1973: Bright objects seen in the Monterrey sky during the UFO wave
The UFO wave that swept the United States in 1973 was also felt in Mexico: on the evening of September 5, several Monterrey residents reported bright objects moving at extraordinary speed. The Inexplicata blog revisited the contemporary El Norte article on October 7.
On September 7, 1973, Monterrey's El Norte reported that many of the city's residents had observed unusual phenomena in the sky. According to the paper, opinions were divided: some suspected a man-made object, others an airplane (according to the article, a plane crashed into a hillside that evening, causing a bright flash), and still others spoke of a UFO, or of an astronomical phenomenon, the appearance of a celestial body. Everyone agreed, however, that something unusual happened on Wednesday night: an object emitting intense light and moving at extraordinary speed was seen above the Monterrey sky.
Several witnesses contacted the newsroom. Antonio Cantú, a resident of the El Roble neighborhood, reported that on Wednesday night he saw a bright object above one of the peaks of Cerro de las Mitras, which hovered in the air and then left at extraordinary speed; according to him, the neighborhood was then covered by mist or smoke, which he initially attributed to an airplane taking off or landing. He put the time of the sighting at 9:30 p.m. A woman from the Las Fuentes neighborhood who asked to remain anonymous saw, on the same evening, a burst of intense light resembling a meteor shower. José Lara Valdés, a resident of the San José neighborhood, also observed a bright object above the peaks of Cerro de las Mitras, which first hovered motionless and then moved off at high speed.
The paper also published a fourth account. Alberto Taboada was driving on the stretch of the Laredo–Monterrey highway near Sabinas when a strong light completely illuminated his car. Since he was already close to Sabinas, he pulled into Mario Ancira's gas station, where he and the owner observed several bright objects moving from north to south, toward Monterrey. The El Norte article does not say whether the authorities investigated the incident.
The sober take
According to the contemporary El Norte article, the people of Monterrey themselves suggested several mundane explanations: a man-made flying device, an airplane crashing into a hillside, or an astronomical phenomenon such as a meteor shower. The article does not mention any official investigation or confirmed explanation.