PUBLIC RELEASE SOURCE REVIEW · INDEPENDENT ANALYTIC CASE FILE

CASE FILE 23 / 237UAP00612

237UAP00612

Radar/correlation-focused public UAP report; score 68

NORMAL-OBJECT FAVORED

Report No.	UAP-OM-23-237UAP00612	Disposition	NORMAL-OBJECT FAVORED
Primary Case	237UAP00612	Generated	2026-05-20 18:32 UTC
Report Time	2024-02-19T10:50:00+00:00	Observer	42.30568, -88.73657
Source Case IDs	237UAP00612

Abstract

This case file evaluates a reported UAP sighting against historical Starlink orbital elements. The primary external-object candidate is a 3-object same-launch group from 2022-03-09, spanning azimuth 314.14-319.5 deg and elevation 21.43-26.07 deg. The analysis distinguishes plausible geometric overlap from unresolved witness-language features.

This is a standalone independent analysis prepared from public-source records and public orbital datasets. It is not an official government determination, classification marking, or agency-authored report.

1. Executive Summary

237UAP00612 is assessed as normal-object favored because the available public evidence gives a case-specific ordinary-object candidate: strong ADS-B aircraft candidate C-FLKJ B38M c01e1a at 36.2 km, azimuth 328.4 deg, elevation 17.98 deg, 6.28 min from report. Dense satellite presence alone is not treated as causation in this packet.

1.1 Key Findings

Source score 68 based on: radar/primary-return language, negative official correlation, maneuvering/motion anomaly, UAP/UFO language.
Report time used: 2024-02-19T10:50:00+00:00.
External object layer used: Starlink.
Disposition standard: NORMAL-OBJECT requires case-specific causal fit. Satellite density above the horizon is context only and cannot by itself resolve the report.
Case-specific ordinary-object evidence: strong ADS-B aircraft candidate C-FLKJ B38M c01e1a at 36.2 km, azimuth 328.4 deg, elevation 17.98 deg, 6.28 min from report.
Non-causal context / rejection screens: very dense orbital-object sky background; context only, not causation.
Remaining hard features: hard maneuver language.
Objects above horizon: 274; at/above 10 deg: 143.
Top compact same-launch/designator group: 3 objects from 2022-03-09.
No explicit Starlink/balloon wording was found in the source excerpt used for ranking.

1.2 Bottom Line

NORMAL-OBJECT FAVORED: A case-specific ordinary-object candidate exists from source language, orbital geometry, launch-object context, or compact trajectory grouping. Dense ordinary sky traffic alone is not treated as causation.

2. Source Control

The source-control table identifies the public report records reviewed for this case and lists public access links where available. The table is included so this PDF remains interpretable when distributed by itself.

Case ID	Report Date Field	Facility / Title	Text Extract	Public PDF Link
237UAP00612	2/19/2024 4:50:00 AM (-06 CST)	ATN3498 UFO-UAP ACTIVITY 02-19-2024	text extract present	237UAP00612.pdf

3. Original Report Evidence

Primary excerpt used for matching	Washington Operations Center Date: 2/19/2024 4:50:00 AM (-06 CST) Title: ATN3498 UFO-UAP ACTIVITY 02-19-2024 Latitude: 42.305684370000002 Latitude: -88.736569380000006 DESCRIPTION PRELIM INFO FROM FAA OPS: CHICAGO-ROCKFORD, IL/UFO-UAP ACTIVITY/0450C/SALT LAKE CITY ARTCC ADVISED AIR TRANSPORT 3498, B763, SMF - RFD, REPORTED SEEING MULTIPLE LIGHTS MOVING AND CIRCLING AT FL370 OR HIGHER. PILOT FIRST REPORTED THE UAP 20 NM ENE OF MTU. UAP NOT OBSERVED ON ATC FACILITY RADAR. WOC 7-3333 GC/JG
Report time used	2024-02-19T10:50:00+00:00
Observer coordinate used	42.30568, -88.73657
Observer source basis	(public text extract 237UAP00612)

