The infamous UFO crash that occurred in 1947 in Roswell, New Mexico, is the extraterrestrial sighting that brought aliens into mainstream conversation. But the UFOs spotted just weeks before Roswell are even more fascinating, and much more carefully documented. Kenneth Arnold didn’t just experience one of the most interesting and well-researched UFO sightings of the 20th century — his sighting is ground zero for UFOs. After he saw nine unidentified crafts tearing across the sky near Mt. Rainier, Washington, in 1947, reports of UFO sightings dramatically increased, along with the now-colloquial term “flying saucers.” The world would never be the same.

Most of the people who have seen UFOs sensationalize their stories in one way or another. Either they have weird alien stories, make any manner of surrealist claims, or even spin legends about Area 51 via abduction. However, Kenneth Arnold is one person who did not. Throughout his life he stuck to the relatively subdued and original flying saucer sighting facts that he had first stated in 1947. The fact that he never changed a word of his story is enough to make you wonder what he really saw flying over Washington in 1947, and if it really was a legion of flying saucers.