NASA-UAP-D010, Mercury Atlas 9 Audio Excerpt, May 15, 1963
▮ AI SYNOPSIS · Sonnet 4.6
NASA-UAP-D010 is an audio transcript excerpt from the Mercury-Atlas 9 (Faith 7) mission, dated May 15, 1963. The document records astronaut L. Gordon Cooper Jr. describing luminous particles surrounding his spacecraft approximately one hour and twenty-one minutes into the flight, in low Earth orbit. Cooper refers to them as "John's fireflies," invoking John Glenn's earlier description of a similar phenomenon during the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission. He characterizes the objects as white with a greenish hue, drifting away from and behind the spacecraft, visible against both dark sky and sunlit cloud cover below.
The record is notable primarily as corroboration that the "firefly" phenomenon was repeatable across Mercury missions and multiple astronauts. NASA's internal determination attributed the particles to frozen condensation separating from the spacecraft hull and reflecting sunlight. No portions appear redacted. The document is relevant to the UAP record as an early instance of formally catalogued, anomalous visual observations in space by credentialed military test pilots, later given a mundane explanation.
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Approximately one hour and 41 minutes into the final and longest flight of Project Mercury, Mercury-Atlas 9 mission (MA-9) Faith 7 Pilot L. Gordon Cooper Jr. notes that he sees “John’s fireflies,” referring to John Glenn’s term from the Mercury-Atlas 6 mission. NASA later determined that the “fireflies” are attributable to frozen condensation separating from the spacecraft body. The white, green-hued appearance of this phenomenon results from sunlight reflecting off frozen condensation.
⌥ TRANSCRIPT
And now at one hour, at this time, I have one hour and 21 minutes, and I am observing
John's fireflies, lifting away from me.
I can observe him, sort of, he departing from the spacecraft and drifting out to the
rear.
I can see some of the considerable distance out to the rear, and just coming up behind
me, I am again going to get the glow on the cloud.
Fireflies appear to be white, very whitish, with almost a green like rail fireflies.
Clouds on the earth are changing color, they are getting quite light.
Fireflies appear to be white, very whitish, very whitish, very whitish, very whitish.
I am now on the day side, decided not yet quite out, and I am observing stars.
The earth is light below me, the sun is still behind me, the sky looks dark above me,
and I can see stars, very distinctly.