4. Methodology

Spacetime extraction. The report time and observer coordinate were extracted from the public text report and normalized to UTC. Aviation fixes/radials were resolved during earlier preprocessing where applicable.
External object dataset. The object layer used historical Space-Track/TLE-derived Starlink element rows. The analytic mode for this case is historical Starlink element propagation and same-launch/designator sky grouping.
Propagation. Orbital elements were propagated to the report minute and observer location. For launch-object checks, samples around the report minute were retained. For Starlink group checks, objects above the horizon were clustered by sky position and filtered for same-launch groupings.
Comparison. The output was compared against the report's count of lights, direction cue, motion language, altitude/radar language, and whether the file itself already suggested a satellite explanation.
Causation standard. Mere object presence above the horizon is treated as background context only. A normal-object disposition requires a case-specific causal fit, such as a named launch object, a compact same-launch trajectory group, or source language that directly supports that object class.
Disposition assignment. Identified means a specific normal object fits the report spacetime and the hard reported features do not materially conflict. Normal-object favored means a case-specific ordinary aerospace/orbital candidate exists, but it is not a full named identification. Insufficient means the file is too thin to carry high anomaly value. High-value unresolved is used when radar, video, rapid maneuver, or multi-witness features remain after reasonable normal-object checks.

5. External Object Evidence

5.1 Search Volume and Density

This table is a screening layer only. Objects above the horizon show background opportunity; they do not establish causation unless a specific object or compact trajectory group matches the reported behavior.

Starlink catalog IDs considered	5458	Historical element rows	5431
Above horizon at report minute	274	At/above 10 deg	143
Largest same-sky cluster	130

5.2 Same-Launch / Same-Designator Candidate Groups

#	Launch Date	Count	Azimuth Span	Elevation Span	Motion Labels	Members
1	2022-03-09	3	314.14-319.5 deg	21.43-26.07 deg	eastward, rising, eastward, setting	STARLINK-3691, STARLINK-3694, STARLINK-3679
2	2023-11-18	3	275.84-276.69 deg	13.11-15.92 deg	westward, rising	STARLINK-30897, STARLINK-30858, STARLINK-30904

5.3 Primary Group Members

Object	NORAD	Launch	Az	El	Range km	Apparent Motion	Element Age h
STARLINK-3691	51960	2022-03-09	319.5	26.07	1105.0	eastward, setting	1.29
STARLINK-3694	51957	2022-03-09	315.73	25.26	1127.79	eastward, setting	2.89
STARLINK-3679	51973	2022-03-09	314.14	21.43	1243.92	eastward, rising	1.29

5.4 Bright-Sky Context: Top Starlink Objects by Elevation

Object	Az	El	Range km	Apparent Motion	Launch Date
STARLINK-30256	262.33	77.09	575.66	westward, setting	2023-08-08
STARLINK-4582	347.0	75.85	558.75	eastward, setting	2022-08-19
STARLINK-5476	293.71	64.77	617.18	eastward, setting	2023-07-07
STARLINK-1071	65.05	63.7	608.6	eastward, setting	2020-01-07
STARLINK-30573	74.35	56.55	662.94	eastward, setting	2023-10-13
STARLINK-5795	274.33	56.42	663.95	eastward, setting	2023-03-24
STARLINK-5720	192.63	56.13	665.01	westward, setting	2023-02-12
STARLINK-3451	289.07	51.96	673.64	westward, setting	2022-02-21
STARLINK-5023	199.52	48.34	704.52	westward, setting	2022-09-24
STARLINK-3533	72.4	47.39	715.06	eastward, setting	2022-02-21
STARLINK-30962	240.49	46.26	750.66	westward, rising	2023-11-28
STARLINK-1240	304.95	45.83	741.59	eastward, setting	2020-02-17

5.5 Largest Sky Clusters

#	Count	Azimuth Span	Elevation Span	Motion Labels
1	130	4.37-357.01 deg	10.02-63.7 deg	eastward, level, eastward, rising, eastward, setting, nearly fixed azimuth, setting, westward, level, westward, rising, westward, setting
2	4	274.33-304.95 deg	45.83-64.77 deg	eastward, setting, westward, setting
3	3	192.63-217.06 deg	45.43-56.13 deg	westward, rising, westward, setting
4	3	203.75-210.27 deg	17.15-30.63 deg	westward, rising, westward, setting
5	1	262.33-262.33 deg	77.09-77.09 deg	westward, setting

5.6 Space-Track SATCAT Enrichment

Space-Track SATCAT metadata was pulled as a cached subset for NORAD catalog IDs appearing in this packet's evidence tables. This section adds owner/type/status context to the propagated object candidates.

