Skylab Crews Track Reddish Object and Unexplained Flashes
NASA-UAP-D7, Skylab Techincal Crew Debriefing 1973
Compiled excerpts from technical crew debriefings for all three Skylab missions (1973–1974) documenting unexplained light flashes, a bright reddish object in near-identical orbit to the station, and flashing lights exhibiting definite motion relative to the vehicle.
Brief
All three crews stationed aboard NASA's Skylab reported anomalous visual observations during their respective missions. Skylab 2 Science Pilot Joseph Kerwin described recurring light flashes perceived even with his eyes closed in darkness, waxing and waning in frequency. Skylab 3's Owen Garriott and Jack Lousma tracked a bright reddish object for five to ten minutes that outshone Jupiter and appeared to occupy a nearly identical orbit to Skylab. Skylab 4 Commander Gerald P. Carr reported flashing lights outside the station with definite motion relative to the crew, tentatively attributed to Skylab debris or other satellites — an attribution that does not resolve the kinematic anomaly he described.
Metadata
- Agency
- NASA
- Release
- 5/8/26
- Incident
- 1973
- Type
- PDF • .pdf
- Length
- 11 pages
- Classification
- UNCLASSIFIED
- Programs
- Skylab, Skylab 2, Skylab 3, Skylab 4
- Tags
- light flashes, reddish object, near-identical orbit, relative motion, visual observation, orbital, 1973, 1974, Skylab, phosphene candidate
Key points
- Skylab 2 Science Pilot Joseph Kerwin reported recurring light flashes perceived with eyes closed in darkness; he noted all three crewmembers experienced them, and the frequency waxed and waned.
- Skylab 3 Science Pilot Owen Garriott and Commander Jack Lousma tracked a bright reddish object for approximately five to ten minutes, assessing it as a satellite in a very similar orbit to Skylab.
- The Skylab 3 reddish object was described as brighter than Jupiter or any other planet visible at the time, retaining its reddish hue well above the horizon.
- Skylab 4 Commander Gerald P. Carr reported flashing lights outside the station exhibiting 'very definite motion relative to ours,' which he tentatively attributed to Skylab debris or other satellites.
- Anomalous observations were recorded by all three Skylab crews across a nine-month span from June 1973 to February 1974, indicating the phenomenon was not isolated to a single mission.
- The document draws from three distinct technical debriefings: Skylab 2 (June 30, 1973), Skylab 3 (October 4, 1973), and Skylab 4 (February 22, 1974).
Most interesting
- Kerwin's light flashes were perceived with eyes closed, consistent with cosmic-ray-induced phosphene events documented in other spaceflight programs — but the debriefing excerpts offer no explanation.
- The Skylab 3 reddish object was tracked for five to ten minutes and assessed as a satellite in nearly identical orbit, yet no satellite identification appears in the excerpted record.
- Carr's Skylab 4 report explicitly notes 'very definite motion relative to ours,' a kinematic qualifier that would rule out a co-orbital object drifting passively — yet the crew's own hypothesis was debris or a satellite.
- All three Skylab crews independently reported anomalous observations, making Skylab arguably the longest continuous single-platform record of astronaut-reported UAP in NASA history at the time.
- These debriefings entered the formal UAP disclosure record through the May 2026 Department of War release, the first time Cold War-era NASA crew anomaly reports were folded into the official UAP pipeline.