Case Directory
  Category 1, Distant Encounters 
 
  Preliminary Rating: 5  
                                   
     

A Hynek Classification of Distant Encounter is usually an incident involving an object more than 500 feet from the witness. At night it is classified as a "nocturnal light" (NL) and during the day as a "daylight disc" (DD). The size of the object or the viewing conditions may render the object in greater detail but yet not qualify the sighting as a Close Encounter which is an object within 500'. 

Square Object Comes within 300' of Ground, Enters Cloud
December 7, 1951
Oak Ridge, Tennessee

#1823: 1951/12/7  8:20  2  84:17:0W  36:0:0N  3333  NAM USA TNS  8 7  
OAK RIDGE,TN:AEC GUARD:20' SQUARE OBJ ^+^ TWICE:CANVAS COLOR:TAKING SAMPLES?  
Ref# 185 BERLINER,DON: The BLUEBOOK UNKNOWNS  Page No. 6 MIL. BASE
Brad Sparks:
Dec. 7, 1951. Oak Ridge, Tenn. (BBU  1021)
8:15 a.m. AESS guard J. H. Collins in Tower #14 W of K-25 Gaseous Diffusion Plant, ORNL, [at about 700-800 ft MSL] saw a 20 ft square object, white-grey but not shiny, like a piece of canvas with no markings, to the NNW about 300 ft above ridge about 1 mile away [Blackoak Ridge, height about 1,000-1,100 ft MSL], fly vertically into the clouds at about 6,000 ft MSL and back again 300 ft above ridge, taking 30-40 seconds each time traveling at constant speed like that of conventional aircraft [roughly 100 mph at about 4,600 ft in 30-40 secs]. On second rise object climbed at 45° angle to the left and into the clouds then emerged out of the clouds diving straight down to 300 ft above ridge. Object circled slowly as it rose a third time at a 20° angle into the clouds again finally disappearing. Always kept broadside to witness. No sound or smoke. Report mistakenly treated as ground intrusion, thus GCI radar not alerted until 10:02 a.m., and F-47 fighters dispatched found nothing. (Sparks; BB Maxwell Microfilm Roll 9, pp. 640-4; Berliner; Saunders/FUFOR Index)

Fran Ridge:
On 16 Jul 2003 I received this note from Jan Aldrich: "Excerpt from Historical Data of 30th Air Division (Defense), Eastern Air Defense Force, Selfridge Air Force Base, Michigan for October to December 1951, page 32 under the 'Unusual Flying Objects: A civilian guard (AESS) on duty at Oak Ridge, Tennessee reported sighting an airborne object on 7 December 1951 at 0815 EST.  Traveling at a constant speed, equivalent to conventional aircraft, the object was described as square, approximately 20 feet wide, grey-white in color, with no markings. The observer, age 40, is described by his employer as honest and conscientious, and is held in high respect by his employer.  Two F-47's were unsuccessful in an attempt at interception."

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