DOW-UAP-D078 is a Department of War notional cartographic document released in PURSUE Release 03 on June 12, 2026. Classified unclassified, it presents an overhead illustration of four separate incidents reportedly involving unidentified anomalous phenomena observed by U.S. federal law enforcement special agents operating in the western United States during a period of several days in October 2023.12
Provenance and Document Type
DOW-UAP-D078 is assigned the Department of War identifier DOW-UAP-D078 and falls into the category of briefing-support visualization rather than a primary observational record. Its purpose is organizational and presentational: to situate four distinct agent-reported incidents on a shared geographic canvas so that their approximate distribution across the western United States can be apprehended at a glance.
The document's chain of custody runs from the reporting field agents who initially described the phenomena, through whatever internal Department of War UAP collection and analysis process assigned the incidents documentary identifiers, and ultimately into the PURSUE Release 03 disclosure package published on June 12, 2026. No classification markings other than UNCLASSIFIED are visible in the released version, and no originating office below the Department of War level is identified in the available metadata.3
An important structural caveat governs how this record should be read. The document itself carries a disclaimer stating that all images were artificially generated using the platform at https://genai.mil/, that the depicted phenomena are enlarged for illustrative purposes only and are not to scale relative to their actual reported size, that distances shown on the map are not to scale, and that all locations are explicitly described as notional -- they do not accurately represent the relative positions of the observers or the reported phenomena. This disclaimer removes the map from the category of reconstructed evidence and places it squarely in the category of a visual briefing aid.
What the Document Contains
The central visual element is a grayscale topographic rendering of the western United States. Overlaid on this base map are several annotated layers: blue circles marking observer positions, white lines connecting those observer positions to the approximate reported incident locations, and callout boxes summarizing each incident in the language used by the reporting agents. An orange sphere rendered in the center of the map stands in as a notional representation of one of the observed phenomena. Orange dots with ellipsis marks in the upper right of the composition indicate additional data points or observations that fall outside the primary mapping area but are part of the same reporting set.3
The four incidents are labeled and described in the callout annotations. The labeling language is taken from the agents' own field characterizations.
The Four Reported Incidents
Incident 1: "Orbs Launching Orbs"
Federal law enforcement special agents reported observing multiple instances of what they described as an orange "mother orb" appearing to launch smaller red orbs. The language of "launching" implies observed separation of smaller objects from a larger parent phenomenon -- a morphological characteristic unlike conventional aircraft or known atmospheric phenomena. The observer position for this incident is marked in the northern portion of the map. The document does not provide a specific distance estimate for this observation.3
Incident 2: "Fiery Orb"
Agents reported observing a large fiery orb projected against a ridgeline backdrop. Unlike the other three incidents, this observation includes a specific approximate distance measurement: 1,000 yards from the observer position. The ridgeline context suggests a terrain-relative observation that would have allowed some range estimation. The observer position is marked in the central-southern portion of the depicted area.3
Incident 3: "Dark Kite"
Agents reported a thin or dark kite-shaped object bearing one red light and one white light. The dual-light configuration is a detail that could assist in identifying the object's orientation or structure, though no further analysis is provided in the document. The distance is characterized as close estimated range without a specific quantified value. The observer position is marked in the western portion of the map.3
Incident 4: "Translucent Kite"
Agents reported a translucent kite-shaped object at close estimated range. The translucent characterization distinguishes this observation from Incident 3 in terms of optical properties, even as both share the same broad geometric form. Whether these represent two sightings of the same object under different conditions, two separate objects of similar shape, or an artifact of differing observer perceptions is not addressed in the document. The observer position is marked in the southwestern portion of the map.3
Analysis of the Incident Set
Taken together, the four incidents from October 2023 present a range of morphological types. Two incidents describe spherical or orb-like phenomena: one in which a parent orb appeared to project smaller orbs, and one described as fiery against a terrain feature. Two incidents describe kite-shaped objects differing primarily in their optical properties (dark versus translucent). All four were reported by U.S. federal law enforcement special agents, a reporting population whose professional training in observation and description is relevant context for assessing the quality of the underlying reports -- though the document does not discuss the agents' specific backgrounds or methods.
The temporal clustering of four incidents over several days in October 2023 in the western United States suggests either a concentrated geographic focus by investigators or an increase in reported observations during that period. The document does not address whether the four incidents occurred in the same subregion of the western United States or were spread across a broader area -- the disclaimer that all locations are notional makes geographic inference from the map itself unreliable.
The use of comparative and descriptive language by reporting agents -- "mother orb," "fiery orb," "dark kite," "translucent kite" -- indicates observers characterizing objects for which standard aviation terminology did not apply. None of the four descriptions match conventional aircraft, known drone types, or catalogued atmospheric phenomena in the terms used, though the document makes no formal determination about the nature of any incident.
Distance data is sparse. Only Incident 2 provides a quantified range estimate. The other three incidents are characterized qualitatively as close range or provide no estimate at all. This limits any reconstruction of apparent angular size or velocity for those events.
Presentational Methodology
The decision to produce a notional map using artificially generated imagery via genai.mil/ reflects an apparent institutional practice at the Department of War for presenting UAP geographic information in a format that is useful for briefing without revealing operationally sensitive positional or surveillance data. The grayscale topographic base and the AI-generated orange sphere serve as generic visual placeholders that convey the general geographic region and approximate phenomenal appearance without committing to precise coordinates or scale-accurate renderings.3
This approach is consistent with how governments have historically handled sensitive source protection in declassified materials: removing precision that could disclose tradecraft, methods, or specific locations while preserving enough information to confirm that documented events occurred and to communicate their general nature to authorized recipients or the public.
What The Record Supports
DOW-UAP-D078 establishes that the Department of War has in its possession at least four incident reports from U.S. federal law enforcement special agents describing observed phenomena in the western United States during October 2023. It establishes that those reports were considered significant enough to be incorporated into the Department's UAP documentation system, assigned a formal identifier (DOW-UAP-D078), and included in a public disclosure release.
What the record does not establish is the identity, origin, or nature of any of the four reported phenomena. The map is explicitly notional, positions are explicitly inaccurate, imagery is explicitly artificial, and scales are explicitly not representative. The document is a visual summary of characterizations made by field observers, not an analytical conclusion about what was observed. Each of the four incidents remains unresolved and unidentified on the basis of this document alone.