Western United States sensitive national security site sightings (Orbs Launching Orbs, Dark Kite), October 2023
October 2023 · Western United States, near a sensitive national security site
Summary
Federal law enforcement special agents reported a series of lights near a sensitive national security site in the western United States over two days in October 2023. The Department of War's Western US Event summary described three teams of two agents who each saw orange orbs launch smaller red orbs in groups of two to four, at least five times, at dusk. Witness 2 wrote that the process repeated about five times between roughly 1900 and 1930 hours.
The same summary recorded a large orange orb seen by two agents near a rock pinnacle. They estimated it at 500 to 600 meters. AARO later measured about 1050 meters and a diameter of 12 to 18 meters. In Witness 1's narrative, a rangefinder put the hillside at about 1100 meters.
Before dawn, two agents followed what they first took for a car with one red and one white light. The summary said it moved off the road at an estimated 15-20 mph, stopped, and turned off its lights. About 30 minutes later, it recorded a kite-shaped object seen by two agents, through which one saw stars in night vision goggles. A third agent did not see it. Witness 5 mentioned a cobweb floating nearby and then saw faint lights in formation.
AARO's June 2026 memorandum said the agents collected no video, photographs or other technical data. After first-stage analysis, about 40 percent of the reported phenomena lacked a plausible explanation. AARO attributed about 60 percent of the activity plausibly to military aircraft dispensing flares, based on flight logs, radar and ADS-B data. The agents said the lights did not look like flares. AARO rated foreign activity highly unlikely and natural phenomena unlikely. It listed unrecognized technology as pending and unsubstantiated by technical data.
What the files say
“Measurements later gathered by AARO assess the object to have been ~1050 meters away from the observers.”
Page 2 →“USPER7 did not see the object.”
Page 4 →“The reporting agents did not collect video footage, photographic imagery, or other technical data during the incident.”
Page 2 →“suggesting that approximately 60 percent of the reported activity is plausibly attributable to military aircraft.”
Page 3 →“Approximately 40 percent of the reported phenomena lack a plausible explanation after first stage analysis and thus remain unresolved.”
Page 2 →
Also discussed in
- Notional map of Western US UAP incidents (2023)
- Western US witness narrative memo, Witness 1 (2023)
- Western US witness narrative memo, Witness 2 (2023)
- Western US witness narrative memo, orange orbs (2023)
- Western US UAP witness narrative with sketch, agent (2023)
- Western US UAP witness narrative, federal agent report (2023)
- Western US UAP event digital rendering, FBI statement (2023)
- Digital rendering of Western US UAP event, FBI statement (2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of Western US event, narrative 2-1 (2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of Western US event, narrative 2-2 (2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of Western US event, narrative 2-3 (2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of Western US event, narrative 2-4 (2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of western US night UAP (October 2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of orange orb over western US ridge (2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of glowing light on western US road (2023)
- FBI artist's rendering of red light arc over western US ridge (2023)
- Digital recreation of western US UAP incident (2023)
- Western US UAP event digital recreation video, FBI (2023)
Explanations in the record
What the documents themselves say the event was, as recorded. Not our assessment.
- AARO found that military aircraft dispensing infrared countermeasure flares in a standard exercise plausibly account for about 60 percent of the reported activity, based on flight logs, radar and ADS-B data. It judged this partially plausible, and the agents said the phenomena did not look like flares. — AARO case analysis update: Western US event (2023), page 3
- AARO ruled out misidentified military aircraft exhaust and rated unmanned aerial vehicles unlikely because of the loitering time. — AARO case analysis update: Western US event (2023), page 2
- AARO rated meteorological, atmospheric and space-based explanations unlikely. — AARO case analysis update: Western US event (2023), page 4
- Witness 5 noted a floating cobweb near the faint lights during the pre-dawn sighting. — Western US UAP witness narrative, federal agent report (2023), page 3