O Insufficient Data for Evaluation EL LEVEL O Unknown : 15 mins three varied E 10. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING 11. COMMENTS § Two small bright silver objs & one These objs were probably balloons. i | irredescent red. The tbvo silver objs All objs went out of sight vertically. i appearcd to have a spinning motion. One E of the silfer objs would move, then the i other would move in the same pattern, E traveling north and higher «ll the time, | g ATIC FORM 319 (REV 26 SEP 52) | E / CE : 4 ) | £ E J | { E