Packet SATCAT subset rows	5370	Fetched	2026-05-19T01:19:50+00:00
This case NORAD IDs checked	36	SATCAT rows matched	36
Top owners	US: 36
Object types	PAYLOAD: 36

5.7 Space-Track Metadata for Top Propagated Objects

NORAD	Object Name	Type	Owner	Launch Date	Decay Date
57522	STARLINK-30256	PAYLOAD	US	2023-08-08	n/a
53569	STARLINK-4582	PAYLOAD	US	2022-08-19	n/a
57258	STARLINK-5476	PAYLOAD	US	2023-07-07	n/a
44934	STARLINK-1071	PAYLOAD	US	2020-01-07	2025-09-16
58058	STARLINK-30573	PAYLOAD	US	2023-10-13	n/a
56039	STARLINK-5795	PAYLOAD	US	2023-03-24	n/a
55619	STARLINK-5720	PAYLOAD	US	2023-02-12	n/a
51749	STARLINK-3451	PAYLOAD	US	2022-02-21	n/a
53919	STARLINK-5023	PAYLOAD	US	2022-09-24	n/a
51715	STARLINK-3533	PAYLOAD	US	2022-02-21	n/a
58458	STARLINK-30962	PAYLOAD	US	2023-11-28	n/a
45194	STARLINK-1240	PAYLOAD	US	2020-02-17	2025-10-01

5.9 NASA / NOAA / ADS-B Expansion Layer

This source layer adds free NASA context that was previously missing from most packet cases. It is contextual evidence; it does not replace aircraft, satellite, balloon, or radar causation tests.

Hour UTC	2024021910
Cloud amount	7.52%
Precipitation	0.02 mm/hr
10 m wind	2.89 m/s
Temperature	-12.21 C
Relative humidity	91.68%
DONKI +/-1 day	CME: unavailable; FLR: unavailable; GST: unavailable; HSS: unavailable; IPS: unavailable; MPC: unavailable; RBE: unavailable; SEP: unavailable; WSAEnlilSimulations: unavailable

5.10 Horizons Sky Geometry Context

Object	Az	El	App Mag
Sun	70.54	-37.96	-26.77
Moon	302.32	5.28	-11.17
Venus	96.72	-23.13	-3.91
Mars	96.12	-24.54	1.25
Jupiter	341.33	-33.96	-2.23
Saturn	61.34	-42.80	0.98

Sun elevation was -38.0 deg, so this was a dark-sky/nighttime sighting.
Moon was above horizon at azimuth 302.3 deg / elevation 5.3 deg.
No checked bright planets were above the horizon at the primary coordinate/time.
NASA POWER cloud amount for the hour was 7.52%, with precipitation 0.02 mm/hr.

5.11 Free Source Availability and Remaining Work

Layer	Status	Case-Specific Note
ADSB.lol historical release listing	screened/present	planes-readsb-staging-0 1775.0 MiB; planes-readsb-prod-0 1777.0 MiB
ADSB tracks downloaded	not yet exhausted	Requires targeted extraction from large daily history archives before claiming aircraft exhaustion.
NOAA GOES imagery	not yet exhausted	Needed for cloud/lightning visual context.
NOAA GOES ABI/GLM manifest	screened/present	Public S3 object availability for the report hour.
NOAA NEXRAD weather radar	not yet exhausted	Weather radar only; not ATC radar.
NOAA IGRA radiosonde	screened/present	Needed for balloon drift plausibility.
ASOS/METAR weather observations	screened/present	Nearest station surface observations around report time.

ADSB.lol historical: extract aircraft traces from adsblol/globe_history_2024 for 2024-02-19, then filter +/-60 min and 250 nmi around 40.2760,-109.7246.
NASA POWER/Horizons/DONKI: batch context for 237UAP00612 at 2024-02-19T10:50:00+00:00.
NOAA GOES: pull nearest ABI/GLM products for the UTC hour and render cloud/lightning map.
NOAA NEXRAD: select nearest radar stations and render Level-II/III weather radar sweep around event time.
NOAA IGRA: find nearest radiosonde station launches bracketing the event and model wind drift for balloon-like descriptions.
Space-Track gp_history/decay: fetch exact historical element rows and decay/reentry status for top candidate NORAD IDs.

5.12 Weather, Imagery, and Balloon Query Plan

This plan identifies the concrete free sources needed for the next case-specific weather and balloon checks. These are not treated as completed exclusions until the data are downloaded and plotted.

