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DOW-UAP-D102: Project Blue Book File on Tremonton Film, Utah, 1952

Department of War · 2026-09-18 · 156 pages · text from the file's own layer

This Department of War release reproduces Project Blue Book records on the Tremonton, Utah film of 2 July 1952. In them, Navy Chief Photographer Delbert C. Newhouse explains how he filmed a group of bright objects near Tremonton. ATIC memos and a December 1952 travel report record Navy and General Mills balloon specialists judging that the objects closely resembled pillow balloons. A January 1953 memorandum discusses publicly releasing the film. The file also includes unrelated sighting reports from Phoenix and Massachusetts, plus material about Donald Keyhoe.

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•Travel Report - Minneapolis, Minnesota
29, :30, 31 December 1952
On 29 Dec 52, Lt A.G. Flues went to Minneapolis, Minnesota, t.o contact
the Field Representative of ONR and the General Mills Corporation there. The
purpose was to determine if' the UFO's in the Tremonton, Uteh, movies of 2 July
52 might be pillow balloons.
On 30 Dec the films were run off 1n the balloon room of the Physics Building,
'
University of Minnesota. The following were in attendance,
Lt Malcolm Ross, USN
S2C Leroy Harger, USN
CPO Lewis, USN
Dr. Nye, u. of Minn. Balloon lights and geophysics
Dr. Winkler, u. of Minn. Balloon nights and geophysics
Frank c. Jewett, Exec. Vice-President, Research Dept., General
Milla, Ino.
J .. · R. Smith, Chief', Meteorology Dept., General Mills, Inc.
There were various others present all of whom have had experience in
fiying pillow balloons.
The films were run off eight times, at various speeds, and were frequently
stopped at good frames. All were informed of the background data.
It was the consensus of opinion that the objects resembled pillow balloons
1n flight very closely and did nothing that pillows would not do in similar
circumstances. J. R. Smith was the least convinced of this hypothesis; however,
he felt that the objects were a bit too bright and maneuvered a bit too fast.
The head meteorologist of GMI pointed out that winds to' 8,000 rt. at Hill
AFB would probably be different trom those at Tremonton because of topography
and land-sea effect. The extreme stability of the atmosphere on that dq would,
he added, make aseent very slow and would tend to stabilize a pillow at a given
altitude . .Additionally, wind direction is capable or a 180° shift within perhaps
DECLASSIFIED Authority NND 923007

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