Documents / Report

UAP Reported at Sandia Base, 1948-1950

U.S. Department of War · 1948 · 116 pages · text from the file's own layer

This U.S. Department of War file combines security and green fireball records connected to Sandia Base, New Mexico, from 1949. It holds a 7 April 1949 security inspection reply from Detachment D, 1100th USAF Special Reporting Group, at Camp Campbell. It also holds Dr. Crozier's report on airborne copper particles collected after the July 24, 1949 Socorro fireball and Lincoln LaPaz's sixth report on luminous phenomena, both judged negative or inconclusive. The last part is an interim report on unusual lights seen by security personnel at Camp Hood, Texas, on 6 to 8 March 1949.

From the source: Release of 2026-05-22 Incident: 1948-1950, New Mexico. This file contains 116 pages of documentation from the Armed Forces Special Weapons Program (AFSWP) – the direct, post-World War II successor to the Manhattan Project – and from the U.S. Air Force – relating to a series of sightings and investigations in Sandia, New Mexico, from 1948-1950. This file contains 209 sightings of “green orbs,” “discs,” and “fireballs” reported near the military base. Witnesses reported unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) maneuvering, flying out of sight, disappearing, or exploding. The documents also include the results of contemporary investigations into residual copper powder found in some areas where sightings were reported. A few of these investigations became the basis for Project Grudge, which collected reports of unidentified flying objects from various other military installations – also included in this collection.

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dbension oi" ,the o-rder o~ twnty or thirty .:nicrono. There were no Br:lall partielee,
that 1e, no particles 11'1th n iruuiml1!11 di?DeXUiion below 15 microns . ,
J'ollmring tho :f'lrat colleotion, ,additional oolleotions 1f8re nade , tindor aimi•
1ar conditions. over a period of elght daya .
The aooco.pann,ng table su:n:iarisea the colld1t1ons and copper counts ror all
tbese collections , including tho first ono described above. nU!!lbor of the ru.ru,
wero tor periods lor.,;or tfum three minutes , but °'he oouhts have , 1n 'tbeee cases ,
been reduced to the threo-:nnuta equivalent. Olio eolleetion showing oevora.l large
copper indications , tekon J"u~ 25, ia omm:1ttnd fron the to.blo because it was
damaged in courae ot a teai for radioaotivity by exx,osure of a nmlear track plate
(vrith negative reoultn) end a det"inita count oOllld not be made .
The counts are exhibited in tbreo size claeRiflcations, end attention is
directed to tlie :ta.at that particles in the smallest s!ze croup (l to l5 microns)
e::-e practically absent trom the early oollectlona, mil& in the later collectiow,,
particles 1n the largest (.30 mioron.o) 8Ii.d middle (15 to 30 microna} groups have
become cp;ite esoarce. At the same tine, the counto have beccte quite large in tile
:.s:ncllest aizo group.
SIONIFICA~CE OF RESULTS
If 1 t were possible to SflY that particles giving a copper test are generally
very rare in eollectione near groimd leTel in this locaJ.lty, the above facts t'.Ould
bo highly s!gni1'1cant. It l1appens , however, that collections have been :-:,ode at
Socorro over only- a short period, and not .muoh e.tten1i1on has been given to !denti
fica.tion ot copper coJ:lJ)ounds. ::aowever, after the copper indieetions had been round
in the present sories of: collectio•,s, some collections were round on file that hod
been made on plain glycertn- 3aui.tin on july .1,, 1949 . -These r.are oovered ,nth the
Sarun fi-lm and rubeanic eoid C!Jld an::.on1a were appliod by d1 tfusion through tho ·ttlm.
A few copper indications were found, al!nost all the i:e.rtioles being in the 30 micron
size group. Some other co11ection.s were made early 1n ~uly tbo.t will be e::lt8!ninod
tor· 'lopper when they are treed !"roe other tests . lil add1 t1on, oce~ional colloot1ons
will be examined. tor copper in the futll!'e , and 1t may be possible eventually to add
so:neth1ng to tho information now presented.
COllCLUSION6 REGARDING COPPER
In view Qt the above fa.eta , it i,eem:, very hazardous to draw any: definite con
clusion associating ~he coppe~- bearioo perticlos collected with the fireball or 1uly
24. Th.are a till is, hwoTer , a residuum or poasitdlity ot such associations men 1 t
is conoidored th c.t partic!.ss ot 1h c smallest s1 ze group did not appear in largo
numbera until some 35 hours at'ter the po.esege of tl;le fireball .NND 58378

Cases discussed

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Report, from the pursue collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 116 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.