GOES satellite	GOES18
GOES ABI prefix	https://noaa-goes18.s3.amazonaws.com/ABI-L2-CMIPF/2024/050/10/
GOES GLM lightning prefix	https://noaa-goes18.s3.amazonaws.com/GLM-L2-LCFA/2024/050/10/

5.13 Nearest Weather-Airport Candidates

Station	Name	Distance km	Coordinate
KVEL	Vernal Regional Airport	25.40	40.44, -109.51
KEVW	Evanston-Uinta County Airport-Burns Field	156.60	41.27, -111.04
KRKS	Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport	156.70	41.59, -109.07
KGJT	Grand Junction Regional Airport	163.70	39.13, -108.53
KCNY	Canyonlands Regional Airport	169.10	38.76, -109.75

5.14 Nearest Radiosonde Stations

Station	Name	Distance km	Coordinate
USM00072476	GRAND JUNCTION/WALKER FIELD; C	164.50	39.12, -108.53
USM00072572	SALT LAKE CITY/INTNL UT.	196.40	40.77, -111.96
USM00074003	DUGWAY PRVGR	272.70	40.17, -112.93
USM00072672	RIVERTON; WY.	326.90	43.06, -108.48
USM00072582	ELKO; NV.	512.30	40.86, -115.74

5.15 ASOS/METAR Surface Weather Observations

surface visibility ranged 10-10 statute miles; no precipitation was reported in the retained observations; no low broken/overcast cloud ceiling was evident in the retained station observations. Surface ASOS/METAR observations describe airport-level weather and visibility; they do not by themselves prove conditions at the sighting altitude or line of sight.

Station	Distance km	Nearest obs UTC	Vis SM	Sky	Wind deg/kt	METAR
KVEL	25.40	2024-02-19T10:53:00+00:00	10.00	CLR, M, M, M	300.00 / 5.00	KVEL 191053Z AUTO 30005KT 10SM CLR M06/M09 A3011 RMK AO2 SLP224 T10561094
KEVW	156.60	2024-02-19T10:53:00+00:00	10.00	CLR, M, M, M	130.00 / 3.00	KEVW 191053Z AUTO 13003KT 10SM CLR M05/M09 A3002 RMK AO2 SLP176 T10501089 $
KRKS	156.70	2024-02-19T10:54:00+00:00	10.00	CLR, M, M, M	220.00 / 13.00	KRKS 191054Z AUTO 22013KT 10SM CLR M06/M08 A3003 RMK AO2 SLP211 T10611083

5.16 NOAA IGRA Radiosonde Wind Profile

Nearest sounding implies mean 0-12 km wind drift toward 112.3 deg at 19.83 m/s; a passive balloon could drift about 142.8 km in two hours under this crude layer-average model. Radiosonde winds are sparse station soundings; balloon drift remains approximate without launch time, ascent rate, object altitude, and exact line-of-sight bearing.

Station	Name	Distance km	Sounding UTC	Mean drift bearing	Mean speed m/s	2h drift km	Max wind
USM00072476	GRAND JUNCTION/WALKER FIELD; C	164.50	2024-02-19T12:00:00+00:00	112.30	19.83	142.80	43.20 at 11800.00 m

5.17 NOAA GOES ABI/GLM Public File Manifest

GOES public S3 objects are listed for the report hour where available. This is an availability manifest, not yet a rendered satellite image.

Satellite	GOES18	Bucket	noaa-goes18
ABI sample files	12	GLM sample files	12

ABI sample objects:

GLM lightning sample objects:

5.18 ADSB.lol Historical Aircraft Track Extraction

This layer uses the downloaded ADSB.lol daily history archive to test actual aircraft tracks near the report coordinate and minute. It is not treated as a primary-radar substitute; it is a transponder/receiver-derived aircraft screen.

Archive window	2024-02-19T09:50:00+00:00 to 2024-02-19T11:50:00+00:00	Radius	250.00 nmi
Trace files scanned	51328	Tracks retained	296
Support status	aircraft strong candidate present	Best-candidate note	ordinary-object favored if the report's count, color, direction, and motion can be reconciled with the candidate track(s).
Strong candidates	23	Plausible candidates	24
Reporting-aircraft tracks excluded	1	Weak candidates	33

