Description

This is part of a series of technical recreations of historic UFO encounters made in Unreal Engine.

Today is the 20th anniversary of this sighting, which has gained in notoriety over the past several years in part due to inclusion in Leslie Kean's blockbuster book about UFOs.

One of the remarkable details about this case is the credibility of the witnesses, which includes a dozen airport personnel. According to FAA reports (which would only be made public much later) a metallic saucer-shaped craft was witnessed hovering over gate C-17 around 4:15pm on November 7 2006.

The saucer stayed there for a bit then shot up through the sky, punching a hole in the thick cloud cover.

One of the things that made this an interesting recreation was that the scene varied greatly from how I initially remembered it. For example, I was under the impression the UFO was seen as much bigger and closer, but on reviewing the reports I realized it was much smaller and further away. I think this is in part because of the fake photos that have been circulating around this event showing a much lower and larger UFO. Another good reminder of why technical recreations can be important.

This recreation mixes Google Earth 3D tiles of the actual O'Hare airport with some purchased airport models for closer shots.