This is the APRO Bulletin, USA, July 1957, page 3.
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The following verbatim report was forwarded to APRO by the Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers after having made the rounds of the Scientific American "Amateur Scientist" column, Professor Wylie, meteor expert, an amateur astronomer in southern California, and Prof. Haas of ALPO, Las Cruces, before coming to rest on the editor's desk.
It is interesting to note that someone, probably another amateur astronomer, penned a cryptic comment at the bottom of the carbon accompanying the report. It read, simply: "A very good saucer, Walter." We agree.
"REPORT OF ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATION made February 13, 1957, at 09:40 p.m. (PST) at Placerville, El Dorado County, California.
I was walking south on a road just west of El Dorado County Hospital at Placerville, California, about 300 feet from where a N-S street runs into Mills St. I witnessed the following:
In an easterly direction, which was to my left, I saw the ionized track of a shooting star about 20 degrees above the horizon rising on about a 70 degree angle (vertical) and off about 45 degrees to me left.
I roughly calculated in my mind that it should burn out on a line directly south of my observation point, but soon realized that my judgement was in error it would burn out further out to my left. I then started watching this ionizing trail, when I noticed it was widening at about 35 degrees above the horizon. At the same time I noticed it was veering more in a westerly direction.
At about 10 degrees east of due south I noticed the ionized width was increasing and it had a round nose. At this instant the ionized trail was almost to the horizon but was still climbing on about a twenty degree angle. The trail appeared to be about one-half inch wide. Suddenly a black disc appeared in the sky directly in front of the ionized trail, the diameter of which corresponded to the width of the ionized trail at this point it was about 5 degrees east of the North-South line. Its size corresponded to the size of a 5 cent piece held at a distance of five feet. I could see that its surface was not smooth, and appeared to be roughened by cross checked canyons.
In the southeast quadrant was an area which seemed to have a few of these "canyons" filled with a very black material. On the northwest quadrant another area was visible which had dark streaks but on a lesser scale. Of these streaks the largest was in the southeast quadrant and seemed to be about 8 times as long as it was wide.
The object stood out very clearly in the sky, not unlike the moon in eclipse, although it seemed to stand out more. It continued to travel now in an east to west direction parallel to the earth's horizon and retaining its maximum diameter. when it was about five to ten degrees west of my assumed north to south line of sight (the road), it began acquiring a white dusty appearance and still its apparent maximum diameter. Its altitude at its maximum I estimate at 40 degrees (90 degrees being straight up from point of observation). As it continued its westerly course, it turned white in color.
When its diameter reduced by 2/3, I witnessed the most beautiful sight I ever expect to see. I saw it take off into outer space.
In an estimated elapsed time of a half second I saw this white ball reduce its diameter from about 2/3 maximum to 1/8 maximum size and disappear. It appeared to be traveling directly away from me on a straight line about 60 degrees to my right from the north-south line. It seemed to keep the same altitude while at the same time diminishing in size. Just like letting the air out of a toy balloon.
Its diameter seemed to diminish in direct proportion to its distance from the point of observation (i.e. timer, diameter ratio).
At no time was I able to see any fringe shadows around its perimeter or when it went into space I did not see any shadows. I am assuming its going out into the sun's rays caused it to appear white in color but there were no signs of shadowing. [1]
(Signed) Steve Papina
On the night of the June 5th, several Indians brought a friend to a village named Uriman in Bolivar to have a deep gash at his arm treated. An LAV Captain who was on the scene, questioned the Indians and was told that they had seen a luminous object land and little men emerged from it. They tried to catch the small creatures, one of whom slashed at an indian and cut his arm. The Indians became frightened, let the little man go, and hurried to the village to have their comrade treated.
These details were related to an airline pilot by the LAV pilot who interviewed the Indians. The pilot, a close friend to Joseph Rolas, related the incident to him. Rolas commented that Indians in that country are very reticent and serious people, and are not known to falsify for attention. The Indians are also known as having little or no imagination, which would be required to make up such a tale, and also are not often in contact with the civilized world where they might gather information on the 1954-1955 "little men" sightings and contact in Venezuela. The general consensus of opinion in Uriman is that the Indians saw and experienced what they claim they did. (Cr: Joseph Rolas) [2]
... And there was the case of the AF courier who saw prints taken of a "monkey" which had supposedly been used in a hoax. Funny thing about it is that the "monkey" had a rump and a forehead... At 11:14 a.m. a "sonic Boom" [3] rocked Los Angeles from San Fernando valley to Wittier. Glendale was the center of the shock where windows were shattered. Jets were blamed ... Mrs R. H. Thomas of Cucamonga, Calif., witnessed a rain of metal strips on Nov. 24... Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England, August 6: This town was blanketed by five feet of hail... In Honolulu, Hawaii, on January 9, an 8-year-old boy was "floored" in his Pearl City home by a mystery explosion. This time none of the military would take credit for the concussion. The noise was described variously as two louds claps and a prolonged roar [4]. One woman said it sounded and felt as though something had fallen on the house - another housewife, a Navy man's wife said she had heard and felt sonic booms, this was not one of these. A Navy public information officer agreed with her. An AF spokesman said he was sure it was a sonic blast from a plane passing through the sound barrier, but that it was not any of the AF planes. (Ed. note: We have found that a flurry of UAO sightings follow these rashes of "sonic Booms" - the AF should try that for size. It fits better than any proffered explanation so far.)... Another blast at St. Louis, Mo., on December 29 - no explanation... On December 30 Keokuk, Iowa, and Hamilton, Ill. felt the concussion of a sonic boom - no explanation... An object described as having the apparent diameter of the moon, changing in color from red to green, orange and blue, streaked across skies over St. Louis, Mo., on January 4 at 7 p.m. It took an east-west direction, made no sound. Local regional director of the American Meteor Society referred to it as a meteor, but asked for letters by observers giving in particular object's angular height above the horizon at beginning and end of its flight... [5] The Aumoana, a pleasure yacht belonging to Lloyd Dorsey was found abandoned about 120 miles west of Kingston, Jamaica, in December. Spoiled food found aboard, crew and passengers gone (another Marie Celeste? [6])... (Cr: J. Sanders, G. Conway, J. Hopf, D. Lansden, J. Myers, A. Vogele, P.A. Hanson)
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An Interplanetary Space Patrol of ham radio operators has been organized by Texan Jim Lee of Abilene. Apparently connected with a pseudo-religious cult operating nationwide, Lee claims the UAO originate from a space station called Schare, and the commandant is named Ashtar. Van Tassel and other visionaries were mentioned in the write-up on Lee, who at the time of the writing of the article about him in the Fort Worth Star Telegram was a Giant Rock, California attending Van Tassel's "Spacecraft" convention. (Cr: V. Meadors) [7]