5.19 Top ADS-B Candidate Tracks

Aircraft	Status	Score	Min dist km	Nearest dt min	Alt ft	Az	El
C-FLKJ B38M c01e1a	strong aircraft candidate	73.96	34.30	0.03	39000	328.40	17.98
N768UA B772 aa6103	strong aircraft candidate	60.64	77.30	0.10	9900	147.70	1.83
N807QZ aafd54	strong aircraft candidate	60.60	76.10	0.21	ground	116.10	-0.34
N637NK A320 a858f3	strong aircraft candidate	60.58	77.20	0.01	ground	118.60	-0.35
N283QX a2da94	strong aircraft candidate	60.54	76.30	0.22	ground	118.50	-0.34
N495AS B739 a622bc	strong aircraft candidate	60.53	9.80	0.01	ground	118.70	-0.35
N138QZ a09a5f	strong aircraft candidate	60.52	76.40	0.22	ground	118.50	-0.34
N813QZ ab15f7	strong aircraft candidate	60.46	76.60	0.22	ground	116.70	-0.34

6. Annotated Evidence Figure

Annotated orbital object figure — Generated figure copied from the local evidence-plot output. It is included as an analytic visualization, not as original sensor imagery.

7. Analytic Comparison

Criterion	Report Evidence	Analytic Treatment
Time constraint	2024-02-19T10:50:00+00:00	Directly used in propagation; this is a hard filter, not descriptive context.
Location constraint	42.30568, -88.73657	Directly used as observer point for azimuth/elevation/range computation.
Count / pattern	three-object/light language present	Primary same-launch group contains 3 propagated objects in a compact sky sector.
Motion language	circling, moving	Apparent motion labels in the object table provide a plausible but not definitive comparison.
Radar / official check	not observed on ATC radar	No ATC radar return can be consistent with distant orbital objects or visual aircraft-light hypotheses, but it does not prove the match.
Analytic disposition	normal-object	237UAP00612 is assessed as normal-object favored because the available public evidence gives a case-specific ordinary-object candidate: strong ADS-B aircraft candidate C-FLKJ B38M c01e1a at 36.2 km, azimuth 328.4 deg, elevation 17.98 deg, 6.28 min from report. Dense satellite presence alone is not treated as causation in this packet.

8. Caveats, Limitations, and Collection Gaps

No raw cockpit video, ATC replay, radar plot, or witness interview transcript was reviewed unless explicitly stated in the public source text.
Aviation-derived coordinates can represent a nearby fix/radial or report point, not necessarily the actual line-of-sight intercept point.
Starlink visibility depends on illumination, observer altitude, atmospheric conditions, and apparent brightness; this analysis tests geometry, not photometry. No brightness model is used unless explicitly stated elsewhere in the case file.
TLE propagation is appropriate for screening and reconstruction but is not a substitute for authoritative operational ephemerides.
When many satellites are above the horizon, generic presence is weak evidence and is not treated as causation. The report emphasizes named launch-object checks or compact same-launch trajectory groups.
Normal-object favored is not the same as a perfect named-object identification; it requires a case-specific ordinary-object candidate stronger than simple object density.

Appendix A. Public Report Text Extracts

237UAP00612

Washington Operations Center




Date: 2/19/2024 4:50:00 AM (-06 CST)
Title: ATN3498 UFO-UAP ACTIVITY 02-19-2024
Latitude: 42.305684370000002                           Latitude: -88.736569380000006




DESCRIPTION

PRELIM INFO FROM FAA OPS: CHICAGO-ROCKFORD, IL/UFO-UAP ACTIVITY/0450C/SALT LAKE CITY ARTCC ADVISED
AIR TRANSPORT 3498, B763, SMF - RFD, REPORTED SEEING MULTIPLE LIGHTS MOVING AND CIRCLING AT FL370
OR HIGHER. PILOT FIRST REPORTED THE UAP 20 NM ENE OF MTU. UAP NOT OBSERVED ON ATC FACILITY RADAR.
WOC 7-3333 GC/JG

Appendix B. Computational Evidence Digest

This appendix preserves the principal computed values used in the assessment, shortened to the fields most relevant to audit and review.

