Intelligence Information Report, USSR, 1973

This Central Intelligence Agency Intelligence Information Report, distributed in December 1973, relays information from a former Soviet citizen about the Sary Shagan weapons testing range in the USSR. It covers the range's facilities, security, headquarters and warhead checkout unit, along with warheads for the System-75 (SA-2) and System-300/Aldan (ABM-1 GALOSH) missiles and rumored laser research. It also reports that in late summer 1973 the source saw a silent bright green circular object at Site 7 that formed concentric circles and faded within minutes.

From the source: Release of 2026-05-22 Incident: 12/20/73, USSR. Released with redactions. This document is a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) intelligence information report (IIR) that describes human intelligence gathering activities in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). This report characterizes its content as informational, not as finally evaluated intelligence. In section 14 of this document, the source describes an incident occurring in summer of 1973, where he allegedly observed an airborne, luminous, bright green, unidentified object. The source described concentric circles forming around the phenomenon over a period of several minutes, before it dissipated. The source also stated that no sound attended the observation. The source offered no opinion on the nature of the phenomenon and was unable to provide further details regarding the incident.

C O !i F l B f. I.·est of the site at an angle· of sighting of approximately 70
degrees. The altitude of the object was undeter~inable. (Field
Comment; Although there were no clouds in the sky that even1n 6 ,
Source believed that the green mass would have been hiiher than
cloud level. Source could not estimate the diameter of the
object.) Within 10 to 15 seconds of observ~tion, the green circle
widened and w'ith'in a brief period of time several ireen concentric
circles formed around the mass. Within minutes the'coloring dis·
appeared. There was no sound, such as an explosion, associated
with the phenomenon. (Field ColllJllent: Source had no. opinion as
to what this phenomenon was. 16 n-vas no resultant rumors.
Source could not provide any further details.)
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