1952 green disc-shaped object circling over Washington, DC, area

I've been reluctant to report this because I was only 3 1/2 years old when I and my parents saw this.  My parents are no longer alive to verify what I report here.  
It was a hot July night in 1952, and my parents and I were sitting in our backyard trying to cool off.  My mother and I were lying on a blanket, looking at the stars.  My mother was pointing out various constellations to me when I noticed a small green, disc-shaped object circling in a tight oval path.  It seemed to me very small and far away.  I asked my parents what it was.  They had no idea, but they became quite interested in it.  My mother eventually went into the house and phoned someone to report what we were seeing.  I don't kinow who she phoned--police, media, or whatever.  The following morning, our newspapers (Washington Post, Washington Daily News, etc.) were full of front page reports of UFOs over DC.  The photos that appeared in our newspapers in no way resembled what my parents and I had observed.  With 50-some years of hindsight, I now wonder if I witnessed a "mother ship" to the objects that were photographed over DC that night.  I know this report is way out in left field from what was originally reported about this event, but I think maybe my parents and I saw something in addition to what was reported in the media at that time.
We are grateful to the witness for this report.  Two dramatic events occurred over Washington, D.C., on July 17 and July 24, 1952, which were detected on radar.  The witness may have observed one of the objects on either of those two dates.  PD