In the early hours of January 20, 1988, Faye Knowles and her three adult sons reported a glowing object that descended onto the roof of their car on the Nullarbor Plain, lifting the vehicle before dropping it and bursting a tyre. Truck driver Graham Henley independently spotted the object from behind and confirmed four indentations in the car's roof.

Henley described the object as resembling 'a big fried egg hung upside down,' observed for five minutes with no vehicle lights beneath it, consistent with the Knowles' account of the object being above their car. Skid marks, footprints, and tyre tracks at the scene were documented by Henley and two companions. UFO researcher Keith Basterfield investigated. Analysis of recovered dust by NASA scientist Dr. Richard Haines found the interior and exterior deposits differed in composition, though no alien material was confirmed.