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This declassified document is a March 22, 1949 letter from the Security Operations Branch of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission's Santa Fe Directed Operations. It forwards a transcript of a Conference on Aerial Phenomena held at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory on February 16, 1949. At the conference, Dr. LaPaz described the green fireballs, including his own Starvation Peak sighting of December 12, 1948, and argued that they were not conventional meteors. Dr. Teller and others discussed why the fireballs made no sound, and no conclusion was reached.
“Green”19 pages
I Confere:o.ce on AERIAL PBEn'O?SllA Pago 11 Cc.ptc.l.n Neef: i'ell, 1t'o one of those tbinga; it's a llnvy contract and they arc D0t at liberty to divulge tlhat they f'ind, ■o ve hc.ve to go tbrough Waohington, the BureD.u of Ordnmlce., to get the informat ion. Comdr. lbndclkorn: I believe I can get thnt iuf'omation; as a matter of f'e.ct, I feel very certe.in tbat I con. Just a matter ot ~h. Dr. La.Paz: I feel certain if I had contacted Dr. Fred l-1hipple., tor ~le, I could have obtained it, but hin other occ\\!)D,tions keep him away tran that inst.allation. Am. actually I felt as a me iot., it 'Cigb.t vise to have OSI appeal for information re.th.er than to ask tor it directly. C ptain Reef: They did tell uo they weren't using filmu vhich were go1ng to be ausccptible to thooe eoloro. D;;•. Lo.PE.z: But, of course, they o.re mald.na; constant viGUD.l. obcervat1cms and if' you ,1'0%'e able to deter.rd.110 visual. observations 100 mU:ea fran Los Al.tmlos don't reveal the occurrence of bright grean fireballs, I tb1nk it vould be o1snif1cent. I don4t lmw vlly they ahould avoid the 60utb.ern-bal:f ot the Bta.te. Comdr. l 3lldelltorn: Let us say if tlwae had been at ~ h1sa cltituaeo, they vou1d hsv~ been v1o1ble fra!!l ffl11te &mds v1thout mq question. Co.pta.in ee:t: This one or the 30th detin1tely' ve.a Visible tram \-nrlte Sands becauoe CO!i'!tondP.r Holloman 7 and hie v1fe and one ot his ictanto mid his vife 00.V it frooi there. Dr. Le.Po.z: On the otlwr hand., you hc.ve evidence like that ot Prot"eua:,r Talbot ? n.w in chnrge of tho optical trajectory section. daen +.l'l!M'"ft7 an ~rienced natroDam~r, c. meDber of the Aner1can lleteor Society. I talked u1th him &'bout tbio, o.nrl ho ms observed nothing out ot the ordinary. I don't think o.nybody, I menn in the line of green fir ballo, in this o.rca has been ob erv1Dg • much cs he doee. I don't see ho\!' he could mies 1glrt1.na eo:ne ot theDe. Queotion: 'Wl:lat cx,plt.UlG.tion do )IOU have for thia? Dr. ~: ~c only explanation is the one I save 1n the beglnn!ng smd. had my ea.re pronptly boxed tor. I think these fll'e def'enaiv~ man.oei.-veru ot a higher U s. Comm:i\Dd and th ere practising in the nei~ the regians th,_....,- o.re going to defend, so naturally your localization~ Ugbt neo.r tb.o e.tamc bceb inBtnlle.tions, but boy, cm I scolded tor tllat! ET1lll Dr. Ka.plan of the FAD? teUo t!; no, no, the FAD vould knov all o.bout it, an4 they don't have any facta. Dr. Bradbury: Is this the pb.ys1c1ot Kaplan? Di-. Ls.Pe.z: Yeo. Keplan is my old boss. Be ,ma ch1et ot the operat10Dal. sualyeis oect1on vhtm I vas ••••. director there...... During ltaplan's visit
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