Project Blue Book Case File
Wichita, KansasAugust 1960
Summary
On the night of August 23, 1960, an aeronautical engineer from Boeing Aircraft and his family stood in the front yard of their Wichita home to watch satellite Echo pass overhead. Around 0324 (3:24 a.m.), they noticed an object approaching from the north at a 40-degree angle of elevation. The object appeared as a large sphere about the size of a golf ball held at arm's length. Three triangular lights, each roughly one-tenth the size of the sphere, glowed yellow and gave the whole object a dull orange appearance, similar to a Japanese lantern. The family watched for two minutes as the object moved slowly in a smooth, curved path without accelerating or changing speed. It vanished around 0326 (3:26 a.m.) in a northerly direction at a 45-degree angle.
The witness, described as experienced and reliable, provided clear details about the lights but struggled to describe other features of the object. Air Force investigators later contacted B-47 bomber crews in the area and checked ground radar stations near Hutchinson and Wichita, but found no corroborating witnesses or radar evidence. Weather conditions that night were clear with unlimited visibility. An initial investigation suggested the object might have been an Air Force tanker aircraft with special lights activated, though the preparing officer ultimately concluded it was possibly an unidentified satellite different from satellite Echo.
The full case file, including weather data, radar analysis notes, and follow-up correspondence, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives across 10 pages.
Reported location
Wichita, Kansas
Date of incident
August 1960
State / country
KS / US
Page count
10 scanned pages
USAF evaluation
unidentified
Microfilm
T1206, Roll 39