A flying saucer, also referred to as a flying disc, is a descriptive term for a type of flying craft having a disc or saucer-shaped body, commonly used generically to refer to an anomalous flying object. The term was coined in 1947 but has generally been supplanted since 1952 by the United States Air Force term unidentified flying objects, UFOs for short. Early reported sightings of unknown "flying saucers" usually described them as silver or metallic, sometimes reported as covered with navigation lights or surrounded with a glowing light, hovering or moving rapidly, either alone or in tight formations with other similar craft, and exhibiting high maneuverability.
An alleged flying saucer seen over Passaic, New Jersey in 1952
News notice printed in Nuremberg, describing 4 April 1561 Nuremberg mass sighting. Discs and spheres were said to emerge from large cylinders. From Wickiana collection in Zürich.
One of the McMinnville UFO photographs from 1950.
Magnification of second McMinnville UFO photograph from 1950.
Unidentified flying object
An unidentified flying object (UFO), or unidentified anomalous phenomenon (UAP), is any perceived airborne, submerged or transmedium phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. Upon investigation, most UAPs are identified as known objects or atmospheric phenomena, while a small number remain unexplained.
The celestial phenomenon over Basel in 1566.
1561 celestial phenomenon over Nuremberg as printed in an illustrated news notice.
November 22, 1896 illustration of a "mystery airship" published in The San Francisco Call
November 29, 1896 illustration of another "mystery airship" published in The San Francisco Call