Southwest Canada 5543 N - 12008 W, June 1962June 1962

Insufficient Data

Summary

In June 1962, a witness in southwestern Canada reported seeing an object resembling a weather balloon through 10-by-50 binoculars. The witness described the object as about the size of a basketball held at arm's length. The object moved across the sky and the witness watched it for four minutes before stopping their observation.

The case file includes a staff message dated May 30, 1962, that addresses a separate, more dramatic sighting reported two days earlier on May 28. That incident involved an extremely large, bright object with green, orange, and white coloring that streaked across the sky from north to south over the northwestern United States and southwestern Canada. Some witnesses estimated it was 200 feet long, with a bright light and a long tail that appeared to be burning with pieces falling from it. The head of the Dominion Astrophysical Observatory in Victoria, British Columbia, Dr. R.M. Petrie, identified that object as an extremely large meteorite, and the investigation was ceased once this determination was made.

An earlier message from May 26 noted that a balloon released from Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico on May 23 had been confirmed as the source of a preliminary UFO report from May 25, and that report was ordered disregarded.

The Air Force's evaluation of the June 1962 basketball-sized object sighting concluded it was probably a balloon. The full case file is reproduced below as held by the National Archives, consisting of 7 pages.

Reported location

Southwest Canada 5543 N - 12008 W, June 1962

Date of incident

June 1962

State / country

? / XX

Page count

7 scanned pages

USAF evaluation

unknown

Microfilm

T1206, Roll 45

Original case file scans

Original case file · scanned by NARAPage 1 of 7

View transcribed text

3
1 ; PROJECT 10073 RECORD CARD |
| \: DATE 2. LOCATION 12. CONCLUSIONS
is Southwest Canada
EE Fein Er TLR SRI 0 Wos Balloon i
4 2 June 1902 9943 No - 12000 : 1 Probably Balloon
f ee eee eee | 0 Possibly Ballo
1 3. DATE-TIME CROUP 4. TYPE OF OBSERVATION Epon. Rallopn |
i - rr) [3 Was Aircraft
é Lf Cc 3 fi s r 3 iad >
; Lael Sed EE aE & Ground-Visunl 0 Ground-Rodar QO Probably Aircraft |
3 - TH ireral
; | of on PE Ta A Le (a Kt ei a 0 Air Visual 3 Air-lntercept Rodar D Possibly Aircraft
1 Be PHOTOS “ren 5a SOURCE 0 Was Astronomical
3 Yes UO Probably Astronomical
: = Na | Civilian 1 Possibly Astronomical
3 7. LENGTH OF OBSERVATION 8. NUMBER OF OBJECTS | 9. COURSE OMe ee |
: : : 0 Insufficient Dota for Evaluction}
E 4 Min, 1 & Unknown |
3 t0. BRIEF SUMMARY OF SIGHTING 11. COMMENTS !
3 An object resembling a weather ablloon and Witness was using binoculars to bserve
reported tc be the size of a basketball at this object and this is probably ioe
| 3 arms length was reported by cone witness in for estimate of objects size as that
: SW Canada. The object was reportedly moving of basketball at arms length. Four min.
E 5S and was observed for 4 min. Then witness is hardly long enough to watch a slow
E. stopped watching. Object was observed moving object and determine accurately
4 through 10x50 binoculars. its direction of motion. Is probably
3 balloon. One witness case.
4
4 ATIC FORM 323 (REV 26 SEP 52)
= ’
EE
CE eR

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Source: National Archives Catalog · NAID 28997578