UFO Case Report:

Sphere-shaped object seen by witness in Salt Lake City, UT

Date: September 15, 1998
Location: Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

At 3 AM on Sept. 15, 1998, witness Chris Rock stepped outside and fired his laser pointer into the sky toward west-southwest in the general direction of Jupiter. Within a minute or two, a gray, spherical object, with an apparent 7" diameter at arm's length appeared in the western sky, hovering over an adjacent building at a (measured) distance of 260 feet from the witness and 40 feet above the ground. The object sat motionless for 2 to 3 seconds, before passing over the witness and out of sight.

Drawing by the witness of his sighting. (source: MUFON)

Classification & Features

Type of Case/Report: StandardCase
Hynek Classification: ND
Shape of Object(s): Round
# of Witnesses: Single
Special Features/Characteristics: Interaction/Reaction, Witness Sketch

Full Report / Article

Source: MUFON (Jan, 2003)

MUFON investigator: Guy Richardson

Adult male witness (DOB 1959), married, employed as a sanitation supervisor, taking an outdoor coffee break at work, 3 AM (MST), Sept. 15, 1998, Salt Lake City, UT, observed a large, gray, spherical object with a pock-marked underside surface.

Object, 260 feet from witness when first seen (in the west), hovered at treetop height, then moved toward the witness at an estimated 60 mph, coming within 72 feet of the witness. Object then disappeared in the northeast.

Object's calculated diameter: 65 feet (average). No sound. Duration: 3-4 seconds.

Investigator met with witness, Chris Rock, at his home, Oct. 21, 2000, to take his statement regarding the UFO sighting and later met with him at the location of the sighting. Reconstruction of a 2-year-old UFO sighting poses obvious problems for the investigator, but formnately the witness made a written account of the incident within days of the occurrence and posted the report on his website, rockc@tripod.com. Note also that the witness is an amateur astronomer.

At the sighting location, ample points of geographic reference established the distance from witness to object when first and last seen. However, our calculated size of the object, while stated in exact figures, is less certain, and should be regarded as best approximation obtainable. Narrative account

At 3 AM (MST) Sept. 15, 1998, witness was working at Westminster College, 1840 So. 1300 E., Salt Lake City On stepping outside, witness reports the night was cool, around 65 degrees F, visibility clear (no clouds). While facing west, he fired his laser pointer into the sky toward west-southwest in the general direction of Jupiter.

Within a minute or two, a gray, spherical object, with an apparent 7" diameter at arm's length appeared in the western sky, hovering over an adjacent building at a (measured) distance of 260 feet from the witness and 40 feet above the ground.

Upon seeing the object, witness turned off the laser pointer. Witness stated he was awed by what he was seeing and doesn't recall feeling or thinking much in the ensuing moments. The object sat motionless for 2 to 3 seconds. The witness states, "It did not bob or weave. It sat as if it was locked in place. Then in an instant it was moving across the top of the building in front of me. Then it turned to move past me on my right, almost straight over my head." The object, which had appeared in the west, moved north, then turned northeast toward the witness at a speed estimated by the witness to be 60 mph.

This estimate proved roughly correct. Based on a total distance of 310 feet traveled by the object from initial sighting to when last seen, the calculated speed is 70 mph if the time required was 3 seconds, or 53 mph if 4 seconds had elapsed.

The witness stated that the object had no evident period of acceleration; i.e., the object was motionless one instant and then moving at 60 mph the next. The witness watched the object pass over him, heading northeast, then lost it from view as the it passed behind a building.

The moment before the sphere moved out of view was when it was closest to the witness: 60 feet away at an ahitude of 40 feet. At this point, the witness reports the object had an apparent size of 21" at arm's length. During these last moments, he observed the underside of the sphere, which he described as "reddish, pinkish, with pits and pings and very much crater like."

He added that, apart from the bottom, the object was smooth, gray, and featureless. The witness said he felt the object was aware of him. As the object passed over him, it went behind trees, heading east behind a building.

The witness pursued the object on foot, but before he could clear the tree cover he heard a "bang," and when he came into a clearing the object was nowhere to be seen. "I don't know if the 'bang' sound was related to the object or not," the witness stated.

He stated that during the sighting no sound was heard coming from the sphere, nor was there any perceptible emission or disturbance to the immediate surroundings attributable to the object.

After a couple of days, the witness telephoned Peter Davenport at the National UFO Reporting Center.

Case ID: 920 edit: 920

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