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Civilian reports · Source: NUFORC

UFO sightings in Iowa

There are 44 civilian UFO sighting reports from Iowa in the NUFORC data on this site, dated 1965 to 2013. The busiest year was 2013, with 8 reports. The shapes witnesses reported most were orb (13), triangle (12) and sphere (9).

Most reports come from Des Moines (5), Cedar Rapids (4) and Waterloo (4), out of 28 places in the state with at least one report.

By place

UFO sightings by city in Iowa

Places with at least three reports. 24 other places in Iowa have one or two.

The reports

Recent sighting reports from Iowa

All 44 reports, newest first.

Witness onlyCivilian accounts. Not checked by this site.
  1. 25 Oct 2013 · 22:15WaukeeSphere· 7 min

    Multiple bright yellow-red circular lights sighted travelling SW to NE over Waukee towards Des Moines.

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  2. 25 Oct 2013 · 20:00Des MoinesTriangle· 10 s

    Large low-flying craft with orb like lights in a cross shape.

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  3. 24 Oct 2013 · 22:40WaterlooTriangle· 1 min

    Triangular aircraft with yellow and red lights.

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  4. 13 Oct 2013 · 23:30SheldonSphere· 5 min

    Ashton, Iowa sighting.

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  5. 13 Oct 2013 · 18:57Council BluffsFormation· 8 min

    3 bright white amber lights forming a perfect triangle and moving into an arch without a vapor trail.

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  6. 13 Oct 2013 · 18:57Council BluffsOrb· 8 min

    Three white orange lights in the Western sky that formed a triangle then moved into a line before disappearing.

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  7. 11 Oct 2013 · 06:13AnkenySphere· 2 min

    Two slow moving star-like objects suddenly accelerated to light speed heading towards Jupiter

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  8. 1 Oct 2013 · 22:30WaterlooTriangle· 1 min

    My girlfriend and I witnessed a bright orange triangular light in the sky.

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  9. 16 Oct 2012 · 15:30BurlingtonTriangle· 6 min

    10-23-2012 Burlington Iowa multiple traingular and saucer shape ufos seen over Mississippi river on 10-16-2012 at 15:30

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  10. 16 Oct 2012 · 02:00Cedar RapidsTriangle· 30 min

    An object in the sky moved gradually, hovering at times, flashing red, blue and white lights for 30 + minutes, 2 nights in a row.

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  11. 2 Oct 2012 · 21:15ClintonSphere· 10 min

    Non flashing orange lights going westward across Clinton Iowa making no sound

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  12. 2 Oct 2012 · 13:00Cedar RapidsSphere· 10 min

    I was watching a hawk fly around and a round shinny object caught my eye. it was thousands of feet up. It was traveling north to south

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  13. 20 Oct 2011 · 21:15MuscatineOrb· 3 min

    five bright yellow lights leading huge craft

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  14. 15 Oct 2011 · 20:05MuscatineTriangle· 2 min

    Three bright lights in the sky in the shape of a triangle

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  15. 11 Oct 2011 · 19:40Des MoinesOrb· 2 min

    An unexplained, unidentified flying object.

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  16. 15 Oct 2010 · 22:30WaterlooOrb· 10 min

    Bright orange orb quickly passing close by without sound.

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  17. 12 Oct 2010 · 22:30WaterlooOrb· 3 min

    Orange orb came close.

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  18. 2 Oct 2010 · 02:12Des MoinesDiamond· 25 min

    Single light multiplied then came together as a diamond then became one and disappeared.

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  19. 20 Oct 2009 · 23:00OttumwaOrb· 5 min

    flashing light

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  20. 25 Oct 2008 · 22:30Cedar RapidsOrb· 2 min

    Red light dimming in and out across the clear night sky.

