Table of Contents
Iowa UFO Sightings Analysis
We analyzed all 45 UFO sighting reports in Iowa from 2019 to identify possible patterns and gain insight into the phenomenon:
- The most commonly reported UFO shape or appearance is "circle" (7 reports, 15.56% of total).
- August is the month with the most reported UFO sightings (8 reports, 17.78% of total).
- Monday is the weekday with the most reported UFO sightings (11 reports, 24.44% of total).
- 07/01/19 is the single date with the most UFO sightings reported (2 reports, 4.44% of total).
- Sightings occur more often during the night, between the hours of 20:00 - 23:59 (21 reports, 46.67% of total).
Iowa UFO Sighting Reports in 2019
This is a sampling of 20 Iowa UFO reports from 2019, presented as they were submitted other than paragraph breaks added for easier readability where necessary.
You can click the 'Report' link to view the original report along with any photos that may have been submitted to the National UFO Reporting Center (NUFORC).
Full Report Text:
Row of 10-12 circles My sister and I were traveling to Chelsea. Driving on E66 we were at the intersection of E66 and T ave seen a row of 10-12 bright circular lights lined up in a perfect line. They where close to the ground and where probably as long as a semi or if not two semis.
They stayed there for a unknown amount of time and could be seen a couple miles away on 360th street and s ave.
Full Report Text:
10-12 circular lights lined up on a hill My sister and I were traveling to Chelsea. Driving on E66 we were at the intersection of E66 and T ave seen a row of 10-12 bright circular lights lined up in a perfect line. They where close to the ground and where probably as long as a semi or if not two semis.
They stayed there for a unknown amount of time and could be seen a couple miles away on 360th street and s ave. When we went back there was nothing there and it is just a big open field with a hill. I didn’t think of taking a picture of what we seen until we were almost to our destination, and could still see the lights.
Full Report Text:
Multiple Objects moving East in a row one after another.
Full Report Text:
8 lights flying South to north equal distance from each other and disappeared as they reached an apex in the sky. We were outside letting our pets go to the potty. We were looking up at the sky remarking how clear it was and how many stars were out.
Then it was asked what constellation/formation “that” was – and we noted 7 lights, equal distance apart flying from south to north in a straight line. We watched the lights travel and after they go to a point in the sky – they disappeared. I did note that there were 8 because after we counted the initial 7 – there was an additional one that did appear to come a bit after the first 7.
We watched and looked to see if these lights/planes had gone behind a cloud – but it was clear there was nothing. They were just white lights – no flashing and no noise.
Full Report Text:
MADAR Node 133.
Full Report Text:
Orange lights in triangle formation My wife and I were driving home from dinner last night and saw orange lights in the sky. There were three lights in a triangular formation flying NNE at typical small aircraft speed. The formation did not change as the lights moved across the sky.
Once the three were out of sight or turned east and lights were not visible, three more flew along the same flight path one at a time and disappeared at roughly the same point. There was no noticeable sound associated with the fly over.
Full Report Text:
I was driving home after dropping off a friend. as we were hanging out, we were looking at the sky and saw a very weird looking shooting star but thought nothing of it. But as I headed home I noticed a weird light emitting from an object I thought was a flipped car, as I kept driving trying to decide if I should go back and see what it was, I saw that the light still was bright and shining at me as if it was pointing light in all description.
So me being curious turned around to check it out, as I did I video taped it to send it to my friend I was hanging out with, joking about seeing as a ufo, but as I was taking the video, I slowed down and realized to my horror it really was moving like a ufo, and as I was stopped there, it started moving towards me and I started going again, on the video you can see that my view was lost momentarily behind a barn, as I gained sight again it was moving somehow instantly much closer to me . Going at the same speed as me! parallel and behind me a little bit. I have video here, I have no idea what to do this is a super scary experience.
Full Report Text:
Points of light moving across the sky Looked to southwest sky and seen what I thought was a satellite then another appears then one every five seconds in a straight line for five minutes heading northeast.
Full Report Text:
Light disk object bigger than plane enters atmosphere. Found a light shining during the sunset it's shining in the sky. At first I thought it was a plane but it just stayed there.
After 20 minutes it was still in the same place. Later when the lighting changed to a red but quickly changed back to its original state. I could tell it was a disk shape since you can see black around it.