{
  "report_time_utc": "2024-02-19T10:50:00+00:00",
  "source_excerpt": "Washington Operations Center\n\n\n\n\nDate: 2/19/2024 4:50:00 AM (-06 CST)\nTitle: ATN3498 UFO-UAP ACTIVITY 02-19-2024\nLatitude: 42.305684370000002                           Latitude: -88.736569380000006\n\n\n\n\nDESCRIPTION\n\nPRELIM INFO FROM FAA OPS: CHICAGO-ROCKFORD, IL/UFO-UAP ACTIVITY/0450C/SALT LAKE CITY ARTCC ADVISED\nAIR TRANSPORT 3498, B763, SMF - RFD, REPORTED SEEING MULTIPLE LIGHTS MOVING AND CIRCLING AT FL370\nOR HIGHER. PILOT FIRST REPORTED THE UAP 20 NM ENE OF MTU. UAP NOT OBSERVED ON ATC FACILITY RADAR.\nWOC 7-3333 GC/JG",
  "historical_starlink_element_rows": 5431,
  "observer": {
    "lat": 42.30568437,
    "lon": -88.73656938,
    "source": "(public text extract 237UAP00612)"
  },
  "case_id": "237UAP00612",
  "starlink_above_horizon_at_report_time": 274,
  "starlink_catalog_ids_considered": 5458,
  "largest_same-sky_cluster_count": 130,
  "starlink_at_or_above_10_deg": 143,
  "same_launch_sky_groups": [
    {
      "azimuth_range_deg": [
        314.14,
        319.5
      ],
      "count": 3,
      "elevation_range_deg": [
        21.43,
        26.07
      ],
      "ground_track_labels": [
        "ENE"
      ],
      "launch_date": "2022-03-09",
      "members": [
        {
          "azimuth_deg": 319.5,
          "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 9.31,
          "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 43.69,
          "element_age_hours": 1.29,
          "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T12:07:23.869632+00:00",
          "elevation_deg": 26.07,
          "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 23.79,
          "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 7.19,
          "epoch_altitude_km": 558.63,
          "ground_track_bearing_deg": 63.45,
          "ground_track_label": "ENE",
          "launch_date": "2022-03-09",
          "name": "STARLINK-3691",
          "norad_id": "51960",
          "range_km": 1105.0,
          "sky_motion_label": "eastward, setting",
          "subpoint_lat": 48.3097,
          "subpoint_lon": -96.7573
        },
        {
          "azimuth_deg": 315.73,
          "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 5.84,
          "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 42.7,
          "element_age_hours": 2.89,
          "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T13:43:11.722944+00:00",
          "elevation_deg": 25.26,
          "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 24.63,
          "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 7.91,
          "epoch_altitude_km": 558.31,
          "ground_track_bearing_deg": 62.84,
          "ground_track_label": "ENE",
          "launch_date": "2022-03-09",
          "name": "STARLINK-3694",
          "norad_id": "51957",
          "range_km": 1127.79,
          "sky_motion_label": "eastward, setting",
          "subpoint_lat": 48.0532,
          "subpoint_lon": -97.5561
        },
        {
          "azimuth_deg": 314.14,
          "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 359.98,
          "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 41.03,
          "element_age_hours": 1.29,
          "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T12:07:08.899104+00:00",
          "elevation_deg": 21.43,
          "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 23.43,
          "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 8.59,
          "epoch_altitude_km": 553.2,
          "ground_track_bearing_deg": 64.12,
          "ground_track_label": "ENE",
          "launch_date": "2022-03-09",
          "name": "STARLINK-3679",
          "norad_id": "51973",
          "range_km": 1243.92,
          "sky_motion_label": "eastward, rising",
          "subpoint_lat": 48.5735,
          "subpoint_lon": -99.1589
        }
      ],
      "motion_labels": [
        "eastward, rising",
        "eastward, setting"
      ]
    },
    {
      "azimuth_range_deg": [
        275.84,
        276.69
      ],
      "count": 3,
      "elevation_range_deg": [
        13.11,
        15.92
      ],
      "ground_track_labels": [
        "E"
      ],
      "launch_date": "2023-11-18",
      "members": [
        {
          "azimuth_deg": 275.84,
          "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 255.92,
          "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 137.64,
          "element_age_hours": 0.44,
          "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T10:23:28.935456+00:00",
          "elevation_deg": 15.92,
          "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 39.09,
          "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 30.86,
          "epoch_altitude_km": 565.57,
          "ground_track_bearing_deg": 99.88,
          "ground_track_label": "E",
          "launch_date": "2023-11-18",
          "name": "STARLINK-30897",
          "norad_id": "58360",
          "range_km": 1500.13,
          "sky_motion_label": "westward, rising",
          "subpoint_lat": 42.3814,
          "subpoint_lon": -104.9682
        },
        {
          "azimuth_deg": 276.69,
