THE INVESTIGATOR'S EDGE from Dan Wright's newsletter April 23, 1990

On a balmy, starlit night in 1986, two men were engaged in fishing
and conversation in the midst of a northern Michigan lake.
Suddenly, one called the other's attention to a brilliant light
approaching from the north. For nearly two minutes, they were
captivated by the source passing high overhead on a straight-line
course. Appearing basically white at first, the "sparkling" object
took on an amber tone before it passed from view on the southern
horizon.

Moments later and a hundred miles to the south, several adults and
teens witnessed the anomaly while lazing outside their cottage.
They observed orange-ish tones and noticed two or three smaller lights
"eject" from the main body, thereafter travelling in tight formation
with the sparkling "mothership".

As the objects passed to the west of Detroit and into Ohio, still
heading south, radio and TV stations were besieged with calls. Some
described the objects as no more than a thousand feet overhead.
Those in more remote, quiet locales attached a slight hissing sound
to what were now six or more small glowing objects in irregular
formation. On and on went the intruders, observed by thousands over
Kentucky and Tennessee.

Less than an hour after the initial sighting, a call was placed to
NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command), located on
Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado. Without hesitation, the officer
related the details of a Soviet Soyuz rocket booster reentering the
atmosphere over American airspace.

Several points bear mention concerning reentries. First, at any
given time, NORAD's height-finder radar is tracking several
_thousand_ objects that are in static or slowly decaying orbits
around the earth. These range from intact satellites to pieces of
debris as small as a softball. Excepting those retrieved via space
shuttle, with increasing frequency each will fall through the
atmosphere.

Second, our planet collides with common meteors by the ton on a daily
basis as well as in the form of annual meteor showers. [The latter are
ice trails of ancient comets and range in size from a grain of sand to
small stone.] Comparatively, then, even a softball-sized hunk of metal
from an earlier exploded launch vehicle can create quite a stir as it
slowly disintegrates through the atmosphere.

Third, its burn is far longer than a typical shooting star also because
the angle of descent is not steep. On a clear night the sighting
duration is commonly about two minutes from horizon to horizon
(_usually_ east-to-west, though S-N and N-S also occur).

Fourth, this display evokes a variety of colors, depending on the
composition of the metal and especially the altitude (thus internal heat generated) at the point it is observed. Initially, observers generally
see a whit light, followed by amber/orange, and possibly other hues.

Fifth, very typically in a reentry, witnesses describe a holiday
"sparkler" (actually disintegration) effect, changing coloration (due to
the slowing speed and increasing atmospheric density) and, quite often,
a fragmenting of the main body (thus reports of a "mothership" ejecting
smaller "crafts").

Sixth, reentries are nearly always seen over wide expanses, often
encompassing a few or several states.

Seventh, the witnesses tend to grossly underestimate the object's
altitude (total disintegration usually occurs above 15,000 feet) and overestimate its actual size.

Eighth, the anomaly is (logically) always said to be traveling in a
straight and horizontal path overhead. Even when fragments are observed splitting from the main body, they continue along the same course (i.e.
without an abrupt directional change).

Whenever these characteristics are present, it is proper (and usually worthwhile) to contact Peterson AFB, asking for the public affairs
office. That person will contact the NORAD facility.

Being a bureaucrat myself and so suspicious about government agencies, I present the inquiry simply: "We had an event this evening in (named
state(s)). Did NORAD record a reentry?" That is, the time, directional
course and duration should not be offered; let them do the
corroborating. If in reality the nocturnal light was a reentry, you
will probably be given much detail (the particular space launch and
date, moment the debris first entered the atmosphere, duration of the
burn, and area where it was presumed to flame out).

There are two types of events for which you will _not_ likely receive a
helpful reply. One would entail secret military testing in space (e.g.
SDI target practice). The other would be a genuine UFO event. Either
claimed ignorance or a "can neither confirm nor deny" response is likely
in those situations. Since it could be either, however, reticence to
answer your questions does not necessarily imply an anomaly.
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