Navy photographer Delbert Newhouse films a group of objects near Tremonton, Utah
July 2, 1952 · Near Tremonton, Utah · Sighting · Secondary sources only
At about 11 am on 2 July 1952, Navy warrant officer and photographer Delbert Newhouse was driving with his family about six miles from Tremonton, Utah, when they saw ten to twelve bright, round objects. He filmed them with a 16 mm camera, about 30 feet of film, and reported the sighting to the Navy and to Project Blue Book. The Air Force photo laboratory at Wright Field and the Navy Photographic Interpretation Laboratory at Anacostia both analyzed the film. Both ruled out aircraft and balloons, and the Navy also ruled out birds. The Robertson Panel, which met in January 1953, compared the objects to seagulls.
Why it matters (4/5)
A film that the Air Force and Navy analyzed at length and the Robertson Panel reviewed; a central exhibit in the early debate.
Caveats
The Condon Committee later concluded the objects were most likely birds, probably white gulls, and called the Navy's conclusions biased. Newhouse himself said the film fell short of what he saw because he began filming late, and said the first 10 to 20 feet were missing from the copy returned to him. The two pages read take sides (one argues the objects were extraterrestrial), so only the reported facts about the analyses are used. The Air Force and Navy reports, the Robertson Panel report, the Condon Report's own text and the film were not opened.
Video and images
- Historical Film of Reported UFOs, Utah, 1952 (PURSUE Release 06, DOW-UAP-PR159) (Video, DVIDS / AARO)
Sources
- Tremonton film (casebook page) (Patrick Gross (ufologie.patrickgross.org)), context
- Tremonton, Utah, UFO Color Film of July 2, 1952 (Condon Report Case 49, annotated) (Patrick Gross (ufologie.patrickgross.org)), criticism