          "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 259.98,
          "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 140.75,
          "element_age_hours": 0.44,
          "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T10:23:43.429056+00:00",
          "elevation_deg": 14.14,
          "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 35.25,
          "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 33.54,
          "epoch_altitude_km": 559.92,
          "ground_track_bearing_deg": 99.14,
          "ground_track_label": "E",
          "launch_date": "2023-11-18",
          "name": "STARLINK-30858",
          "norad_id": "58358",
          "range_km": 1578.35,
          "sky_motion_label": "westward, rising",
          "subpoint_lat": 42.4959,
          "subpoint_lon": -106.0074
        },
        {
          "azimuth_deg": 276.66,
          "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 260.17,
          "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 144.27,
          "element_age_hours": 1.15,
          "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T11:59:06.422496+00:00",
          "elevation_deg": 13.11,
          "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 32.94,
          "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 33.54,
          "epoch_altitude_km": 549.11,
          "ground_track_bearing_deg": 99.41,
          "ground_track_label": "E",
          "launch_date": "2023-11-18",
          "name": "STARLINK-30904",
          "norad_id": "58364",
          "range_km": 1612.0,
          "sky_motion_label": "westward, rising",
          "subpoint_lat": 42.4563,
          "subpoint_lon": -106.4847
        }
      ],
      "motion_labels": [
        "westward, rising"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "top_starlinks": [
    {
      "azimuth_deg": 262.33,
      "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 105.38,
      "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 103.76,
      "element_age_hours": 2.74,
      "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T13:34:34.851360+00:00",
      "elevation_deg": 77.09,
      "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 35.02,
      "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 7.42,
      "epoch_altitude_km": 566.03,
      "ground_track_bearing_deg": 101.15,
      "ground_track_label": "E",
      "launch_date": "2023-08-08",
      "name": "STARLINK-30256",
      "norad_id": "57522",
      "range_km": 575.66,
      "sky_motion_label": "westward, setting",
      "subpoint_lat": 42.1548,
      "subpoint_lon": -90.1546
    },
    {
      "azimuth_deg": 347.0,
      "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 46.56,
      "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 51.69,
      "element_age_hours": 4.51,
      "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T15:20:35.451744+00:00",
      "elevation_deg": 75.85,
      "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 27.23,
      "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 4.79,
      "epoch_altitude_km": 545.9,
      "ground_track_bearing_deg": 53.92,
      "ground_track_label": "NE",
      "launch_date": "2022-08-19",
      "name": "STARLINK-4582",
      "norad_id": "53569",
      "range_km": 558.75,
      "sky_motion_label": "eastward, setting",
      "subpoint_lat": 43.4087,
      "subpoint_lon": -89.0861
    },
    {
      "azimuth_deg": 293.71,
      "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 84.92,
      "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 91.23,
      "element_age_hours": 1.19,
      "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T12:01:30.684576+00:00",
      "elevation_deg": 64.77,
      "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 40.56,
      "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 8.98,
      "epoch_altitude_km": 565.19,
      "ground_track_bearing_deg": 91.48,
      "ground_track_label": "E",
      "launch_date": "2023-07-07",
      "name": "STARLINK-5476",
      "norad_id": "57258",
      "range_km": 617.18,
      "sky_motion_label": "eastward, setting",
      "subpoint_lat": 43.1487,
      "subpoint_lon": -91.4587
    },
    {
      "azimuth_deg": 65.05,
      "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 111.86,
      "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 119.67,
      "element_age_hours": 2.13,
      "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T08:42:18.391968+00:00",
      "elevation_deg": 63.7,
      "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 24.56,
      "elevation_plus_5m_deg": 3.98,
      "epoch_altitude_km": 553.53,
      "ground_track_bearing_deg": 126.74,
      "ground_track_label": "SE",
      "launch_date": "2020-01-07",
      "name": "STARLINK-1071",
      "norad_id": "44934",
      "range_km": 608.6,
      "sky_motion_label": "eastward, setting",
      "subpoint_lat": 43.2152,
      "subpoint_lon": -85.9649
    },
    {
      "azimuth_deg": 74.35,
      "azimuth_plus_2m_deg": 81.26,
      "azimuth_plus_5m_deg": 83.24,
      "element_age_hours": 0.38,
      "element_epoch": "2024-02-19T10:27:02.315808+00:00",
      "elevation_deg": 56.55,
      "elevation_plus_2m_deg": 20.42,