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  21. 15 Oct 2008 · 21:00Hancock CountyBoomerang· 1 min

    About 7 lights in a V pattern moving across sky heading north, no sound, lots of other aircraft in the area after the lights left

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  22. 2 Oct 2008 · 20:00MarshalltownTriangle· 5 s

    October 2, 2008 just after 8 p.m. Marshalltown, Iowa, saw a black triangular shaped object, with round green lights in V pattern

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  23. 25 Oct 2007 · 22:30MarionOrb· 15 min

    I was outside smoking a cigarette. I looked over to the field across the street. I saw the first object and thought maybe it's jus

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  24. 24 Oct 2006 · 22:00Fort DodgeTriangle· 30 s

    Iowa UFO invasion!

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  25. 1 Oct 2006 · 17:00AlgonaOther· 1 h

    6 people saw 2 objects in the sky that had lights and were flying in zig-zag patterns in the sky while staying in the same area.

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  26. 27 Oct 2005 · 00:00GliddenTriangle· 5 h

    ((NUFORC Note: PSmall blinking color changing moving lights.

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  27. 11 Oct 2005 · 21:00Wall LakeOrb· 10 s

    strange shit in the sky in sac county iowa.

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  28. 18 Oct 2004 · 22:30Des MoinesOrb· 1 min

    Seen from 29ꯠ ft-- two "stars" stared moving, parallel to one another, and abruptly stopped 15 sec. later. Faded out.

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  29. 19 Oct 2002 · 00:34Story CityTriangle· 5 s

    Green triangle craft dropped out the sky and dissappeared.

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  30. 14 Oct 2001 · 21:03Des MoinesOrb· 5 s

    Red ball of light plummits towards ground and dissapears.

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  31. 10 Oct 2001 · 21:15OttumwaRectangle· 5 min

    We saw a square object at night, which had 2 blue & 2 red lights at corners, hovering in sky above us.

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  32. 10 Oct 2001 · 03:00Rockwell CityTriangle· 4 min

    Large,silent,slow,low to the ground dull-black Triangle UFO with round red lights at it's corners that were off .I drew it.

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  33. 20 Oct 2000 · 21:00West BranchAmorphous· 10 min

    Strange Shape-Changing Object over rural Iowa

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  34. 28 Oct 1999 · 04:47Cedar RapidsOther· 40 s

    I was driving home after work when I was a teardrop silvery and shiny object, (and it was obvious that it was chrome colored) passed ac

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  35. 24 Oct 1999 · 06:00Iowa CitySphere· 3 min

    round white ball beyond treetops straight north moving ENE fluctuating

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  36. 26 Oct 1998 · 24:00SpencerOrb· 4 s

    Traveling north on US Highway 71 at approx. 2am on the north edge of Spencer. Saw blueish green fireball traveling west to east. Had r

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  37. 23 Oct 1998 · 19:00HumestonSphere· 2 min

    hovering objects sighted in iowa.

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  38. 18 Oct 1998 · 04:30BettendorfSphere· 7 min

    SOFT BALL SIZE FLOATING BALL OF LIGHT. APPEARED TO BE UNDER SOME TYPE OF CONTROL.

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  39. 2 Oct 1998 · 19:55BettendorfOrb· 1 min

    Heavy Blue Light beamed down and chased family in house, simular to 50 foot wide search light.

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  40. 1 Oct 1998 · 21:00ClarindaTriangle· 1 min

    silent and large UFO just above tree tops.

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  41. 1 Oct 1995 · 12:00Iowa CityOther· 20 s

    Man witnesses 2 "white" aircraft rendezvous at high altitude, fly toward bizarre obj. approaching very fast. Obj. "sparkled."

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  42. 25 Oct 1975 · 22:25MuscatineSphere· 12 s

    A formation of approx. 16 round fire orange guided craft entered the western sky at "10 o'clock" attitude. As I was watching the clear

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  43. 1 Oct 1966 · 22:30AnamosaOther· 1 min

    large quiet craft, covered with blackness, and "stars" to not be noticed, moving slowly southwest to north north east.

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  44. 15 Oct 1965 · 21:00TaborDisc· 45 min

    Craft hovers noiselessly over witnesses in 1965, in Southwest Iowa, is photographed by 2 photographers, photos stolen later.

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About this data

Where these reports come from

Reports are from the National UFO Reporting Center (NUFORC) public database: what members of the public said they saw, in their own words. Nobody has checked them, and most sightings have ordinary explanations.