Skip to content

DocumentDoD / AAROCatalina Island, California· 11/16/53

DOW-UAP-D178, Unresolved UAP Report, Catalina Island, 1953

This document is hosted at war.gov. Open it to view the full file.

Description

The file contains a report of a round, purplish-white object above Catalina Island on November 16, 1953. The report describes the object as remaining stationary, then moving northwest toward Los Angeles over approximately 10 minutes on a level flight path. The report characterizes the observer as fairly reliable due to his association with military jet aircraft activities while stationed at Long Beach Air Force Base, Los Angeles, CA. The report refers to an assessment by local astronomers that Jupiter provided a possible explanation.

Released by the U.S. Department of War on 2026-10-23 via war.gov/UFO under PURSUE — Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters. This record is in the public domain (U.S. Government Work).