Appendix C. Source Exhaustion Checklist

This checklist records which source layers were actually applied to this individual report. It separates checked evidence from unexhausted collection gaps so the disposition is auditable when the PDF is read alone.

Source Layer	Status	Case-Specific Note
NARA public UAP/FAA report	reviewed	Source IDs: 237UAP00612
Time and observer coordinate	extracted	2024-02-19T10:50:00+00:00 at 42.30568, -88.73657
Orbital object propagation	screened	Starlink
Space-Track SATCAT metadata	screened	36 NORAD IDs checked; 36 matched in local SATCAT subset
Launch-object/SupGP layer	not applicable	not a launch-object case
NASA/JPL known small-body layer	not selected	CAD/Horizons secondary screen included when this case had NEO-relevant timing/geometry
NASA POWER/Horizons/DONKI context	screened	Hourly weather, sky geometry, and space-weather context where local JSON is present
Aircraft/ADS-B layer	screened	51328 trace files scanned; 296 tracks retained; aircraft strong candidate present
NOAA GOES imagery layer	not exhausted	Cloud/lightning imagery layer for the report hour
NOAA GOES ABI/GLM manifest	screened	Public S3 object listing for the report hour
NOAA/NEXRAD weather radar layer	not exhausted	Weather radar only; not ATC/primary radar
NOAA IGRA radiosonde layer	screened	Balloon drift plausibility layer
ASOS/METAR surface weather	screened	Nearest station visibility, cloud, wind, precipitation, and METAR observations
Weather/balloon source plan	planned	Nearest weather-airport, GOES, and radiosonde queries are listed where local plan JSON is present
Final analytic disposition	normal-object favored	Presence-only satellite density is context only; a stronger case-specific fit is required for normal-object disposition

References and Source Links

National Archives and Records Administration. Records Related to Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) and Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs) at the National Archives. https://www.archives.gov/research/topics/uaps
National Archives and Records Administration. Record Group 615: Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Records Collection. https://www.archives.gov/research/topics/uaps/rg-615
National Archives and Records Administration. Bulk Downloads for Records Related to Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAPs). https://www.archives.gov/research/catalog/catalog-bulk-downloads/uap-bulk-download
National Archives Catalog. Records from the Federal Aviation Administration Relating to Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, National Archives Identifier 493468575. https://catalog.archives.gov/id/493468575
National Archives direct digital object. 237UAP00612.pdf, FAA UAP report record copied from RG 615 bulk digital objects. https://s3.dualstack.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-615/493468575/237UAP00612.pdf
Hugging Face dataset. oxzoid/space-track-tle-history: historical TLE archive used for Starlink screening. https://huggingface.co/datasets/oxzoid/space-track-tle-history
Space-Track.org. Public source for the underlying U.S. Space Surveillance Network TLE distribution referenced by the historical TLE archive. https://www.space-track.org/
Space-Track.org. API documentation for SATCAT and catalog metadata classes used for local enrichment. https://www.space-track.org/documentation#/api
NASA POWER. Hourly point API documentation for meteorological context. https://power.larc.nasa.gov/docs/services/api/temporal/hourly/
NASA/JPL Solar System Dynamics. Horizons API documentation for observer geometry and apparent magnitude queries. https://ssd-api.jpl.nasa.gov/doc/horizons.html
NASA. DONKI space weather API documentation. https://api.nasa.gov/
ADSB.lol. Interactive API documentation and OpenAPI definition. https://api.adsb.lol/docs
ADSB.lol. Historical open-data release documentation. https://www.adsb.lol/docs/open-data/historical/
OpenSky Network. REST API documentation. https://openskynetwork.github.io/opensky-api/rest.html
OpenSky Network. Historical data via Trino documentation. https://openskynetwork.github.io/opensky-api/trino.html
NASA GIBS. Global Imagery Browse Services API documentation. https://nasa-gibs.github.io/gibs-api-docs/
NASA Earthdata. Common Metadata Repository search API documentation. https://cmr.earthdata.nasa.gov/search/site/docs/search/api.html
NOAA / AWS Open Data. GOES public dataset registry. https://registry.opendata.aws/noaa-goes/
NOAA / AWS Open Data. NEXRAD public dataset registry. https://registry.opendata.aws/noaa-nexrad/
NOAA NCEI. Integrated Global Radiosonde Archive. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/products/weather-balloon/integrated-global-radiosonde-archive
Iowa Environmental Mesonet. ASOS/AWOS/METAR data download service. https://mesonet.agron.iastate.edu/request/download.phtml
CelesTrak. Spacetrack Report No. 3: Models for propagation of NORAD element sets. https://celestrak.org/NORAD/documentation/spacetrk.pdf
CelesTrak. Supplemental GP element sets documentation and current endpoint index. https://celestrak.org/NORAD/elements/supplemental/