Occurred: 2003-10-07 19:30 Local
Reported: 2003-12-27 13:37 Pacific
Duration: 5-6 minutes
No of observers: 2

Location: Urbandale, IA, USA

Shape: Formation


VERY IMPORTANT - THIS IS ONE OF 3 SIGHTINGS ON THE SAME NIGHT AT ABOUT THE SAME TIME in Iowa. (This URBANDALE sighting occurred somewhere between 7:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.; and in SE Iowa at a fishpond the time was exact at 7:30 p.m., and at Fairfield, Iowa some 30 miles from the fishpond, the time was exact at 7:30 p.m.). FIRST sighting - reported directly to MUFON was in SE Iowa at farm fishpond near tiny town of Belknap in the Unionville area. SECOND (reported to NUFORC as follows: 10/8/2003 12:50:21 AM 00:50) was the Fairfield sighting some 30 miles from Belknap/Unionville area. THIRD sighting (reported to NUFORC as follows: 10/17/2003 10:36:26 PM 22:36) was in Urbandale (Des Moines Metro area). All witnesses report grouping of several lights (at least 5 or 6) with Belknap and Fairfield reporting the silent lights at somewhere between 10,000 - 25,000 feet altitude, and moving fast. The Fairfield sighting, with considerable surrounding vegetation, lasted only about 25 seconds. The Belknap sighting (2 men in open country at a farm fishpond) lasted perhaps 1 minute. The one reporting Urbandale witness, reported 6 lights moving very very slowly at an estimated altitude of 2,000 feet, with total sighting duration of somewhere around 5-6 minutes until surrounding vegetation obscured his view and that of a man in the neighboring yard watching the silent lights with him. Investigators assess all these witnesses from all 3 sightings as serious, thoughtful, observant persons simply trying to relate as accurately as possible what they perceived. Although there were 5 witnesses among the three sightings, in the Urbandale case only one witness was available for interview, and in the Belknap case, only one witness was availble for interview by investigators.

MUFON Investigators among the 3 reports: Beverly Trout, Glen Singley, Pam Brackenbury, and Clair Canfield.



NUFORC Note:

We express our gratitude to Beverly Trout, State Director for MUFON/IOWA, and to her co-investigators, for following up on this case, and for reporting the results here. PD


Posted 2004-01-17

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