NUFORC Sighting 180935

Occurred: 1973-07-18 21:30 Local - Approximate
Reported: 2024-03-26 10:47 Pacific
Duration: 1 to 2 minutes
No of observers: 1

Location: , ID, USA
Location details: Middle fork of the Salmon River, summer float trip.

Shape: Light
Color: white
Estimated Size: no idea
Viewed From: Land
Direction from Viewer: no idea
Angle of Elevation: 75
Closest Distance: no idea
Estimated Speed: slow steady to full stop, very fast out of view
Characteristics: Emitted other objects

Satellite watching at night when one changed into something definitely not a satellite.

I was on a summer float trip on the middle fork of the Salmon River in Idaho. I was watching for satellites laying on the ground in a sleeping bag after everyone had retired for the night. I saw two which acted normally and slowly disappeared over the horizon after spotting them. A bit later a third appeared and was going slowly in more or less the same direction and speed as the first two. Then it stopped dead in the sky. It just sat there for several seconds, five perhaps. It then became, split into, three objects which seemed to "dance", "jiggle", around one another for a second or two while maintaining the same spot in the sky. All three then instantaneously accelerated to an incredible speed and were over the horizon within approximately a second. They left on different trajectories separated approximately 120 degrees apart. Trisecting the night sky. The exact year and date and location on river are just my best guesses... no journal or diary being kept.

Posted 2024-04-27