A Meteor that Curved Up?

 A basic premise is that things that go up tend to come down. And things that are usually seen in the sky tend to be things that come down - either in freefall from the pull of gravity or controlled by mechanical means. 

In 1969 there was a case of someone seeing something that was a bit different. It was in the midst of something being seen across Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia. Some other locations also reported seeing something. 

Most thought it had to be very large meteor. Maybe a fireball. 

One individual filled out a Project Blue Book form and drew the course and details of what he saw. The arrows show the object climbing, breaking apart, and disappearing at a higher elevation than it began. There was report of a loud boom. Massive colors.

Explanations ranged from the Aurora Borealis to a very large fireball or meteor.  If the later, one of the strangest with a climbing trajectory...

Was it a decaying satellite, a run amuck missile, or something else entirely?