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Carpenter's particles

May 24, 1962
Earth orbit

Explained
Representative drawing from the Orbs page, not this specific sighting.
"fireflies"; "saucer" (added by others)"The witness's own shape words

What happened

Carpenter saw Glenn's "fireflies" and also a tracking balloon released from his capsule. A small, glare-smeared image of the balloon taken through his window was later enlarged and widely printed as a "saucer." Oberg calls the claim that Carpenter himself reported photographing a saucer counterfeit.

Witnesses

Lt. Cmdr. Scott Carpenter, Mercury-Atlas 7 (Aurora 7)

Explanation

Explained

Ice particles and the capsule's own tracking balloon

Sources

  1. Barbree, Shepard and Slayton, Moon Shot (excerpt, NBC News), Carpenter's frostfliesnbcnews.com
  2. Explorersweb, "John Glenn and the Fireflies in Space," May 2, 2023explorersweb.com
  3. Center for Inquirycdn.centerforinquiry.org

Oberg, *Skeptical Inquirer*, 1978