NUFORC UFO Sighting 196158
Occurred: 1982-12-24 21:00 LocalReported: 2026-02-18 05:53 Pacific
Duration: Maybe 15 seconds
No of observers: 1
Location: Laurel, MD, USA
Location details: Residential neighborhood. Hovering above the house across the street from where I was standing.
Shape: Cigar
Color: yellowish white
Estimated Size: 80 to 100 feet long
Viewed From: Land
Direction from Viewer: SSW
Angle of Elevation: 30
Heading: It hovered before shooting straight up
Closest Distance: ~120 feet
Estimated Speed: Extremely fast / instantaneous acceleration upward
Characteristics: Missing Time
Large, silent, glowing yellowish/off-white cigar-shaped object hovered low over a neighbor's house in Laurel, MD, on Christmas Eve 1982
On Christmas Eve 1982, I was 16 years old and living in Laurel, Maryland. Around evening (exact time uncertain, but after dark on a clear, quiet night with no clouds I recall), I stepped outside the neighbor's house across the street from mine after feeding their cat while they were out of town.
As I exited, I immediately noticed a large, glowing object directly above the roof of the house next to ours. It was elongated/cigar-shaped, oriented lengthwise from my left to right, and appeared longer than the width of a typical Rambler-style house (estimating 70+ feet or more). The color was yellowish or off-white, with a soft, uniform, self-contained glow—bright enough to clearly define its shape against the dark sky, but it did not project light outward, illuminate the street/ground/houses, or cast any noticeable shadows (moon was waxing gibbous but I don't recall strong moonlight affecting it).
It was completely silent—no engine noise, whoosh, or any sound even during movement. It hovered stationary and low, just above the rooftop.
I froze for a second upon seeing it, feeling like time stood still or narrowed to just the object. Almost immediately after I looked at it, it seemed to react as if aware I had seen it: it rose straight up about 100 feet or so, hovered briefly, then shot upward extremely fast—faster than anything I've seen before or since—and vanished into the sky. The acceleration was silent, with no sonic boom, trail, or heat signature.
During the initial rise, my perspective of the object remained the same as when it was lower—no tilt, no underside revealed, no change in apparent angle or shape, which felt odd for a 3D object at that distance shift. The glow stayed uniform and contained throughout.
I ran across the street to my house and told my parents right away. They said they believed me, though I'm not sure about my mom; my dad seemed to take it seriously.
No other witnesses that I know of; it was a very quiet holiday night in a residential area. I've never reported it until now, but the memory has stayed vivid and unchanged for over 40 years.
Posted 2026-03-02