I am currently outside seeing this and typing it. So what I notice about it l. It's blinking and stops for a moment and starts again.
We saw a plane pass it from a distance and by the naked eye you could tell it's way too big to be a plane.
Full Report Text:
Seen while driving home to the west. Looked like an orange light that got close really fast then disapered in a blink.
Full Report Text:
Circle of lights flashing different colors and yellow larger lights Circle of lights blinking on and off flashing different colors. Then saw more and they were balls of light and was flying the speed of the vehicle we were in keeping up with us.
Full Report Text:
Bright orange ball over Iowa At approximately 20:57-20:59, there was a bright orange fireball over Iowa. It traveled straight down extremely fast, and appeared as it was almost a large meteorite falling from the sky. Once it got about 100 feet from the ground, The light completely went out and it disappeared into the clear sky.
There were never any sounds and I was waiting for the sound of impact but it never came.
Full Report Text:
My Son and Myself had taken His Son to Sioux Falls South Dakota on 9/24/2019. On the way back at 10:34 PM exactly 63 miles from Council Bluffs, Iowa and Omaha Ne.we saw ahead a Blinking Strobe Light in the distance ahead.
We looked at each other and said almost simultaneously. What Is That? It did not appear to be moving.It Kept Strobing with a Very Bright Light.
As we came near it some miles ahead, We approached the object, it did not appear to be moving, just Strobing, Brightly on and off. As we Finally met up with it, which was about m7 minutes. it was next to us, across the Field next to the interstate, with not a car in sight, and Black as can be.
It was just Strobing above the Middle of this, what seemed like a Field about 500 feet above, Quietly. I looked for a Pole or some sort of Ground Support, and there was None! as we passed it I did not Notice any Red warning Lights for Aircraft. We Kept Vocal about how strange this was.
Then as we passed it above ! what seemed like an empty field,it Just Disappeared!I Finally had a witness as I have seen the same entity before, but don't tell everybody. It seems best to keep it to yourself. I would have not said anything, except that my son was with me, a NO Nonsense kind of guy,.
Full Report Text:
Son driving home- in the country. He saw a circular shape rotating with 3 bright lights. The lights were also circulating.
The object was following him, and he was driving a pick up with cab lights pulling a trailer with lights also. We felt the object was intrigued by this and followed him. He called us and asked if we were watching it, and when we went to the window to look it shot off to the SE extremely fast and disappeared.
Full Report Text:
Standing alone object in night sky changes color after I shine flashlight on it. On September 2nd, the day and night after Labor Day; I witnessed a white circular object in the night which my step dad said had been seen before by his naked eye. I proceeded with my mom to go outside and shine a flashlight on the object.
The object went from white circular to orange yellowish to green. At that time I got scared and went inside because the boogeyman really did exist. Ha ha ha.
That's that.
Full Report Text:
MADAR Node 108.
Full Report Text:
Diferent colored lights changing shape We had a cloudy night and it stayed above the clouds. All I could see was the colored lights changed shapes and it was in a square then a triangle shape then lights shot around so fast we couldn't have done it. The lights were white, red, green and blue.
Where it left the clouds left like it was hiding behind it.
Full Report Text:
7 bright lights in the form of a triangle but saw no structure and appeared black in the sky and did not move I went out on my patio and noticed lights above me in the sky. There were 7 bright lights in the form of a triangle. They were above my Oak Tree in height but the length, I couldn't tell because I saw nothing other than the lights but extended about 60 ft from the front one to the last set of two.
They did not move. I watched for 1-2 minutes. I was alarmed and went inside to get someone to come out and see.
Upon going back out, it was gone. Later on the news reported there were others that were spotted in other parts of Illinois and showed a drawing. I became very alarmed because it was exactly what I had seen.
I know what I saw, so for those who don't believe I wish they would have experience what I did. Now I'm fearful that I was spotted by something and witness to it.
Full Report Text:
Did not see the light in the sky. It was sunset and there was some very interesting mid-altitude shadowing that seemed to have no origin and I was hoping to catch a picture of it, while driving, so I could get a better idea of what was causing it when I got back to the hotel. Overall, I had taken 7 pictures while driving on I-235 between Valley West Drive and 50th where I exited.
