Documents / Report
This is the final report of the Scientific Study of Unidentified Flying Objects, conducted by the University of Colorado under Air Force contract F44620-67-C-0035, with Edward U. Condon as scientific director and Daniel S. Gillmor as editor. It was submitted to the National Academy of Sciences on 15 November 1968 for review. The report includes field studies, photographic and radar analyses, case studies, historical chapters and appendices such as the Robertson Panel report and the Twining letter.
Bnd would settle beneath the horizon after midnight. It did
appear to "sparkle" in red-green-white colors, but so do other
stars which can be pointed out from this mountain top.
The officer refers to Rangoon Mountain, elevation 1,927 ft., froll':
which many of the visual observations were made.
The star that the officer saw was in all prohabi 1j ty I. Scorpio
(Shaula) a magnitude 1.7 s~ar at _37" declination and 17 hr. 31 min.
right ascension. It would have set at just about 1:30 a.m. 90th Ircrid-
ian time, if tl.e horizon were unobstructed. An obstruction of only 4°
would cause A Scorpio to "set" at 1:15 a.m. CST; a ·1" angle is equivalent
to a 3S ft. tree or bui Iding ,1.t a distance of 500 ft. "!11e southerly
declinatif,n would indicate tllnt the star was in the southwest, which
is compatible with the visual reports that were suhmitted.
Mditional meteorological effects may hpve hcen present in this
ca5e. In partiCUlar, the southwesterly surface winds present are quite
likely to have advected relatively cool, moi~t air f'om nearhy Lake
Superior under the elevated wann, dry layer noted previously, thus tending
to increase the st~Jngth of the inversion and associated humidity
lapse. Some of the optical effects noticed by the observers in this
instance, strong red-green scintillation. apparent stretc11ing of the
image into a somewhat ov'l1 shape, and the red frin).!;t' on the hottom,
may have been due to strong and irregular local refraction effects in
the inversion layer (or layers).
lins UFO report seems to have resulted from a comhination of an
unusually scintillating star and false radar targ~ts caused hy AP from
a strong t'1('vated layer in the atl1losplwre. '111i~ pattern i~; fO'.lild in
a numher of otlH'l' cases.
Report~ ,...It fl t'lcments simi Ln' to the j1"('c('t, which
is compatit.le with the visual reports that were suhmittcd.
A:lditional meteorological effects may )l"ve heen present in thlS
ca;;e. In particular, the sOClthvlcsterly surface winds present are quite
likely to have advected relatively cool, moi~t air f 'om nearby Lake
Superior under the elevated warm, dry layer noted r~cviously. thus tending
to increase the st~]ngth of the illversion and associated humidity
lapse. Some of the optical effects noticed by the observers in this
instance, strong red-green scintillation. apparent stretc1ling of the
image into a sOInl'whar oV'il shape, and the red fringt' on the hottom,
may have beec due to strong and irregular local refraction effects in
the inver~ion layer (or layers).
1]11.5 UFO report seems to have 1'e';111 ted from a COiilhi 113t ion of an
unusually scintillating ~tar and false radar targ~ts callsed hy i\P from
a strong d(,Vdted layer in th(' atmosphere. '111i~ pattern i~, fO',iild in
a number of otlwr cases,
Re]JC1rt:- l.-it'l t'lC'lllents simil;l!' to th<.' l"'cCL'd.ing (':1"<: ::rc:
11:;-l\~ Nelll"TO AF Det:H:hlllC'nt, 1lokkaiJo, ,Japan, '? I'dJrllHcy 1\)~;,\,
22~n l,~T (l'::10 l;~fn. Weathl'1' lI'as den. ViSlICll '.;('scriptio]) f!ts a
sl'illti llati:1g still' (flashing rl'd :lnd green, lal\'r \,hite wi th intermittent
*cise1wiioei"srcterred to thusly arc so listed in the pl'oJect':; files.
181 Report, from the classic collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 1497 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.