Of the 7, 6 show the triangle set of lights. This was not seen by me personally at the time of the photos. Nothing else odd needed to report.
Full Report Text:
I left my driveway, turned right as a storm hit and I saw this truck sized, bright green fireball flying away from the storm. This ball was bright green, it was so fast as if trying to escape the storm and it was not falling from the sky like an asteroid, nor was there any impact in town which would have sounded like a bomb had it come down and struck something. This was traveling parallel to the boulevard that goes out of town above the electrical wires by approx.
12 feet. I was afraid to tell anyone, and I couldn't think of what calling the police would accomplish. I found about this site just recently.
I don't know what I saw, but it seemed intelligent or intelligent driven based on its trajectory and speed and size. I'm wondering if I'm alone in seeing something like this. It doesn't seem to match any other descriptions I've seen on television or heard of on radio pod casts.
I'd like to feel there's some normalcy to what I've seen.
Iowa UFO Sightings From 2019 By Shape
This is a standardized set of shapes a UFO report can be filed under.
Shape / Appearance | Sightings | % Of Total |
---|---|---|
Circle | 7 reported sightings | 15.56% of all reports |
Light | 7 reported sightings | 15.56% of all reports |
Fireball | 4 reported sightings | 8.89% of all reports |
Unknown | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
Sphere | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
Cigar | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
Triangle | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
Cylinder | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
Changing | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
Chevron | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
Flash | 1 reported sightings | 2.22% of all reports |
Other | 1 reported sightings | 2.22% of all reports |
Disk | 1 reported sightings | 2.22% of all reports |
Rectangle | 1 reported sightings | 2.22% of all reports |
Formation | 1 reported sightings | 2.22% of all reports |
Iowa UFO Sightings From 2019 By Month
This data point is an aggregation of all UFO reports by the month the sighting occured in.
Month | Sightings | % Of Total |
---|---|---|
August | 8 reported sightings | 17.78% of all reports |
December | 7 reported sightings | 15.56% of all reports |
July | 5 reported sightings | 11.11% of all reports |
September | 4 reported sightings | 8.89% of all reports |
May | 4 reported sightings | 8.89% of all reports |
June | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
March | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
February | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
October | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
January | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
November | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
April | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
Iowa UFO Sightings From 2019 By Weekday
This data point is an aggregation of all UFO reports by the day of the week the sighting occured on.
Weekday | Sightings | % Of Total |
---|---|---|
Monday | 11 reported sightings | 24.44% of all reports |
Sunday | 9 reported sightings | 20.00% of all reports |
Saturday | 9 reported sightings | 20.00% of all reports |
Tuesday | 8 reported sightings | 17.78% of all reports |
Friday | 4 reported sightings | 8.89% of all reports |
Thursday | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
Wednesday | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
Iowa UFO Sightings From 2019 By Date (Top 5)
This data point is an aggregation of all UFO reports by the date the sighting occured on, limited to the top 5 dates with the most sightings.
Date | Sightings | % Of Total |
---|---|---|
07/01/19 | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
08/24/19 | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
12/27/19 | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
12/22/19 | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
05/26/19 | 2 reported sightings | 4.44% of all reports |
Iowa UFO Sightings From 2019 By Time
This data point is an aggregation of all UFO reports by the time of day the sighting occured during. We took logical 4 hour windows in order to split the day into early morning, morning, afternoon, evening, night, and late night buckets for this analysis.
Time Of Day | Hours | Sightings | % Of Total |
---|---|---|---|
Night | 20:00 - 23:59 | 21 reported sightings | 46.67% of all reports |
Early morning | 04:00 - 07:59 | 7 reported sightings | 15.56% of all reports |
Evening | 16:00 - 19:59 | 7 reported sightings | 15.56% of all reports |
Late night | 00:00 - 03:59 | 6 reported sightings | 13.33% of all reports |
Morning | 08:00 - 11:59 | 3 reported sightings | 6.67% of all reports |
Afternoon | 12:00 - 15:59 | 1 reported sightings | 2.22% of all reports |
All Iowa Cities with reported UFO sightings in 2019
These are running counts of how many UFO sighting reports were filed per city in Iowa, in 2019
Other Years with Reported UFO Sightings in Iowa
These are running counts of how many UFO sighting reports are filed per year in Iowa.